According to CEO Elon Musk, Starlink will exit its beta next month. However, it is not clear what changes will come as the internet service moves into standard service. Nor is it clear when the company will get through its growing backlog of orders.
Next month
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 17, 2021
Currently, SpaceX’s Starlink has over 100,000 users across the globe. The service is stable, consistent and faster than most rural options in the same area. The service will expand, but presently, it is in fourteen countries, including the United States and Canada.
The fact that the company is exiting the beta is a good thing. This means that SpaceX can trust the stability of the service and that a further rollout is available.
However, the company still has a backlog of over 500,000 users to get through.
SpaceX’s next major hurdle is to drive down the cost of manufacturing while speeding it up simultaneously. Currently, the company produces 5,000 dishes per week, but the company would take two years to clear the backlog at that rate.
