What the reports say SpaceX is negotiating

SpaceX is in talks with tower owners for access to at least 80,000 cell sites across the United States, according to a Bloomberg report published on October 22, 2026. The company is building Starlink Mobile into a fourth nationwide wireless carrier, and those towers would form the ground half of that network. Shares of AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile dropped within hours of the report.

The sourcing is anonymous. Bloomberg cites people familiar with the matter who asked not to be named, a detail Tech-Insider also reports. Syndicated versions from Investing.com and Yahoo Finance carry the same core details.

As far as public reporting shows, nothing is signed. The reports describe talks, not leases, and no on-record statement from SpaceX or the tower companies has surfaced in the coverage reviewed.

The design is a hybrid one. PhoneArena reported that SpaceX reiterated its vision of a hybrid mobile network on its Q3 earnings call, according to PhoneArena. In that model, satellites reach places towers do not, while ground sites carry dense traffic. The tower talks would give that vision physical form.

Which tower companies are in the talks

Crown Castle is the only tower owner the coverage names as approached. Bloomberg reported that Crown Castle Inc. (CCI) was approached for the purpose. Tesla North puts Crown Castle at about 40,000 US towers, American Tower (AMT) at about 42,000 and Vertical Bridge at about 18,000. The reports do not say whether American Tower or Vertical Bridge are in talks.

Taken together, the three largest owners hold roughly 100,000 towers by those figures, so 80,000 sites would be a large share of that base. For scale, the Wireless Infrastructure Association counted about 158,500 purpose-built cell towers operating in the US in 2025. The 80,000 figure works out to about half of that total.

Rural operators sit close to this story too. Where towers are sparse, a new network layer could change which providers serve which roads and small towns. The reports do not describe any rural deployment plan, so that effect remains speculative for now.

How the spectrum deal fits the plan

The tower talks follow a spectrum purchase. On October 8, SpaceX agreed to buy a nationwide portfolio of up to 14 MHz of paired 800 MHz low-band spectrum. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2027, pending regulatory approval, according to Tesla North.

Low-band spectrum carries signals farther and passes through buildings more easily than higher frequencies. That is why carriers value it for rural coverage and indoor service. Owning that spectrum would give SpaceX the airwaves, and towers would supply the sites where its radios sit.

PhoneArena also reported that SpaceX recently picked up three AWS-3 licenses from Tristar. Those licenses add to the spectrum picture, though the reports do not say how the company plans to use each band.

The satellite side is already in orbit. An Al Jazeera report from 2025 said roughly 600 of the satellites SpaceX calls “cell towers in space” had launched since January 2024 for its direct-to-cell network. The reports on the tower talks do not explain how a phone would move between satellite and ground service.

SpaceX also said it added 1.6 million customers in the third quarter, according to Traders Union. That growth matters because a carrier build-out is expensive, and the company would need a large customer base to pay for towers and spectrum.

Why AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile shares fell

Investors priced in competition before any deal exists. AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile shares moved 4-5% lower in extended trading after the report. Tower operators moved the other way, with CCI and AMT gaining on the news.

SpaceX's listed shares, under the ticker SPCX, rose 1.4% after hours on Thursday, according to Yahoo Finance.

The split reflects two separate bets. Carriers face a possible rival that could press on price and coverage. Tower owners could collect lease revenue if a deal closes. Both bets depend on contracts nobody has announced, so the moves reflect expectations rather than new revenue.

No service, plan or launch date has been announced. The reports give no price and no pricing model, and they use Starlink Mobile as a working label rather than a confirmed product name.

A fourth nationwide carrier could eventually add competition on price and coverage for US subscribers. That outcome requires signed agreements, regulatory clearance for the spectrum and a network build. Each step runs on its own clock.

For now, the most reliable signal is an official announcement from SpaceX or a tower company. A report about talks is a starting point, not a service plan.

What is still unknown about the carrier plan

  • Whether any lease or spectrum agreement will be signed, and when.
  • Which tower companies beyond Crown Castle are in talks, and how far along they are.
  • The price, pricing model, service launch timing and product name.
  • Whether regulators will approve the pending spectrum purchase.
  • Whether SpaceX or any tower company will comment on the record. None had done so in the coverage reviewed.

The original Bloomberg article carries the sourcing details, and the story has been reconstructed from syndicated versions of that report, so precise wording may differ across outlets.

No action is needed yet. Keep your current carrier and plan, since nothing in the reports changes service today.

Readers who depend on coverage in weak-signal areas can take a few practical steps:

  • Note your current coverage gaps and dropped-call locations, so you can test any future offer against them.
  • Watch for an official announcement from SpaceX or a tower company before changing carriers.
  • Check current Starlink terms directly with SpaceX rather than relying on secondhand reports.

What comes next for SpaceX and the tower market

The next signals will come from paperwork rather than speculation. A signed lease with Crown Castle or another owner would show that talks have become contracts. A regulatory decision on the spectrum purchase would show whether SpaceX can assemble the licensed base a carrier needs. Tower companies will report their results in coming quarters, and those filings may reveal whether any SpaceX lease has entered their numbers.