SpaceX and Tesla have formed special committees to discuss a possible merger, Elon Musk said during SpaceX’s third-quarter 2026 earnings call. Musk, who is CEO of both companies, said shareholders requested the committees. He warned that a merger is not certain.
Independent directors from SpaceX and Tesla make up the committees. Musk cannot take part in the discussions because he is considered a "conflicted party." His brother Kimbal Musk is also considered a conflicted party.
Tesla lists seven independent directors on its website, while SpaceX lists six. Ira Ehrenpreis, who chairs Tesla’s Compensation and Nominating and Governance committees, joined SpaceX’s board in February. Both companies still list him as an independent director.
The companies already have a financial link
The companies already have a financial link. As Electrek notes, Tesla became a SpaceX shareholder when its $2 billion investment in xAI became SpaceX stock following SpaceX’s acquisition of the AI company.
Musk controls about 82 percent of SpaceX’s voting power, according to Fortune, making his vote decisive for the space company. Tesla would need a vote in favor from 50 percent of all its shareholders for a merger to go ahead, not just 50 percent of those who vote.
Read nextSpaceX reports $14.6 billion in Q3 revenue as AI business growsMusk sees merit in combining the companies
Musk said there is "a lot of merit" to combining the companies. He pointed to what could be gained from cooperation on superintelligence software, chip design and robotics, among other things. The committees have not reached an agreement, and it is unclear how far the discussions have progressed.
A merger would create a company worth trillions of dollars with Musk at its helm. As the BBC notes, it would give him more control over its operations than he currently has at Tesla. Musk has long sought more control over the automaker to steer its work on AI and robotics. For a merger to go ahead, Tesla would need support from 50 percent of all its shareholders.
