Elon Musk has announced that his AI venture, xAI, has acquired his social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
In a post on X Friday, Musk revealed that the all-stock transaction values xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion. Musk had purchased Twitter for $44 billion in 2022.
Musk emphasized that the futures of xAI and X are closely linked, noting that the merger combines data, models, compute, distribution, and talent. The move may be aimed at protecting investors who helped Musk acquire X from potential financial losses. Both companies are privately held and share major investors and resources.
“The combined company will deliver smarter, more meaningful experiences to billions of people while staying true to our core mission of seeking truth and advancing knowledge,” Musk stated. xAI has already been using data from X posts to train its models, with its chatbot Grok being a notable feature on the platform.
Analyst Paolo Pescatore commented that the move aligns with the current trend of increased investments in AI and data centers. Meanwhile, Musk is engaged in a legal battle with OpenAI, the company he co-founded in 2015, after suing them for straying from the original mission and transitioning to a for-profit model. Musk’s consortium also made a $97.4 billion bid to take over OpenAI earlier this year, which was rejected by CEO Sam Altman.
Additionally, Musk has been active in politics, supporting former President Donald Trump’s efforts to cut federal spending and contributing millions to a state Supreme Court race in Wisconsin, where his involvement has prompted legal challenges.
