Bloomberg: Musk leans on loyalists to rebuild xAI

Elon Musk’s latest xAI reset looks less like a conventional startup turnaround and more like a familiar Musk pattern: pull in trusted lieutenants, blur company lines, and use the same inner circle across multiple businesses. Bloomberg reported that Musk is rebuilding xAI by leaning on longtime loyalists and shifting personnel between Tesla, SpaceX and other parts of his empire ahead of a SpaceX initial public offering expected this year. The backdrop is a period of instability at xAI. Bloomberg reported on March 13 that Musk said xAI “is being rebuilt from the foundations up” after co-founder departures raised questions about turnover and direction at the company. ### Who are the loyalists Bloomberg says Musk is using? Bloomberg’s reporting, echoed in secondary pickup of the story, points to Charles Kuehmann and Antonio Gracias as two of the best-known examples of Musk’s overlapping network. (bloomberg.com) Kuehmann has served since 2015 as vice president of materials engineering shared by Tesla and SpaceX, while Gracias is a SpaceX board member and former Tesla director whose venture firm has invested in xAI. The same report also said Jared Birchall, Musk’s longtime money manager, is now deeply involved in xAI’s management. Birchall has previously appeared across other Musk-linked entities, including Neuralink and SpaceX fundraising, underscoring how a small set of aides continues to span multiple companies. ### Why is xAI being rebuilt now? March 13 is the clearest public marker for the current overhaul. (europesays.com) That day, Bloomberg reported Musk’s statement that xAI had not been built correctly the first time and would be rebuilt after a series of departures. May 13 added a commercial angle. Bloomberg then reported that xAI was courting Wall Street firms with ties to Musk’s broader business network to test its Grok chatbot, part of an effort to bolster revenue ahead of parent company SpaceX’s IPO. (europesays.com) Taken together, those reports show Musk working on both management stability and revenue generation as xAI is folded more tightly into SpaceX’s public-markets story. (bloomberg.com) That last point is an inference from the timing and sequence of Bloomberg’s reporting. ### How closely tied are SpaceX and xAI now? February 2, 2026 was the formal turning point. (bloomberg.com) Bloomberg reported that SpaceX combined with xAI in a deal valuing the enlarged entity at $1.25 trillion, and CNBC separately reported that SpaceX had acquired xAI in what it described as the biggest merger of all time by value. (bloomberg.com) That merger means xAI is no longer a side venture sitting adjacent to SpaceX. Its management, revenue prospects and risk profile now sit inside the same corporate structure that investors will evaluate if SpaceX proceeds with an IPO. ### What pressure does that create before an IPO? Wired reported on May 20 that former OpenAI staffers who cofounded an AI watchdog group said investors should receive more information about xAI’s safety practices before SpaceX goes public. (bloomberg.com) Wired said the group argued that xAI’s safety record could create risks for prospective investors in the combined company. That warning lands as Bloomberg says Musk is relying on trusted insiders to steady xAI. The immediate question for investors is not just who runs xAI day to day, but whether Musk’s internal network can reassure markets as SpaceX prepares its listing documents and roadshow materials. That final sentence is an inference based on the merger, the reported IPO preparation and the investor warning. (wired.com) ### What comes next? The next hard milestone remains SpaceX’s expected IPO later in 2026. Bloomberg has tied xAI’s management overhaul and revenue push to that listing process, while Wired’s report suggests xAI’s safety practices could also become part of the investor conversation before the offering moves ahead. (europesays.com)