At first glance, there's not much in common between Tesla (TSLA 0.12%) and SpaceX. Tesla is one of the biggest electric vehicle (EV) stocks on the planet, whereas the upcoming SpaceX initial public offering (IPO) could make that company the highest-valued space stock globally within months, or even the next few weeks.
Digging deeper, however, reveals synergies.
"While a company launching rockets based on contracts with the government may not seem to have a lot in common with an EV manufacturer, both of the businesses are increasingly focused on AI and the talent and computing resources necessary to build AI infrastructure and services," concludes a recent CNBC report. "More than three-quarters of SpaceX's $10.1 billion in capital expenditures in the first quarter were tied to AI, and Tesla said in its latest earnings report that capex will roughly triple this year, topping $25 billion."
When it comes to pursuing artificial intelligence growth opportunities, SpaceX and Tesla have a lot in common. But there's one other surprising reason I think a megamerger could take place as early as this year.
NASDAQ: TSLA
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Why a megamerger between Tesla and SpaceX is likely
I recently outlined how Elon Musk is already merging his business interests through literal mergers, sharing investment stakes, cross-buying products, and simply sharing resources. He clearly does not see his individual businesses -- including SpaceX, Tesla, and xAI -- as separate. In 2024, for example, Musk even diverted hundreds of millions of dollars of Nvidia chips to xAI, his AI start-up, despite them originally being bound for Tesla.
Image source: Getty Images.
"The two companies already have a laundry list of shared resources, and Musk has discussed with colleagues the possibility of folding the companies together," adds the CNBC report. Employees of both companies have reportedly also disclosed their belief that Musk's business empire will eventually be consolidated into one entity.
While a merger would be complex, the biggest benefit is obvious: Musk would no longer need to worry about conflicts of interest. He could move resources at will without facing shareholder disapproval -- as he did when he diverted Nvidia chips away from Tesla to xAI.
After the upcoming IPO, SpaceX will have anywhere between $50 billion and $75 billion in fresh capital. If it merges with Tesla, that capital can be used across all of Musk's businesses, especially considering SpaceX previously merged with xAI. It will be a complex maneuver with potential regulatory roadblocks, but a megamerger between Tesla and SpaceX seems only a matter of time, especially given that Musk controls the vast majority of voting power for SpaceX shareholders.
