NASA plans to bring additional private companies into its crewed lunar missions program, as Elon Musk’s SpaceX is “behind schedule,” the agency’s administrator said on October 20.
In an interview with CNBC, Acting NASA Administrator and U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the agency “is not going to wait for one company” as it moves forward with the Artemis program, whose goal is to return astronauts to the Moon’s surface.
“The Artemis III mission contract was with SpaceX,” Duffy said, referring to the next planned lunar expedition. “By the way, I have great respect for SpaceX—it’s an outstanding company. But the problem is, they’re behind. They’ve pushed back their timelines, and we’re in a race with China. The President and I want the Moon landing to happen within this presidential term, so I’m opening the contracts to other companies. Let SpaceX compete—with, say, Blue Origin.”
The Artemis program traces its origins to Donald Trump’s first term, when he directed NASA to begin renewed efforts to return humans to the Moon. The last crewed lunar mission—Apollo 17—took place in 1972.
In 2021, NASA signed a $2.89 billion contract with Musk’s company to develop the Starship landing system, designed to carry astronauts to lunar orbit and the Moon’s surface. Alongside SpaceX, the agency also partners with other commercial and defense contractors—Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Draper—but SpaceX is responsible for the project’s key element: the lunar lander itself.
In December of last year, NASA announced delays for two planned missions: the crewed lunar flyby was rescheduled for April 2026, and the landing for mid-2027. Over the two years since Starship’s first tests in 2023, the rocket has suffered multiple launch failures.
Musk, who still leads SpaceX, was one of Donald Trump’s closest allies during his 2024 presidential campaign and briefly headed the so-called “Department of Government Efficiency” (Doge). However, relations between the two have cooled over disagreements regarding the tax and budget bill passed by Trump and congressional Republicans. Musk called the legislation “absolutely insane and destructive,” later accusing Trump of being named in the “Epstein files.”
In June, the White House unexpectedly withdrew the nomination of billionaire and private astronaut Jared Isaacman—a close associate of Musk—for NASA administrator. As a result, Sean Duffy, already confirmed as Secretary of Transportation, was appointed acting head of the agency.
On Monday, Duffy announced that NASA intends to accelerate preparations for the next Artemis mission by moving the launch from April 2026 to February. “We are moving forward to win the second space race with China,” Duffy said. “To return to the Moon—to build a camp, a base.”