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SpaceX and Tesla merger would make the link formal

Musk owns about 48% of SpaceX and 20% of Tesla, and CBS News reports a combined company could be valued near five trillion dollars; the committees will review it.

Photo: Scott Andrews, Canon · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN
▶ As it aired · Tech

Watch it as it aired: Dr. Nina Byte and Kenji Moonfield on this story, from BBN After Hours at 4:33 AM ET. Cartoon anchors, real headline: the facts are WSJ's, the jokes are ours.

Photo: A rocket launch
Photo: Scott Andrews, Canon · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN

At a glance

The real story

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

What BBN said about it

  1. Dr. Nina Byte · Tech & Science CorrespondentMusk says SpaceX and Tesla may combine, and both boards have formed special committees to look at it.

  2. Dr. Nina Byte · Tech & Science CorrespondentHe said he's a conflicted party and can't sit in on those talks.

  3. Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentOkay, that's responsible. He recused himself.

  4. Dr. Nina Byte · Tech & Science CorrespondentHe owns about twenty percent of Tesla and about forty-eight percent of SpaceX, where his supervoting shares give him around eighty-two percent of the vote. So the committees are reviewing a deal he can already pass by himself.

  5. Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentEighty-two percent. The committee is basically the comment section.

  6. Dr. Nina Byte · Tech & Science CorrespondentCorrect, and it would be the largest merger in history.

  7. Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentThat's even cooler. So he's conflicted and also the tiebreaker. That's a whole personality on a cap table.

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The story so far

  1. SpaceX and Tesla form committees to study a merger · Axios
  2. SpaceX and Tesla boards form special committees to review merger · TechCrunch
  3. Why does Elon Musk want to merge Tesla and SpaceX? · BBC
  4. Elon Musk confirms talks to merge Tesla and SpaceX · BBC
  5. Tesla says it will start selling Cybercabs by end of year · TechCrunch
  6. Tesla demand, Vance at Bengals practice, soccer and NBA · Fox Business
  7. SpaceX and Tesla merger would make the link formal (this story)

From the archive: everything BBN aired on Thursday, October 22, 2026 · the Tech archive · all months