- The CEO is now looking to harness solar energy from space to power AI goals.
- Musk himself did not divulge the financial terms of the transaction.
- As per Bloomberg, the combined company has a valuation of $1.25 trillion.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said on Monday that the company has acquired his AI startup xAI to accelerate “space-based artificial intelligence.”
Musk said that the demand for electricity from AI cannot be met by terrestrial solutions, mandating the need for space-based AI. The CEO is now looking to harness solar energy from space to power AI goals.
“This marks not just the next chapter, but the next book in SpaceX and xAI's mission: scaling to make a sentient sun to understand the Universe and extend the light of consciousness to the stars!,” the CEO said.
Why The Merger?
The news comes on the heels of reports that SpaceX is contemplating an IPO as early as this year that could raise as much as $50 billion. Last week, Musk’s EV company Tesla Inc. (TSLA) also announced an investment of $2 billion in xAI, implying a deepening collaboration between Musk’s different companies, referred to as Muskonomy among investors.
“Launching a constellation of a million satellites that operate as orbital data centers is a first step towards becoming a Kardashev II-level civilization, one that can harness the Sun’s full power, while supporting AI-driven applications for billions of people today and ensuring humanity’s multi-planetary future,” Musk said in a statement on Monday. He added that the satellites will allow the merged company to scale compute with little operating or maintenance costs.
Musk, however, did not divulge the financial terms of the transaction.
Reported Details
According to a report from Reuters, xAI would now become a wholly-owned unit of SpaceX.
The combined company will have a valuation of $1.25 trillion, as per Bloomberg, with shares expected to be priced at $526.59 each
How Did Stocktwits Users React?
On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around SpaceX trended in the ‘bearish’ territory while sentiment around xAI was at ‘extremely bullish’ levels.
Read More: Why Did ACAD Stock Slump 8% After Hours Today?
For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.