> If they have the most advanced rockets and satellites, then surely they can sell those products?

That's just a really strange thing to say. Before you can sell something you have to develop it, build the factory to build it (many times) and then scale up its operation. That takes years and costs many billions.

> The profit from the sales would fund research into their next big product.

The whole point of funding is that you can scale faster. This is like a really really basic thing that I expect everybody on Hacker News to understand. SpaceX did the same thing when they moved from Falcon 1 to Falcon 9.

> So if SpaceX needs to continue raising cash, they're selling the product at a loss, meaning that they're not in fact significantly cheaper than the competition. They're just dishonest about their pricing.

You falsely assume that raising cash implies that products are being sold at a loss. This simply isn't the case, and if that is your understand you are simply wrong. By all information we have from analists, journalist and investors, SpaceX core products they currently sell are very profitable for them. And the Falcon/Dragon architecture continues to see more investment like pad upgrades and other optimizations.

If SpaceX books proved that re-usability doesn't work, why would they be valued so highly in the first place. DoD and NASA have recognized this. Pretty much every other rocket company has recognized this. Even competitors ULA and Arianespace have recognized it. To claim that it is all some vast scam by SpaceX is just not a credible argument.

Arianespace has made this same accusation that you made, but unlike with the case of Boeing they have not brought this case to the WTO. This very likely is because they know they would lose horrible and expose the fact that they actually have far, far, far more direct subsidy in Ariane Group.

Since you don't seem to be moved easily I will give you some actually details of what SpaceX actually does with the raise cash. If your assertion were true, that SpaceX raises cash to finance their operation, where did they get the case for these things:

Raptor:

- Developing the full flow stage combustion engine to fly. They also developed a Raptor Vacuum.

- Raptor continues to get a lot of investment, now on the third iteration. Raptor 3 has just complete its first full test fire. It again breaks its record.

- Volume Raptor manufacturing line in Hawthorne.

- SpaceX is building a new high volume Raptor engine manufacturing facility in McGregor Texas

- They are also expanding testing capabilities there to support the high volume manufacturing.

Starship:

- Huge production facility in South Texas continues to be built up. New major Highbay currently. Additional factory buildings being added right now.

- Launch pad and testing facility are being expanded and upgraded.

- Starship evolution and development continues, with newer version already being built and even newer version are in competent testing.

- Starship heat-shield required a whole new factory, this factory is in Flordia.

- Compenents of Starship are also built in SpaceX facotry in Hawthorne

- SpaceX adding

Starlink:

- SpaceX already has the highest volume satellite factory in the world in Seattle.

- SpaceX is currently building a new even bigger satellite factory in Austin

- SpaceX also need factories to mass produce both ground stations and the terminals.

- Given that Starlink makes SpaceX into a global ISP, SpaceX has to set up offices in every country, go threw regulatory processes in every country. That takes capital as well.

- After initial Starlink sats were designed and mass produced SpaceX didn't stop, Starlink v2 is already being launched with many improvements. Starlink v2 include a complete new propulsion systems, and pioneering inter-satellite laser link.

These are all very capital intensive project and labor intensive development projects, funding these things only with the profit from it current business would be insane. And SpaceX simply could not invest in all of these things at the same time if their core business was bleeding money.

Starlink is already producing significant cash flow with 1.5 million subscribers. SpaceX announced its now cashflow positive. That is quite an achievement given how new the technology is and that the primary launch vehicle that will reduce cost isn't online yet.

Starship is of course not yet making much money. The lunar lander contract with the government is milestone based, that means it will only be paid out when goals are achieved. This means SpaceX needs to raise or lend money to do the development and production so that they can then get it back from NASA once milesstones are achieved.

What SpaceX has raised:

- 2023: 750M

- 2022: 2B

- 2021: 1.5B

- 2020: 2B

- 2019: 1.3B

- 2018: 500M

- 2017: 500M

This if for all the things mentioned above.

Now lets actually compare SpaceX to some competitors:

- Ariane 6, only a marginal upgrade over the Ariane 5 using mostly components already developed for the Ariane 5 ME. Will cost at a minimum 5 billion $ (likely more when its actually done).

- SLS rocket has cost 23 billion $ in development cost.

- All of Project Kuiper is planned to need 3,236 satellites. Just the launch alone will likely cost Amazon 10 billion $.

Given the capital intensity of aerospace projects I think the amount of money SpaceX raised to run 2 of the largest aerospace projects in the history of humanity is pretty damn reasonable.