Elon Musk confirmed that the companies Tesla and SpaceX are analyzing the possibility of a merger between them. The businessman recognizes the benefits of this union but emphasizes that there is no formalized agreement on the terms of the operation and that its realization is not guaranteed.
This perspective was debated during a teleconference held on Tuesday (20), when the third-quarter financial results of SpaceX were presented. According to Musk, special committees have been established in both corporations to examine the proposal. These groups are composed of independent advisors and were instituted at the request of the shareholders, as reported by the executive.
Commenting on the viability of joining the companies, Musk stated that he considers the idea positive. As the executive director of both companies, he chose to abstain from deliberations due to potential conflicts of interest. The committees have not yet reached a consensus on the details of a future transaction.
Despite the uncertainties, Musk expressed his belief in the substantial gains that combining the businesses would provide. However, the realization of the merger is conditional upon shareholder approval. For Tesla, he specified that it will be necessary to obtain the support of at least 50% of all shares, and not just the majority of registered votes.
Musk compared the situation to a sensitive scenario given his leadership position in both firms. For this reason, he highlighted that the independent committees must present a suggestion that will subsequently be presented to investors. It is relevant to note that last year, Tesla shareholders already endorsed crucial decisions related to Musk, approving a compensation package estimated at around US$1 trillion (approximately R$5.4 trillion).
Even so, a potential integration with SpaceX may face resistance from some investors in the automaker. A central open point concerns the operational structure. Wall Street analysts and legal experts, cited by The Verge, point out that it is more likely that SpaceX will acquire Tesla or incorporate it through a share swap, rather than the reverse.
Since its entry into the stock market, SpaceX has had a higher valuation than Tesla. An operation in this sense would allow the space company's shareholders to hold the largest share of control of the resulting company. If Tesla were to acquire SpaceX, it would be necessary to issue millions of new shares, which would proportionally decrease the stake of current automaker shareholders.
There are also notable disparities in the financial needs of the operations. SpaceX launch projects require tens of billions of dollars annually, expenses that could restrict Tesla's ability to invest in manufacturing new vehicles and batteries. Conversely, the union would create a single entity for investors interested in Musk's vision of the future, which encompasses autonomous cars, humanoid robots, advanced artificial intelligence, and human settlements on Mars.
Although Tesla is primarily known for its electric vehicles, Musk has been redirecting company resources towards robotics. SpaceX, meanwhile, manufactures rockets and Starlink internet satellites and is expanding its activities to provide cloud computing capacity to other technology companies, such as Anthropic and Google. According to the most recent quarterly reports, this cloud computing activity has become SpaceX's largest source of profit, generating US$7.5 billion (about R$40.5 billion), although the company recorded a loss of US$1.1 billion (about R$5.9 billion) in the current year.
The potential merger also attracted the attention of investors before Musk's announcement. At the beginning of October, Barclays released a report for clients suggesting that a combination between Tesla and SpaceX could be announced before the automaker's annual shareholder meeting, scheduled for December 3, 2026. To date, there is no confirmation that the operation will take place, depending on the work of the independent committees and, subsequently, the support of the respective company shareholders.