Elon musk and the xAI logo.
Vincent Feuray | Afp | Getty Images
Elon Musk on Monday said he does not support a merger between xAI and Tesla, as questions swirl over the future relationship of the electric automaker and artificial intelligence company.
X account @BullStreetBets_ posted an open question to Tesla investors on the social media site asking if they support a merger between Tesla and xAI. Musk responded with “No.”
The statement comes as the tech billionaire contemplates the future relationship and possible integration between his multiple businesses.
Overnight, Musk suggested that Tesla will hold a shareholder vote at an unspecified time on whether the automaker should invest in xAI, the billionaire’s company that develops the controversial Grok AI chatbot. Last year, Musk asked his followers in an poll on social media platform X whether Tesla should invest $5 billion into xAI. The majority voted “yes” at the time.
Since exiting his position in U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration, Musk has looked to bring his various businesses closer together, with much of the action centering around xAI.
In March, Musk merged xAI and X together in a deal that valued the artificial intelligence company at $80 billion and the social media company at $33 billion. The tech billionaire also last week said that Tesla vehicles will host xAI’s chatbot Grok, which has recently come under criticism for praising Adolf Hitler and posting a barrage of antisemitic comments. xAI on Saturday issued a lengthy apology for the “horrific behavior that many experienced” as a result of Grok’s performance, saying it had taken measures to correct the issue.
On Saturday, The Wall Street Journal reported that another Musk venture, rocket designer and launcher SpaceX has agreed to invest $2 billion in xAI, citing investors close to the company. The space company’s backing is part of a broader $10 billion debt and equity fundraising effort previously announced by Morgan Stanley, the newspaper said. CNBC has reached out to xAI and SpaceX for comment.
xAI has been upping the ante to build out infrastructure and develop Grok, whose latest version the company has billed as “the world’s smartest artificial intelligence” and “the most intelligent AI to date.” AI assessor Artificial Analysis found Grok 4 is of “higher quality compared to average.”
The AI model is integral to xAI’s bid to take on a swathe of fresh-faced startups and established competitors, which have likewise been battling the strain of funding the exhaustive costs of training AI models.
— CNBC’s Samantha Subin contributed to this report.