Responses from the online community erupted following Elon Musk’s announcement that his artificial intelligence venture, xAI, successfully acquired X (previously known as Twitter) in an all-stock transaction valued at a remarkable $33 billion. The merger, revealed on Saturday, March 29, positions xAI at an estimated worth of $80 billion, while X is set at $33 billion.
“xAI and X’s futures are intertwined. Today, we officially take the step to combine the data, models, compute, distribution, and talent. This combination will unlock immense potential by blending xAI’s advanced AI capability and expertise with X’s massive reach,”wrote Elon Musk in his tweet.
In addition to the announcement, Musk shared:
“The combined company will deliver smarter, more meaningful experiences to billions of people while staying true to our core mission of seeking truth and advancing knowledge. This will allow us to build a platform that doesn’t just reflect the world but actively accelerates human progress.”
According to The Economic Times, this acquisition opens doors for Elon Musk’s co-investors in X, which includes renowned venture capital firms like Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia Capital, to benefit from xAI’s impressive valuation.
Reactions on social media varied widely, with some users humorously noting the peculiarities of Musk effectively “selling”X back to himself. User @arianatorswildt remarked:
“So he sold it… to himself?”
Others expressed curiosity over the direction of the merger, questioning why X folded into xAI rather than the reverse. A user’s take on the matter included:
“I’m so curious as to why X folded into xAI and not the other way around. It seems like X has the broader base as a platform and that xAI would literally just be a medium/small feature on X,”
“It’s a smart acquisition. XAI became worth a whole lot in a very short time. Musk uses XAI to buy X from his original Twitter backers at a measly 2% return using shares of his other company with more growth potential. So they’ll end up doing much better than 2%. Presumably, Musk no longer has partners looking over his shoulder with what he’s doing at X — which I believe was the whole point AI + real-time data + distribution = unmatched power to shape narratives, drive innovation, and burn the legacy media to the ground,”
Founded by Elon Musk in March 2023, xAI Corp. (more commonly referred to as xAI) has a mission “to understand the true nature of the universe.”Operating from the San Francisco Bay Area, the company specializes in artificial intelligence technologies.
xAI officially began operations in July 2023 with an initial team of 12 members, including Musk himself. This team consists of prominent figures in AI, including Igor Babuschkin, a former contributor to Google DeepMind, who now serves as xAI’s Chief Engineer.
The company aims to tackle real-world challenges using cutting-edge AI solutions. As stated on their website:
“Our approach to rapid development and iteration allows us to innovate at breakneck speeds. We’re not interested in speed for speed’s sake—we’re here to solve real problems.”
In November 2023, Musk unveiled xAI’s inaugural project, Grok. The feature quickly gained traction among X users globally, contributing to its exponential popularity.