Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, has generated hype with an interesting move. He recently posted a poll on X— a social media platform — asking if Tesla should invest $5 billion in his AI startup called xAI. The initial reactions seem to be largely positive towards the idea. “Board approval & shareholder vote are needed, so this is just to test the waters,” Musk clarified. The poll follows Tesla’s recent financial report, which revealed its lowest profit margin in five years due to price cuts and increased expenditure on AI projects. During Tesla’s earnings call, Musk mentioned that xAI could play a crucial role in advancing Tesla’s full self-driving capabilities and constructing the new Tesla data center. Additionally, there are plans to integrate xAI’s chatbot, Grok, into Tesla’s software. By providing information about it plus any necessary repairs or maintenance of the vehicle: a user-friendly way of alerting drivers about detected problems.
Within three hours of the poll being posted, approximately 386,000 people had voted, with 70% supporting the investment. Musk, currently the world’s richest individual, launched xAI last year with the ambition of creating an alternative to ChatGPT. In May, xAI raised $6 billion in a Series B funding round, achieving a post-money valuation of $24 billion. Notable backers include Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia Capital.
Musk has previously indicated that he intends for a quarter of xAI to be owned by investors in X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, which he acquired for $44 billion. However, the social media firm’s value has declined since the purchase.
This poll is a significant move as it gauges public opinion and potentially influences the direction of both Tesla and xAI. As the voting continues, the outcome may shape the future strategies of these two innovative entities, reflecting Musk’s vision of integrating AI advancements with Tesla’s automotive technology.
