Starlink
Satellite internet service operated by SpaceX through a low Earth orbit constellation, serving homes, businesses, ships and aircraft, with a direct-to-cell service for mobile phones run with partner operators.
Industry: Satellite internet | Location: United States | Founded: 2015
About Starlink
Starlink is the satellite internet service operated by SpaceX. It delivers broadband through a constellation of low Earth orbit satellites to households, businesses, airlines and ships, and has added a direct-to-cell service that connects ordinary phones through partner mobile operators. The first Starlink Direct to Cell satellites were launched in January 2024, when a Falcon 9 carried 21 satellites, six of them equipped for direct-to-cell service. By July 2024 SpaceX had more than 100 direct-to-cell satellites in orbit, and Starlink's February 2025 announcement referred to a direct-to-cell constellation of more than 400 satellites. Carrier partners for the messaging service include T-Mobile, Rogers in Canada, Optus in Australia, One New Zealand, KDDI in Japan, Salt in Switzerland and Entel in Chile and Peru. The customer base has grown quickly. A trade report said Starlink nearly doubled its subscribers in 2025 to more than 9 million, from 4.6 million at the end of 2024, while another estimate put the figure at about 8 million. Between July 2024 and July 2025 the service reportedly entered 42 new countries and territories and added more than 2.7 million customers. Starlink's own milestone posts counted about 150 countries, territories and other markets in August 2025, and one report put availability at more than 155. More than 2 million subscribers are in the United States, and by October 2025 the service was live in 23 African countries. One report said more than 40 million people used Starlink on cruise ships and airlines in 2025. In the Middle East, regulators have licensed the service market by market. Qatar issued a licence in 2022, according to AGBI. Oman's regulator granted Starlink Muscat a Class 1 licence for nationwide fixed public telecom services, and The National reported that service went live there in March 2025. The National also reported that Starlink became available in Jordan in April 2025. In May 2025 AGBI reported that Starlink was in talks to enter the Iraqi market. The UAE issued a maritime licence in 2024, reported to run for ten years, and AGBI reported in March 2026 that Starlink had begun service in the country. Elon Musk said that Saudi Arabia had approved Starlink for aviation and maritime use. In Kuwait, the Communication and Information Technology Regulatory Authority announced on 16 March 2026 that it had granted Starlink a licence after the company met its technical and regulatory conditions. Alghanim's Sama X began reselling the service the following day.
Leadership
- Elon Musk, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SpaceX