Elon Musk goes to war with Apple over satellites

Elon Musk is now fighting Apple over who controls space-based cellphone signals, and it’s already gotten dirty. The battle kicked off over spectrum—the limited airwaves used to send data—and turned into a full-on war between SpaceX and Apple, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Apple is spending billions to keep iPhones online when there’s no signal. Elon, through SpaceX’s Starlink , has already launched more than 550 satellites to do the same thing. Now they both want dominance in the skies.

The problem though is spectrum is finite, and both companies want more of it to carry their satellite-based services. That’s where the fight blew up. Apple is backing a major satellite expansion by Globalstar, a U.S.-based satellite operator, but SpaceX asked U.S. regulators to shut that down.

The company filed with the FCC to block Globalstar’s request for access to more spectrum, claiming the airwaves used to send emergency texts from iPhones are “underused.”

Elon Musk introduces the SpaceX Dragon V2 spaceship at the SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California. Source: AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File

Apple and SpaceX clash over spectrum and access

But oh this isn’t some cold tech rivalry. It’s actually personal too. People familiar with the situation allegedly told the Journal that Elon was pissed off by Apple’s aggressive space moves. The conflict hit new levels when SpaceX and T-Mobile asked Apple to let them bring Starlink service to iPhones.

Talks between the companies got heated, but they finally reached an agreement. The result: this summer, T-Mobile and SpaceX will roll out their satellite service to newer iPhones. It’ll appear native, like any other carrier signal. But Apple still controls the iPhone’s software and isn’t giving up any of that power.

Apple and SpaceX have talked before about linking iPhones directly to Starlink, but nothing ever came from it. Meanwhile, both companies need each other. Apple’s partner Globalstar is using SpaceX to launch the satellites that will power Apple’s satellite texting feature. And SpaceX, along with T-Mobile, needs access to iPhones for its satellite network to work for users.

There’s no peace behind the scenes, though. Adrian Perica, Apple’s vice president of corporate development, has been at the center of the talks. People involved said he’s been the one engaging with SpaceX to calm the tension. But the relationship is still rocky.

Last year, Apple invested over $1 billion in Globalstar to build out a next-gen satellite network. That upgrade is key to Apple’s new feature, which lets iPhone users send texts, call for emergency help, or request roadside assistance in places with no service. “These satellite features are designed to complement carrier offerings,” Apple said in a statement. “This technology has already helped save lives.”

Tesla and Apple fought over engineers when both were working on self-driving cars. More recently, Apple and Elon’s app X (formerly Twitter) clashed over app store control and ad money. X depends on Apple for iOS distribution and advertising. And Elon’s had enough of it.

At a rally in Philadelphia in October 2024, while campaigning for Donald Trump, Elon said, “The idea of making a phone makes me want to die. But if we have to make a phone, we will.” People close to him said he’s seriously thought about making his own device. The issue is simple: he doesn’t want Apple deciding how apps like X are used or downloaded.

It won’t be easy. Breaking into the smartphone game means taking on Apple and Samsung, who together control about 40% of the market. Analysts say it would be almost impossible to break that kind of dominance without burning billions.

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