As NASA worries that China will win the next moon race, Elon Musk and his company tangled with critics. By Kenneth Chang NASA wants ideas of how to speed up the return of its astronauts to the surface of the moon.

SpaceX defended Starship and said it is assessing a simplified moon mission architecture, with a propellant transfer test next year.

SpaceX said it has pitched NASA a "simplified mission" to put astronauts back on the moon following criticisms over delays by Sean Duffy, the space agency's acting administrator.

So NASA, growing frustrated with the delays, opened the contract to other designs and is i n talks with Blue Origin to modify its Mark 1 cargo lander as a potential alternative. Now, SpaceX is capitulating and proposing a more streamlined version of its Artemis III mission plan.

Elon Musk's SpaceX (SPACE) and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin (BORGN) have submitted plans to NASA for ramping up efforts to take astronauts to the moon, the agency told CNBC. NASA "has received and is evaluating plans from both SpaceX and Blue Origin for acceleration of HLS [Human Landing System] production,

The company announced Thursday that its ongoing test campaign and infrastructure expansion have positioned Starship to support lunar missions and, eventually, crewed flights to Mars.