NASA head signals bringing SpaceX rival into lunar mission

The Trump administration is racing with China to put humans on the moon once again, and acting NASA head Sean Duffy says Elon Musk’s SpaceX is falling behind the timeline. He added that the Artemis moon mission will open to other contractors, like rival Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin.

Speaking to CNBC, Duffy said, “We’re not going to wait for one company,” emphasizing the urgency of beating China during President Donald Trump’s term. He aims for US astronauts to return to the moon by 2028, potentially with two providers.

The news boosted shares of SpaceX rivals: Rocket Lab rose 1.6%, Intuitive Machines 4%, and Karman 4.3%.

Duffy suggested Blue Origin as a viable alternative, prompting Musk to criticize the company on X, claiming it had never delivered a payload to orbit, but later corrected himself since the space company’s New Glenn rocket had successfully delivered a test payload.

SpaceX, which won the lunar lander contract in 2021 for Artemis III, faces delays, with the next crewed lunar flyby postponed to April 2026 and the moon landing to 2027.

The company continues to struggle, with its Starship exploding in three of its last five test flights.