I saw that, and it struck me as odd. I was under the impression that Starlink was intended to be the cash-cow that funds the Mars colonization project. I suppose it'd make sense to IPO if he prefers cash "now" to future income, but colonization will be a major resource sink for decades. How will SpaceX fund the colonization project if they spin off Starlink?

Starlink will not be a cash cow but a cash sink that burns money to keep SpaceX busy. By having other people foot the bill SpaceX is getting most of the money from the endeavour via launch costs without losing any control of SpaceX.