SpaceX’s effort to put an additional 22,488 satellites into low-earth orbit is facing a formal objection from a Ukrainian-American nonprofit, which says it’s concerned about CEO Elon Musk’s “contacts with Russia and the alleged use of his Starlink system by Russian forces in Ukraine.”

In a petition to deny and motion for stay filed with the Federal Communications Commission on Wednesday, the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA) also cited negative environmental impacts of SpaceX launches in Texas and Musk’s potential conflicts of interest due to his work with the incoming Trump administration.

SpaceX’s Starlink system has been linked to Ukraine since terminals arrived there shortly after Russian troops invaded the neighboring country in early 2022. The following year, the Pentagon agreed to purchase Starlink satellite internet terminals for use in Ukraine’s ongoing defense against Russia.

However, in September 2023, Americans of Ukrainian descent rebuked the SpaceX CEO after it emerged that he had thwarted a major attack on the Russian navy. Musk said at the time that he had told his engineers not to turn on SpaceX’s Starlink satellite network over Crimea in order to prevent a planned attack by Ukraine on the Black Sea fleet in 2022.

“There is a necessity to determine if Starlink has been used to help a foreign adversary,” UCCA President Michael Sawkiw, Jr., told CNBC, regarding the group’s decision to file a petition and motion to the FCC this week. “If yes, this is not in the national security interest of Ukrainian-Americans, or of the entire country.”

The UCCA isn’t the only group concerned about Musk’s relationship with the Kremlin.

The Wall Street Journal reported in October that Musk had engaged in a series of “secret conversations” with Russian President Vladimir Putin leading up to the 2024 presidential election. Members of Congress and NASA Administrator Bill Nelson have called for an investigation into those contacts.

A month before the Journal story, Newsweek and others reported that Russia had installed Starlink terminals in its Iranian-designed Shahed drones, used in their military offense in Ukraine. Starlink didn’t provide a comment for the story, but earlier in the year, in February, Musk said in a social media post that news reports suggesting Starlink was selling terminals to Russia were “categorically false,” and that “to the best of our knowledge, no Starlinks have been sold directly or indirectly to Russia.”

Sawkiw said his group advocates for causes of concern to an estimated 2 million Americans of Ukrainian descent living in the U.S. today, many of whom arrived after the war began in February 2022.

The Starlink satellites referred to in the petition would enable the company to deliver internet services to more destinations around the world as part of its Gen2 NGSO Satellite System.

Musk didn’t respond to a request for comment, nor did Tim Hughes, senior vice president for global business and government affairs.

If Sawkiw’s group succeeds on legal merits, the FCC may have to pause approvals for SpaceX, leaving time for an environmental review, and for a plan to resolve any conflicts of interest arising from Musk’s new role with the forthcoming Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

DOGE is expected to function as a federal advisory committee that will have influence over regulations, government spending and personnel. The group could potentially recommend major changes at the FCC and influence the oversight of SpaceX and other Musk-led companies.

“Musk’s conflicts run the full gamut from financial to objectivity,” UCCA wrote in the petition. “His companies stand to financially benefit both from receiving government contracts and from actions taken by the federal government, including the FCC. Placing Musk at the head of DOGE is equivalent to allowing a fox to guard the henhouse.”

The motion asks the FCC to determine how Musk will comply with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, given his role with DOGE, before it authorizes any further SpaceX requests.

Regarding environmental concerns, UCCA’s lead regulatory counsel Arthur Belendiuk wrote in the filings to the FCC that the SpaceX launch facility in Boca Chica, Texas is “a biologically diverse and essential habitat area for many species, including wildlife protected under the Endangered Species Act.” Referencing prior incidents, he added that, “Rocket launches in this area create the real risk of fire and debris being ejected onto adjacent environmentally protected lands.”

After reports that vibrations and noise from SpaceX launches led to the destruction of nine nests of an endangered bird species in the area, Musk wrote in a post on X in July, “To make up for this heinous crime, I will refrain from having omelette for a week.”

Belendiuk wrote in the petition that instead of remedying the damage caused by SpaceX launches, Musk “responds to the legitimate concerns of local environmental groups with sarcasm and mockery.”

The UCCA had filed comments in April against SpaceX in a separate FCC proceeding pertaining to a request by the company to access additional spectrum for its Starlink network.

Republican FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr said at the time that the group’s comments were “procedurally improper and substantively meritless,” and that it effectively wanted “the government to break the law by weaponizing it” against Musk.

Now, President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Carr to lead the FCC in his second administration. Carr’s office didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Belendiuk told CNBC that his group’s “focus isn’t solely on Musk or SpaceX.”

The group took legal action to take Radio Sputnik, which broadcast Russian government propaganda, off the public airwaves in the U.S., Beledniuk said, and is “actively engaged in discussions with chipmakers whose sanctioned products have been found in Russian weapons systems.”

