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Space Exploration Technologies Corp. and chipmaker Qualcomm Inc.’s infrastructure to power its upcoming terrestrial cellular service as it prepares to challenge traditional telecom companies like AT&T Inc. , Verizon Communications Inc. and T-Mobile US Inc..

SpaceX to Use Qualcomm’s Dragonwing Technology

In an official statement released on Wednesday, the semiconductor company said that it was partnering with SpaceX to buildout its “Starlink Mobile U.S. nationwide terrestrial 5G network” with the company’s Dragonwing QRU100 and QDU100 5G platforms.

“SpaceX plans for U.S. nationwide deployment rollout to begin in 2027, with tens of thousands of sites deployed over the multi-year agreement,” Qualcomm said.

The company says its infrastructure will use a 64T64R architecture, which essentially means the towers will have 64 individual transmitters and receivers in each antenna panel to provide coverage. The QRU100 provides integrated processing for Massive MIMO radio units, supporting the radio functions behind the 64T64R architecture. The QDU100 handles high-performance, latency-sensitive Layer 1 baseband processing.

“We shouldn’t live in a time where phone calls are still dropping whether you’re at home or on-the-go,” SpaceX’s VP of Starlink Michael Nicolls said in the statement.

“Together with SpaceX, we are building world-leading cellular infrastructure in the United States, advancing 5G today, with an opportunity to lay the foundation for AI-native 6G in the years ahead,” Qualcomm Executive Durga Malladi said.

Elon Musk Hails the Deal

Following the announcement, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took to the social media platform X to express his thoughts on the deal. “Qualcomm’s technology is excellent,” Musk said, quoting a post by the chipmaker’s CEO Cristiano R. Amon on Wednesday.

Qualcomm’s technology is excellent https://t.co/CjRNbKK8H3

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 4, 2026

Traditional Telecom Vs. SpaceX

Starlink’s entry into the cellular network space has drawn concern and ire from traditional telecom operators. CEO Musk, late last month, said that Starlink was introducing new pieces in the cell service “chess board” that could “fundamentally alter” the sector. He had also said that the service will cause an “earthquake” the telecom industry.

However, Verizon CEO Dan Schulman, during the company’s Q3 2026 earnings call, said that there could be room for collaboration with SpaceX, but warned that there were no “backdoors to any of our MVNO agreements” and that he did not see the “benefit” to extending an “MVNO deal to any satellite provider.”

On the other hand, executives from all traditional telecom companies think that satellite providers will not be able to compete with terrestrial networks, due to regulatory hurdles, as well as technological and physical limitations.

Price Action: SPCX shares were down 1.77% to $133.52 during overnight trading on Wednesday.