SpaceX, Tesla set up committees for merger talks, Elon Musk not part of discussions

Elon Musk said on Tuesday that independent committees at SpaceX and Tesla were discussing a possible merger of the two companies but had yet to agree on the terms of any transaction.

"Some people out there assume that a SpaceX and Tesla merger is a certainty. And I think that would be overstating it," Musk said during SpaceX's third-quarter 2025 earnings call.

"Do I think it would be a good idea, yes," he said, adding that shareholders would ultimately have to support the combination.

Musk said both companies had formed special committees comprising independent directors at the request of shareholders.

He said he could not participate in their discussions because he was a "conflicted party".

“So it's sort of… an odd kabuki dance where two groups of people are talking, and I can't be in the conversation,” he said.

"The special committees have not reached agreement on the terms of any transaction," Musk said.

A merger would face a major approval hurdle at Tesla, where Musk said it would require the support of holders of 50% of all shares, rather than just 50% of shares voted.

Musk said that combining the companies could offer advantages across several areas of technology, including artificial intelligence, chip design, robotics and space infrastructure.

"I do think there's a lot of merit to combining the companies as we are pretty much in the super intelligence singularity," he said.

He cited potential cooperation in developing "super intelligent software", chip design, the Terafab semiconductor project, robotics and mass-to-orbit capabilities involving the Starmind constellation.

The remarks come amid growing technological overlap between Tesla, the electric vehicle maker, and SpaceX, Musk's rocket company, fuelling speculation about a potential combination of his businesses.

During Tesla's second-quarter earnings call, Musk had acknowledged "more and more overlap" between the companies on several fronts.

"Obviously, we can't talk about combining companies and that kind of thing on an earnings call. It's got to be done with the appropriate process," he had said.

The merger speculation gained fresh attention last week when Musk unveiled Tesla's redesigned Roadster electric sports car in a dramatic demonstration featuring the vehicle driving upside down on a ramp, flipping in midair and landing safely with the help of built-in thrusters.