Billionaire investor Bill Ackman just threw out an intriguing idea: what if SpaceX went public through his special purpose acquisition rights vehicle, and Tesla Inc. (TSLA) shareholders got first crack at investing?
In a Saturday post on X, Ackman laid out a proposal to merge SpaceX with Pershing Square SPARC Holdings, a vehicle created by his firm Pershing Square Capital Management. The structure would hand out SPARs—special purpose acquisition rights—to Tesla shareholders, letting them either invest directly in SpaceX or sell their rights for cash.
"This would reward loyal Tesla shareholders with the opportunity to invest in SpaceX, while totally democratizing the IPO process," Ackman wrote.
The timing makes sense. Elon Musk himself said during Tesla's November shareholder meeting that he wanted Tesla supporters to have ownership access to SpaceX. Ackman's proposal would deliver exactly that.
How the SPARC Structure Would Work
Here's where it gets technical but interesting. Ackman's plan would distribute 0.5 SPARs per Tesla share, creating roughly 1.723 billion SPARs in total, including 61.1 million already issued. Each SPAR would be exercisable for two shares of SpaceX, implying about 3.446 billion shares overall.
The beauty of this structure, according to Ackman, is what it eliminates: no underwriting fees, no founder stock, no shareholder warrants. Just 100% common stock capitalization. Pershing Square would even waive its sponsor warrant rights.
The Money Part Gets Really Interesting
The capital raising flexibility here is substantial. At an exercise price of $11.03 per SPAR, SpaceX would pull in approximately $42 billion total—about $38 billion from SPAR exercises plus another $4 billion from Pershing Square. But if the exercise price jumped to $42, total proceeds would balloon to roughly $148.7 billion.
Ackman noted the structure allows flexibility between primary and secondary shares, giving SpaceX options on how to use the capital.
The proposed timeline is aggressive: complete due diligence and nail down a definitive agreement within 45 days, targeting a mid-February announcement.
The xAI Sweetener
If this SPARC merger happens, Ackman and Musk—both close allies of President Donald Trump—would be calling the shots on SpaceX's funding and structure. But there's another potential upside for investors.
SPAR holders who exercise their rights would also receive Pershing Square SPARC Holdings II SPARs, providing potential future access to a public offering of Musk's artificial intelligence company, xAI. Think of it as a two-for-one deal on Musk ventures.
The stakes are enormous. In early December, rumors swirled that SpaceX was seeking funding at an $800 billion valuation, which Musk publicly shot down. But reports now suggest SpaceX is preparing for a potential IPO that could reach up to $1.5 trillion—a valuation that would dwarf major aerospace rivals and underscore just how massive the opportunity is that Ackman's SPARC proposal is trying to capture.