Elon Musk says Tesla-SpaceX merger being considered

Elon Musk has said that a merger between Tesla and SpaceX, two of the companies he leads, is under active consideration.

Speaking to financial analysts after SpaceX published its quarterly results on Tuesday, Musk said he believed combining the two businesses would be a good idea, but he cautioned that it should not be treated as certain. Special committees at both companies have been set up to examine a possible deal, although they have not agreed on any terms, and there is no guarantee that a transaction will go ahead.

Tesla is valued at roughly $1.5 trillion and SpaceX at about $2 trillion, so joining them would create one of the biggest corporate mergers ever attempted. SpaceX shares climbed 8% in after-hours trading after the comments, while Tesla shares gained 2%.

Musk is not a member of either special committee and described himself as conflicted because he runs both firms. Any merger would need the backing of shareholders, including approval from at least half of Tesla's investors.

The comments fit a wider pattern of consolidation across Musk's businesses. SpaceX previously absorbed his artificial intelligence company xAI and the social media platform X, and Tesla and SpaceX have recently begun working together on Terafab, a joint project to manufacture computer chips.