TNB Tech Minute: SpaceX Restricts “Unauthorized Use” of Starlink By Russian Drones

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Here's your afternoon TNB Tech Minute for Monday, February 2nd. I'm Julie Chang for The Wall Street Journal. Elon Musk said Starlink has stopped unauthorized use of its satellite internet terminals by Russian drones following Ukraine's appeal for assistance.

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Ukraine's defense minister said last week that his team contacted SpaceX and proposed ways to stop the Russian drones flying over Ukrainian cities equipped with Starlink connectivity. He confirmed that the first steps delivered rapid results. Starlink isn't activated in Russia, but a black market supplied user terminals to Russian forces.

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Ukraine and SpaceX are now coordinating a whitelist of verified terminals, ensuring only authorized devices operate within Ukrainian territory. The Trump administration is preparing to develop a roughly $12 billion critical mineral stockpile dubbed Project Vault.

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The move is aimed at reducing reliance on China for rare earths and metals and prevent future supply shortages. A White House official said the project will combine $1.67 billion in private capital and a $10 billion loan from the U.S. Export-Import Bank. The venture was reported earlier by Bloomberg.

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The White House official said more than a dozen companies have agreed to participate in the project, including General Motors, Stellantis, and Google. GM declined to comment. Stellantis and Google did not immediately comment. And the parent company of Saks Fifth Avenue will wind down its partnership with Amazon to prioritize its own businesses after filing for bankruptcy last month.

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Saks Fifth Avenue and Amazon joined forces in December 2024. Amazon invested $475 million in Saks Global on the condition that Saks sell merchandise on Amazon's website.