Elon Musk Hints at Tesla and SpaceX Merger During Roadster Showcase

Elon Musk posted a link to the live stream of the Roadster sports car presentation with the caption "Tesla x SpaceX." The post once again sparked discussions about a possible merger of the companies. Officially, neither Tesla (TSLA) nor SpaceX (SPCX) have announced any negotiations, but the publication coincided with active discussions of such a deal among experts.

Talks about a merger intensified in May when SpaceX announced its entry into Nasdaq. On June 12, SpaceX conducted an IPO at $135 per share, valuing the company at $1.77 trillion, marking the largest offering in history. On October 14, SpaceX's market capitalization exceeded $2.07 trillion, while Tesla's shares have lost about 18% since the beginning of the year. SpaceX's peak share price post-IPO was $225.64, after which they began to decline. In February, SpaceX already integrated the AI startup xAI, also owned by Musk, into its structure.

According to Barclays, a more likely scenario is one where SpaceX acquires Tesla through a stock swap: Musk would then retain 37% of the capital and 56% of the voting shares. However, the bank considers joint engineering work more promising than financial combinations—specifically, the potential integration of the robotaxi service and humanoid robots Optimus with the space company's AI systems. Wedbush analyst Dan Ives assessed the likelihood of a deal by 2027 at over 80%. In the summer, during an earnings call, Musk noted that any corporate merger requires a full legal process.

The Roadster presentation took place on October 15 in Texas—almost nine years after the first announcement; the car was developed together with SpaceX and will only go on sale in 2028. The main highlights of the show were the stunts: the Roadster drove up a ramp upside down, flipped in the air, and landed on its wheels, then jumped over a lineup of Teslas, including the Cybertruck and Semi. It accelerates to 60 mph in 0.81 seconds.

The key features are two systems. The first is ten "cold" engines that eject compressed air like SpaceX rockets: they provide super acceleration and allow the car to spin in the air. The air supply is about 600 liters, which can be replenished. The second is fans under the chassis: they suck air and press the car to the road with a force of 2G, enough to drive on the ceiling. The nuance: during the show, the car was remotely controlled, and driving on regular roads with such features is not yet allowed. Before the start, Musk said that success is not guaranteed, but "it will probably work."