Elon Musk’s SpaceX said Monday it is acquiring artificial-intelligence startup xAI, a move that significantly expands the rocket and satellite company’s ambitions in data centers and advanced computing.
The deal brings together SpaceX’s launch and satellite operations with the fast-growing AI company, giving Musk tighter control over the infrastructure, power demands and computing capacity that increasingly define competition in artificial intelligence.
The transaction values SpaceX at roughly $1 trillion and xAI at about $250 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter, underscoring the scale of the combined enterprise.
SpaceX said in a statement that the acquisition was driven by expectations that global demand for AI computing will soon outpace available electricity and cooling capacity on Earth.
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Musk said the combined company plans to explore space-based data centers powered by near-constant solar energy as a way to overcome those terrestrial power constraints.
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“In the long term, space-based AI is obviously the only way to scale,” Musk said, outlining a vision that relies on space infrastructure to support future computing needs.
The purchase sets a new record for the world’s largest merger and acquisition deal. SpaceX was already the most valuable privately held company globally, last valued at about $800 billion during a recent insider share sale.
The merger comes as SpaceX prepares for a potential initial public offering later this year that could value the company at more than $1.5 trillion, according to people familiar with the plans.
The agreement could face scrutiny from regulators and investors over governance, valuation and conflicts of interest, given Musk’s overlapping leadership roles across multiple companies and the potential transfer of engineers, technology and contracts between entities.
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SpaceX holds billions of dollars in federal contracts with NASA, the Department of Defense and U.S. intelligence agencies, all of which may have authority to review major acquisitions for national-security and other risks.
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