Texas [US], February 3 (ANI): Elon Musk’s aerospace company SpaceX has acquired his artificial intelligence start-up xAI, the billionaire entrepreneur said.
Musk’s note about the deal was posted by the rocketmaker and shared on his social media platform X. xAI owns and operates X after he merged those two entities last year.
According to Bloomberg, the combined company of SpaceX and xAI has a valuation of USD 1.25 trillion, and SpaceX plans an initial public offering (IPO) later this year. CNBC reported the merger was completed on Monday.
xAI’s main product Grok is under investigation in the EU over an AI image-generation feature amid concerns it was used to create sexualised images; xAI says it has imposed restrictions limiting image editing.
In his note on the merger, Musk said the combination would form an “innovation engine” putting AI, rockets, space-based internet, and media under one roof. “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!” Musk said.
A SpaceX press release said the merger will eventually allow placing AI data centres in space, powered by solar energy. Musk estimated that “within 2 to 3 years, the lowest cost way to generate AI compute will be in space. This cost-efficiency alone will enable innovative companies to forge ahead in training their AI models and processing data at unprecedented speeds and scales, accelerating breakthroughs in our understanding of physics and invention of technologies to benefit humanity.”
He added the new constellation will build upon established space sustainability design and operational strategies, including end-of-life disposal used for SpaceX’s existing broadband satellite systems.
The merger follows SpaceX’s recent filing with the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to deploy and operate a constellation of up to one million satellites designed as orbital data centres with unprecedented computing power for advanced AI models and applications. (ANI)
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