SpaceX employees can't sell their shares yet but have already mapped out their spending plans. Luxury homes. Watches. Private jets. The article presents this as news rather than what happens every time someone gets money.
These rocket engineers spent years calculating thrust ratios and orbital mechanics. Now they're using those same brains to decide between a Patek Philippe and a Richard Mille. Humanity's future in space depends on people who are currently browsing Zillow during stand-up meetings.
The employees have to wait to liquidate. This creates a unique psychological torture where you're technically rich but practically broke. Like being married.
Private jet travel tops the wishlist. Nothing says "I helped advance space exploration" like burning jet fuel to avoid sitting near middle-class people for two hours. Elon Musk built reusable rockets to save the environment. His employees will celebrate by chartering Gulfstreams to Aspen.
The watches deserve special attention. A SpaceX engineer making seven figures will buy a $200,000 watch that tells time worse than his phone. He'll explain the craftsmanship to anyone who notices. No one will notice.
Luxury homes make sense. You need somewhere to store the watches and park the theoretical jet. Also these people work at SpaceX, which means they've been sleeping in their cars in the Hawthorne parking lot for six years. A house with a functioning shower qualifies as luxury at this point.
The summary notes many employees are "already planning" their spending. They're not waiting for the money. They're not being cautious. They're treating illiquid equity like a checking account, which has never caused problems for anyone in tech.
SpaceX builds rockets that land themselves. Their employees can't wait three months without mentally spending money they don't have yet.
Photo by Sven Piper on Unsplash
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