3 February 2026 Elon Musk’s space company SpaceX has officially taken over the AI start-up xAI creating what couild be the world’s most valuable private enterprise. In a memo on the SpaceX website, Musk wrote that the merger was mainly aimed at building data centres in space – an idea he has been increasingly committed to in recent months. He argues that current progress in artificial intelligence is heavily dependent on huge data centres on Earth, which require vast amounts of energy and cooling. According to Musk, the global electricity demand for AI on Earth may not even be met in the short term without severe consequences for local environments and communities. By bringing xAI under the SpaceX umbrella, Musk is combining his AI activities with his space and satellite infrastructure. The plan is to build a constellation of satellites that can host data centres in space, allowing AI workloads to run more efficiently and sustainably than on Earth.