It's about who ultimately holds power once a company enters the public markets. Increasingly, investors are asking what public ownership actually means when meaningful control remains concentrated in the hands of a founder. SpaceX's public debut may be changing that conversation. In most public companies, there are clear mechanisms to ensure accountability or influence decision-making, or force a change in leadership if the situation demands it. "Corporate governance can sound abstract or bureaucratic, but in practice it functions as the compass of a public company," Lewis said.