Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk’s year has felt more like a high-stakes reality show.
The EV giant finally rolled out its Robotaxis, though not without a few speed bumps, while SpaceX’s high-profile Starship test failures grabbed headlines.
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On top of that, Musk’s ongoing public sparring with President Donald Trump continued to escalate.
However, amid all this chaos, xAI dropped a major update in Grok‑4, shattering AI performance benchmarks in the process.
Who could’ve guessed that AI might be the saving grace for Musk’s business empire?
One key major update suggests it potentially could be.
Elon Musk’s AI moonshot: why xAI is more than just hype
Elon Musk is no stranger to making bold bets. But with xAI, it’s not just about chasing money; it’s about rewriting the rules of AI.
xAI’s pitch isn’t about more responsive chatbots or slicker search tools.
It’s about building artificial general intelligence, where machines can effectively think, reason, and understand like humans.
That’s arguably Big Tech’s biggest pursuit, potentially making them billions.
And Musk says Grok, the company’s powerful flagship large language model, is the answer.
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Grok is designed to go beyond prompts and outputs that you typically get from the likes of ChatGPT, Claude, or Google’s Gemini.
It’s supposed to get context, read sarcasm, and understand nuance. That’s a massive edge in a crowded AI market where most models feel virtually the same.
But Grok’s rollout hasn’t been flawless.
Its recent controversies, including antisemitic content, led to some backlash and raised concerns over the ethical soundness of AI models.
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Ironically, Musk’s vision aims to address that.
He’s long warned about AI’s risks and insists xAI will be looking to develop safe, transparent, and human-centric models.
So far, despite Tesla’s stumbles and SpaceX stretching its mission goals, backers are betting Musk’s AI bet could potentially change things around for him.
Elon Musk and xAI target sky-high valuation with fresh funding push
Elon Musk isn’t slowing down, and neither is his appetite for capital.
His AI startup, xAI, is in talks to potentially raise money at a staggering $200 billion valuation.
That’s up a hefty $20 billion from early last year. If the deal lands at the higher end, it would cement xAI as one of the most richly valued private tech companies.
In the last two months alone, xAI has pulled in $10 billion in loans and cash, along with another $300 million from a secondary stock sale.
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This would be its third major funding move in under 60 days.
The valuation jump is happening despite the recent bumps in the road.
As mentioned earlier, xAI’s Grok chatbot, which is layered with Musk’s social platform X, has sparked controversy for antisemitic posts. Also, the departure of X CEO Linda Yaccarino only added to the turbulence.
However, investors seem to be brushing off the drama, with the AI startup’s momentum continuing to impress.
In March, xAI acquired X in an all-stock deal that valued the combined firm at a whopping $113 billion.
Plus, if the current fundraising push succeeds, that figure could swell past the $245 billion mark.
Fueling that optimism is Musk’s track record and his enviable network.
Sources say Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund could play a major role in the new round, reinforcing xAI’s global attraction.
For Musk, it’s another step toward turning xAI into a bellwether in the AI space. For everyone else, it’s a clear signal that his diversified tech empire will continue challenging the biggest names in Silicon Valley.
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