Elon Musk’s xAI artificial intelligence company has purchased social media giant X (formerly Twitter) for $33 billion. Musk announced the transaction on X, stating that the deal values xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion. He emphasized that the future of xAI and X are interconnected and combined, integrating their data, models, computing power, distribution networks, and talent to unlock immense potential.
The details of the deal remain unclear since both companies are privately held and not obligated to disclose financial information publicly. It’s also unknown how the acquisition will affect X’s users.
Musk previously bought X, then Twitter, for $44 billion in 2022. Following the purchase, he fired most of the staff and changed content moderation and user verification policies, renaming it X. These changes led to advertisers leaving the platform and a decline in revenue.
Musk launched xAI a year later, introducing Grok-3, the latest version of their chatbot, to compete with Chinese AI firm DeepSeek and Microsoft-backed OpenAI. Amidst intensifying AI competition, xAI has increased data center capacity to train more advanced models. Musk also attempted a $97.4 billion bid with a consortium to acquire OpenAI in February, but the offer was rejected.
While the acquisition’s impact on the AI and social media landscape remains uncertain, Elon Musk continues to play a significant role in both industries and Washington as the world’s wealthiest individual and the head of Tesla and SpaceX.
Source: https://www.dw.com/en/elon-musk-sells-x-to-his-ai-company-xai/a-72079945?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf
