SpaceX to invest $2B in Elon Musk’s xAI: Report

SpaceX is set to invest $2 billion in Elon Musk’s AI venture xAI as part of a broader $5 billion equity financing round, strengthening the ties between the billionaire’s technology enterprises, reports The Wall Street Journal. 

The fresh capital investment comes on the heels of xAI’s merger with X (formerly Twitter) placing the combined company’s valuation at $113 billion.The report added that the deal also positions xAI’s Grok chatbot to enhance Starlink support and earmarks it for future deployment in Tesla’s Optimus robots.

Responding to speculations on whether Tesla could join the $5 billion equity round for his AI startup xAI, Elon Musk responded via X, “It would be great, but subject to board and shareholder approval.” 

Despite recent criticism over Grok’s output, Musk has described the chatbot as “the smartest AI in the world,” with the AI firm continuing to invest heavily in model training and infrastructure.

Last week, Linda Yaccarino stepped down as CEO of X after serving for two years at the company.  A former NBCUniversal advertising executive, Yaccarino was appointed as the CEO of the social media platform in June 2023, less than a year after Musk acquired the platform in a $44 billion deal. 

“After two incredible years, I’ve decided to step down as CEO of X. When Elon Musk and I first spoke of his vision for X, I knew it would be the opportunity of a lifetime to carry out the extraordinary mission of this company. I’m immensely grateful to him for entrusting me with the responsibility of protecting free speech, turning the company around, and transforming X into the Everything App,” she said in a post on X.