WATCH: It’s impossible for DOGE to cut government spending without touching the defense budget

Venture investor and podcaster David Sacks will join the Trump administration as the “White House A.I. & Crypto Czar,” President-elect Donald Trump announced on Truth Social on Thursday.

Sacks will guide the administration’s policies for artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency, Trump wrote. Some of that work includes creating a legal framework for crypto, as well as leading a presidential council of advisors on science and technology.

“David will focus on making America the clear global leader in both areas,” Trump wrote. “He will safeguard Free Speech online, and steer us away from Big Tech bias and censorship.”

The appointment signals that the second Trump administration is rewarding Silicon Valley figures who supported his campaign. It also indicates that the administration will push for policies that cryptocurrency entrepreneurs generally support.

Sacks became a major Trump booster earlier this year, hosting a fundraiser for the then-Republican nominee at his San Francisco mansion. Tickets sold for $50,000 a head, with a $300,000 tier that included perks like a photo with Trump.

It was a stark change of tone for Sacks, who was sharply critical of Trump after the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021. Sacks said on an episode of his All-In podcast soon after that Trump was “clearly” responsible for the events of Jan. 6, and that he had “disqualified himself from being a candidate at a national level.”

In July, Sacks spoke at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

Sacks is a venture capitalist and entrepreneur who sold Yammer, to Microsoft for $1.2 billion in 2012. He’s also affiliated with the “PayPal mafia,” an unofficial club of prominent technology figures and investors, including Elon Musk and Peter Thiel, who worked at PayPal in the 1990s.

In recent years, Sacks has been best known for hosting the All-In podcast alongside fellow investors Chamath Palihapitiya, Jason Calacanis, and David Friedberg. In his post, Trump called it the “top podcast in Tech, where he and his friends discuss economic, political and social issues.”

Waymo is setting its sights on its next location: the Sunshine State.

The Alphabet-owned company announced Thursday that it will be hitting the roads in Miami. Waymo said it will first begin cruising through the Florida city with human safety drivers in 2025 before opening doors to riders for its robotaxi service through its Waymo One app in 2026.

The expansion into Miami is indicative of Waymo’s growing confidence in operating its self-driving vehicles in harsher weather conditions in large metropolitan areas in the U.S.

Waymo first tested in Miami in 2019, which the company said helped improve the ability of its self-driving vehicles to navigate in wet and rainy conditions.

“We deepened our learning and understanding of the Waymo Driver’s performance in adverse weather conditions,” a company spokesperson said.

Waymo will use what it learned when it returns to the city with its all-electric Jaguar I-PACEs next year.

The company said its initial territory in Florida will include some parts of Miami’s larger metropolitan area, which has a population of more than 6 million people.

Waymo has been rapidly expanding its operations over the last year thanks to additional funding.

In November, the company announced it was removing its waitlist of about 300,000 people in Los Angeles, so anyone would be able to use Waymo One to hail a self-driving robotaxi throughout the nearly 80 square miles of Los Angeles County. The company’s ride-hailing service also operates citywide in Phoenix and San Francisco.

And in September, Waymo announced a partnership with Uber in Austin and Atlanta. Through that deal, Uber riders will be able to access Waymo’s robotaxis through the Uber app starting in early 2025, and Uber will be responsible for fleet management and operations of the Waymo vehicles, including maintenance and infrastructure, such as vehicle charging, cleaning and repairs. 

Additionally, Waymo on Thursday announced that it will partner with mobility company Moove to manage its fleet operations, facilities and charging infrastructure in both Miami and Phoenix. Moove will begin managing Waymo’s Phoenix fleet in early 2025, a Waymo spokesperson said. 

Waymo closed a $5.6 billion funding round in October to expand its robotaxi service across the U.S. The autonomous vehicle venture’s parent company, Alphabet, which also owns Google, led the funding round alongside earlier backers, including Andreessen Horowitz, Fidelity, Perry Creek, Silver Lake, Tiger Global and T. Rowe Price.

The robotaxi company said it now sees more than 150,000 paid rides per week via the Waymo One app across San Francisco, Phoenix and Los Angeles. 

Waymo is the only autonomous vehicle developer that currently operates a commercial robotaxi service in several major metro areas across the U.S., but competitors are looming. 

GM-owned Cruise is working on bringing its autonomous vehicles back into use on public roads after discontinuing its services following an accident where one of its self-driving cars injured a pedestrian in San Francisco. 

Tesla, meanwhile, showed off design concepts for a self-driving Cybercab and Robovan at an event in October. However, Tesla still classifies the Autopilot and Full Self-Driving software in its vehicles as “partially automated driving systems,” which require a human to be ready to steer or brake at all times. In an October earnings call, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said the company will launch a self-driving ride-hailing service in California and Texas as early as 2025.

SoftBank-funded Wayve is testing its autonomous vehicles in San Francisco, and Amazon-owned Zoox is also testing its self-driving cars, which do not feature steering wheels, in several U.S. cities.

WATCH: Waymo could benefit big from eased self-driving rules