SpaceX already sends Starlink signals from orbit straight to ordinary phones. So why did it just sign Qualcomm to supply tens of thousands of ground cell sites? The answer is about where people actually use their phones. 

Indoors. Satellite signals weaken through roofs and walls. T-Mobile CTO John Saw wrote that more than 70% of mobile traffic happens indoors, Axios reported. 

Cities. “Their service just can’t compete with the terrestrial network in suburban and urban areas, where like 98% of our revenues are,” Verizon CEO Dan Schulman said on October 26. He also said ground networks are “100 to 1,000 times more efficient.” He is a competitor, so this is his assessment. 

SpaceX’s answer. SpaceX plans satellites for coverage plus Qualcomm-powered ground sites for capacity, with rollout from 2027 (Qualcomm). It also plans to use 800 MHz low-band spectrum, which SpaceX says can reach devices inside buildings. That purchase still needs regulatory approval. 

*Video: analysis by Farzad, posted on X on Nov 4, 2026.*