SpaceX's acquisition of xAI triggers a frenzy in A-shares: Musk's space energy puzzle can't do without the Chinese manufacturing code
At the moment when Elon Musk announced SpaceX's acquisition of xAI, the sky - high figures in Silicon Valley found the most direct resonance in the A - share market on the other side of the Pacific. A "puzzle game" originating from the US capital market is opening up an unexpected path for the Chinese photovoltaic industry to break free from the involution.
On February 2nd local time, SpaceX, a company under Elon Musk, officially announced that it would acquire its artificial intelligence company xAI through an all - stock transaction. This century - long merger, which values xAI at up to $250 billion and the combined entity at $1.25 trillion, has its core purpose firmly pointed at energy: to build a space AI data center network powered by millions of solar satellites.
Almost simultaneously, on February 3rd, the photovoltaic sector of China's A - shares soared. Zerun New Energy even closed with a gain of more than 20%.
The capital market has revealed a hidden industrial chain logic in the most straightforward way: To realize the "space sunny day" energy blueprint depicted by Musk, it is impossible without China, the only country on Earth with large - scale and high - tech photovoltaic manufacturing capabilities.
When the Shortage of US Manufacturing Meets China's Transformation Pains
The timing of the acquisition happened to coincide with a critical juncture when the energy and industrial policies of China and the US diverged.
On the other side of the Pacific, in 2026, China's photovoltaic industry is undergoing an active "refinement." Since April 1st, 2026, China will officially cancel the value - added tax export rebate for photovoltaic products. The complete withdrawal of this tax bonus that has lasted for many years is regarded by the industry as a decisive move by the state to push the photovoltaic industry out of the dilemma of low - price competition and "external involution."
"Canceling the export rebate helps promote the rational return of foreign market prices and reduces the risk of trade frictions." The view of the China Photovoltaic Industry Association points out the profound meaning of the policy. At the same time, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has made it clear that in 2026, it will further strengthen the regulation of photovoltaic production capacity and promote the orderly exit of backward production capacity. The combined effect of policies aims to transform China's photovoltaic industry from the "king of scale" to the "king of quality."
Meanwhile, the US industrial policy is creating a different scenario. The "The One Big Beautiful Bill Act" passed in 2025 shortened the eligibility window for wind and solar tax credits and introduced product restrictions on "foreign entities of concern."
Deloitte's analysis points out that these restrictions have increased the pressure on the supply chain. As a result, despite the US having ambitious AI and space plans, there are significant shortages in its domestic capabilities for the whole - line equipment and large - scale manufacturing of next - generation high - efficiency photovoltaic cells (such as HJT and perovskite).
One side's policy is forcing industrial upgrading, while the other side's policy is exposing manufacturing shortages. This structural mismatch has opened up a new "technology premium" market unaffected by traditional ground - based price wars for Chinese photovoltaic equipment and material enterprises with leading technologies.
Space Data Centers: The Ultimate Testing Ground for Photovoltaic Technology
Musk's logic behind moving the AI data center into space is simple yet profound: to break through the dual bottlenecks of ground - based energy and heat dissipation.
He calculated in an open letter: Even if we only want to utilize one - millionth of solar energy, the required energy would be a million times the total energy consumption of current human civilization, which the Earth simply cannot meet. Therefore, "It's always sunny in space" has become the ultimate solution.
The space environment poses extreme requirements for photovoltaic technology that go beyond those of ground - based power stations. The extreme temperature differences and high - energy particle radiation in low - Earth orbit require components to have extremely high reliability, light weight, and conversion efficiency.
Ordinary photovoltaic components are no longer up to the task. It requires a "space - grade" upgrade of the entire industrial chain, from silicon wafers and batteries to encapsulation films and conductive silver pastes.
The hidden champions of China's photovoltaic industrial chain have already stood at the starting line of this track.
For example, in the field of key conductive materials, Suzhou JY New Material Co., Ltd., a wholly - owned subsidiary of Suzhou Good - ArK Electronics Co., Ltd., has developed low - temperature silver paste whose technical parameters can meet the standards of aerospace battery components. In the field of encapsulation materials, leading companies such as Foster have long begun to layout high - performance films that can withstand extreme environments.
Musk's plan is of a disruptive scale - launching up to one million satellites to build an orbital data center constellation. This is not just a concept on a PPT.
According to Musk's estimate, launching one million tons of satellites per year (with each ton generating 100 kilowatts of computing power) can add 100 gigawatts of AI computing power annually. Once the construction of such a huge space infrastructure is launched, the demand for high - performance and high - reliability photovoltaic products will be continuous and massive.
It points out a completely different battlefield for Chinese photovoltaic enterprises: there is no fierce cent - per - watt price war here, only an endless pursuit of technological limits, reliability, and power density.
Manufacturing Upgrading: From "Production Capacity Output" to "Technology Paradigm" Output
The space energy plan provides a precious "upgrading" opportunity for China's photovoltaic industry: to shift from exporting cheap production capacity globally to exporting high - end manufacturing solutions and next - generation technology standards.
Currently, the challenge facing China's photovoltaic industry is "external involution," that is, overcapacity leads to vicious price competition in overseas markets and profit loss. The space scenario jumps out of this cycle.
The US lacks the whole - line equipment capabilities from HJT to perovskite. This means that if Musk's space photovoltaic plan is to be promoted on a large scale, whether it is SpaceX building its own production capacity or its supply - chain partners, they are very likely to need to purchase core production equipment and cutting - edge materials from China.
Companies such as Maiwei Co., Ltd. and Jiejia Weichuang in the equipment sector, and Foster and Dico Co., Ltd. in the materials sector, provide not homogeneous components but customized whole - line solutions and special materials that meet specific aerospace standards.
This is a leap in the value chain. Its significance far exceeds getting an order, but lies in participating in defining a new set of "space energy" technology standards and manufacturing systems. Once the technical solutions of Chinese enterprises are verified in the harsh space environment, the resulting technological reputation and barriers will feed back into the high - end ground market.
This capital and technology fantasy initiated by Musk is revealing a truth beyond geopolitical games: In the face of the ultimate proposition of energy transformation, the real scarce resource is not minerals, but the core manufacturing and engineering capabilities to turn the blueprint into reality.
For China's photovoltaic industry, looking up at the sky, there is not only infinite sunlight, but also a new arena where it can break free from ground - based involution and win respect and premium with hardcore technology.
This article is from the WeChat official account "Foreseeing Energy." The author is Foreseeing Energy, and it is published by 36Kr with authorization.