The world’s second richest man suffered an embarrassing botched launch of his new rocket system just hours after shrugging off speculation he might be intimidated by Elon Musk having the incoming president’s ear on all things off-world.

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin launched its first New Glenn rocket early Thursday morning from Florida, an inaugural step into Earth's orbit to rival SpaceX in the satellite launch market.

Now, as Trump returns to the White House, the tech mogul has changed his tune in a shift that could have far-reaching consequences for the businesses attached to his name: Amazon, Bezos’ rocket company Blue Origin and The Washington Post, which Bezos bought in 2013.

President Donald Trump has laid out some lofty goals for space exploration in his second term. Private companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin are not yet publicly traded, but other space companies are.

Jeff Bezos does not think SpaceX CEO Elon Musk will use his close ties with Donald Trump to undercut Bezos' rival space company Blue Origin.

The mission, the culmination of a decade-long, multi-billion-dollar development journey, will include an attempt to land New Glenn’s first stage booster on a sea-fairing barge in the Atlantic Ocean 10 minutes after lift-off, while the rocket’s second stage continues toward orbit.

Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg will attend President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration on Monday ... with Musk's dominance in rocket launches with his space company Blue Origin, though on Monday Blue Origin called off its inaugural launch ...

Founded 25 years ago by Bezos, Blue Origin has been launching paying passengers to the edge of space since 2021, including himself. The short hops from Texas use smaller rockets named after the first American in space, Alan Shepard. New Glenn, which honors John Glenn, is five times taller.

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Jeff Bezos said he does not think SpaceX CEO Elon Musk will use his close ties with US President-elect Donald Trump to undercut his space company Blue Origin, adding he feels "very optimistic" about the incoming administration's space agenda.

India, with its space agency ISRO, has been a key partner under the Biden administration through the Artemis Accords. The joint NASA-ISRO project, the NISAR satellite, is in its final stages, representing one of the most expensive Earth observation missions. Trump's administration could redefine these collaborations with more such projects.

Jeff Bezos' spaceflight company Blue Origin on Thursday launched its new mega-rocket, called New Glenn, into orbit for the first time. The rocket lifted