$SPCX Most people think the space datacenter trade is about:
→ GPUs in orbit
→ Optical inter-satellite lasers
→ Starship launch economics
But who brings the data back to Earth?
AI1 routes through Starlink's E-band gateways.
SpaceX contracted Filtronic $FTC.
E-band at 80 GHz.
Friday's space stock dump ($RKLB -8%, $ASTS -10%, $LUNR -13%, $SPCE -24%) was sector rotation into the $SPCX IPO, not a thesis break. With SpaceX now public and the rotation done, the listed names look poised to grind back up.
The obvious candidates:
$RKLB Neutron debut in 2027 against a $2.2B backlog, plus a slot on the DoW Space Based Interceptor program under Golden Dome with Raytheon. Joins the Nasdaq-100 next Monday (June 22).
$ASTS Direct-to-cell constellation deploying BlueBird 8/9/10 this Wednesday (June 17) on SpaceX Falcon 9. Targeting 45 satellites in orbit by end of 2026, with $3B+ cash on hand.
The European alternatives:
$AVIO Italian launcher behind Vega-C, returned to flight in late 2024 with ESA and commercial missions stacked through 2026/27. Also won a slice of ESA's European Launcher Challenge.
$OHB German satellite prime building Galileo Second Generation, ARTES, and inside the SpaceRISE consortium that won IRIS² (EU sovereign secure connectivity). Pure-play European space that hasn't run with the US names.
The hidden players:
$ENSI UK fabless ASIC chipmaker for space communications, and AST SpaceMobile's chip partner (developing the next-gen ASIC for AST's spacecraft payloads). Plus an April 2026 deal with another major European satellite operator: $6.8M NRE plus potential $50M+ supply, against a ~£400M pipeline.
$FTC UK supplier of HF power amplifiers and E-band modules to SpaceX Starlink. SpaceX owns 10%, two production contracts locked in (£15.8M + £47.3M GaN E-band), direct read-through to SpaceX scaling.
Friday was rotation. The thesis is intact.