SpaceX COO Gwynne Shotwell said a potential tie-up with Tesla 'might make Elon's life a little easier' during an interview on Friday as SpaceX hit the Nasdaq following the largest IPO on record. Shotwell made the comments to CNBC's Morgan Brennan on June 12th, the same day Elon Musk officially became the world's first trillionaire due to his stakes in both companies. Musk has a history of combining his entities, having merged SpaceX with xAI in February in a deal that valued the combined company at $1.25 trillion.
SpaceX Opens Above $2 Trillion Market Cap on June 12th
SpaceX's market cap opened above $2 trillion on June 12th, making it the sixth most-valuable U.S. company, ahead of Tesla. The IPO marked the largest on record. Musk has over 80% voting power at SpaceX, giving him hefty control over decision making. He sits on Tesla's board and tends to get his way.
Shotwell Acknowledges Convergence Between SpaceX and Tesla
Shotwell, who joined SpaceX in 2002 as one of the rocket maker's earliest employees, acknowledged a convergence between what SpaceX and Tesla are trying to accomplish. 'There's a convergence of what we're all trying to accomplish in the future, but right now I'm focused on keeping the lights on here,' Shotwell said. She added that she has plenty of work to do today, focused on building rockets, improving broadband access and getting to the International Space Station.
Musk Merged SpaceX with xAI in February Deal
In February, Musk merged SpaceX with xAI, his artificial intelligence startup, in a deal that valued the combined company at $1.25 trillion. The main reason for that deal, he said at the time, is to better build 'orbital data centers.' The transaction brought to SpaceX data centers as well as Grok's AI models, AI chatbot and image generator. It also included social network X, formerly known as Twitter, because Musk merged X and xAI in early 2025.
Tesla and SpaceX Already Share Engineers and Resources
Tesla and SpaceX already share resources, including engineers, and Musk has discussed merging the companies, CNBC previously reported. Tesla owns stock in SpaceX after investing in xAI. Shotwell acknowledged that M&A will continue to play a role, 'especially when you look at the AI world.' SpaceX owns an option to buy AI-coding startup Cursor for $60 billion. 'I think you'll see more of that just generally,' she said.
FAQ
What did Gwynne Shotwell say about a potential SpaceX-Tesla tie-up?
Shotwell said such a combination 'might make Elon's life a little easier' during an interview with CNBC on June 12th. She acknowledged a convergence between what both companies are trying to accomplish but stated she is currently focused on SpaceX operations.
What was SpaceX's market cap when it opened on the Nasdaq?
SpaceX's market cap opened above $2 trillion on June 12th, making it the sixth most-valuable U.S. company, ahead of Tesla. The IPO was the largest on record.
