Google spent years as a low-key backer of SpaceX. This week it showed what that patience is worth. In a quarterly filing, Alphabet said its Google unit holds $94.1bn in SpaceX shares, following the rocket company’s record IPO.

Google was an early investor, and more recently struck a large compute deal with the company. The stake has quietly padded Alphabet’s profit as SpaceX’s value climbed. The disclosure lands days after the Nasdaq debut that made SpaceX a public company.

Locked up, for now

Most of the holding sits frozen. After an IPO, big shareholders usually cannot sell straight away. Google said $80bn of its SpaceX shares carry “short-term sale restrictions.” Another $14.1bn stays restricted through the third quarter of next year, the filing said. The paper gain is large. The cash is not yet spendable.

The lock-ups matter because SpaceX shares have swung hard since the debut. The stock slid as the post-listing rally cooled. A holder who cannot sell rides those swings on paper, for better or worse.

A portfolio doing the heavy lifting

SpaceX is not the only outside bet paying off. Alphabet’s portfolio also includes a stake in Anthropic, the fast-growing AI lab. Gains on Alphabet’s investments totalled nearly $100bn in the second quarter, the company said on Wednesday. That lifted net income.

The figure looks striking next to the day job. Alphabet has guided to $205bn in capital spending, much of it on AI data centres. Investors have fretted over that bill. A near-$100bn investment gain softens the blow. It is not the same as core profit.

Why it matters today

The timing is sharp. SpaceX is due to fly Starship again on Thursday, its next flight test. Success would firm up the story behind the shares. A setback would test it. Either way, Google’s balance sheet now moves a little with every launch.

A search company sits on a $94.1bn space stake it cannot yet sell. That is the shape of Big Tech in 2026: the biggest numbers increasingly come from what these firms own, not only what they make.

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