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Elon Musk Tesla Money hero

While Tesla shareholders are focused on giving Elon Musk a huge CEO compensation package, there’s a potentially even more impactful proposal that is sneaking through: Tesla investing in Musk’s xAI.

Here are the pros and cons of this controversial proposal.

Tesla Shareholder Proposal to invest in xAI

For those unaware, xAI is Elon Musk’s private AI startup behind the large language model (LLM) and generative AI Grok.

The company now also includes X, formerly Twitter, after Musk orchestrated a merger between the two companies earlier this year.

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xAI’s origin is fascinating and comes from Musk’s long-standing obsession with controlling AI.

I published a detailed timeline of Musk’s attempt to gain control of AI in a report based on emails and text messages released through lawsuits between Musk and OpenAI earlier this year:

In short, Musk tried to gain complete control of OpenAI, but he failed. He moved his AI effort to Tesla, but he then lost control after selling too many shares to acquire Twitter. So he moved his AI effort to a new private company xAI.

Tesla shareholders are now suing the billionaire for breach of fiduciary duty for starting xAI, which competes for talent with Tesla.

Many experts believe shareholders have a strong case, as Musk cited a “conflict of interest” with Tesla’s own AI effort when leaving OpenAI. The CEO even threatened Tesla shareholders not to build AI products at the company if he didn’t gain more control through a higher percentage of Tesla’s shares.

Shareholders are requesting that Musk transfer his ownership of xAI to Tesla.

However, the case will take a long time to go through the court system. Meanwhile, other Tesla shareholders are suggesting that Tesla use its own money to invest in xAI directly.

They submitted a proposal that is up to a vote at Tesla’s upcoming shareholders meeting on November 6th:

RESOLVED, that shareholders of Tesla, Inc. (the “Company”) request that the Board of Directors authorize an investment in xAI, in an amount and form deemed appropriate by the Board.

WHEREAS, an investment in xAI would provide Tesla with a stake in a major AI player, potentially yielding significant financial returns while fostering technological advancements that benefit Tesla’s customers and shareholders.

As you can see, the proposal leaves it to the board to decide the full amount to invest into Musk’s private company.

Interestingly, this is the only shareholder proposal on which the board hasn’t taken a position. It is asking shareholders to vote against all other proposals, even one that is pushing for an audit to avoid contributing to child labor.

The lack of a vote recommendation from the board, which is seen as being under Musk’s control, is widely interpreted as a recommendation to vote for it. However, Musk and the board must abstain due to the ongoing lawsuit regarding xAI.

Does it make sense for Tesla to invest in xAI?

The Good

Obviously, it’s an investment and you want to get a return on it. The main “good thing” to come out of this is if xAI somehow manages to beat all the other extremely well-funded and well-staffed competition into creating a real general AI.

Considering xAI is significantly behind the competition in most revenue-generating AI-backed products and it is reportedly valued at more than $200 billion, Tesla is arriving late to the company, and realistically, it would only achieve a significant return on investment through AGI.

The only other potential benefit would be technology sharing, but an investment doesn’t actually help that much there.

Most other automakers have already partnered with AI companies to integrate LLMs in their vehicles. Tesla has already done so with Grok before investing in xAI.

In short, any technology partnership can be done without an investment in the company, as they have already shown.

If anything, it would create another circular economy, which is all the rage in the AI world these days.

The Bad

It’s obviously a risky investment, and Tesla would be entering at an already substantial valuation of approximately $200 billion – or even more, depending on when the round closes.

In comparison, OpenAI is reportedly valued at $500 billion, and it is estimated to have 700-800 million weekly users.

Meanwhile, xAI’s is estimated to have ~30 million weekly users.

As stated in the “good”, xAI has little chance of catching up to the competition in terms of revenue-generating AI services unless it can bypass them all through AGI, which is a massive gamble.

Due to its heavy investment in computing power, xAI is believed to have a burn rate of roughly $10 billion per year.

AI companies are also amortizing their compute at different rates, and many analysts worry that some are overestimating the lifespan of those chips.

Most of the $14 billion xAI raised in its first 2 years was reportedly gone by early 2025, and the company is now rumored to be closing a new round of financing between $10-20 billion. With the current burn rate, xAI is going to have to repeat this level of funding every year for the foreseeable future.

SpaceX is rumored to be investing about $2 billion in xAI’s current financing round.

With Tesla’s own profits shrinking over the last three years, it is not in a position to sustain such a high burn rate with $2 billion in investments every year.

At its current earnings rate, most of its early earnings would go into xAI with a similar investment as SpaceX.

The Ugly

The most remarkable aspect of this situation is that the Tesla shareholders suing Musk and the board over the funding of xAI have a compelling case.

There’s a real chance that Tesla could end up owning xAI without even having to invest in it, as the chief executives of public companies are not allowed to create competing private companies and funnel resources between them, which is exactly what Musk did.

Prior to starting xAI, Musk himself said that Tesla was an “AI” company. Instead of doing the right thing and incorporating the xAI effort into Tesla, he decided to do it privately because he wasted a large percentage of his Tesla ownership on buying an inflated Twitter.

Speaking of Twitter, Tesla would literally be investing in an again-inflated Twitter.

Musk sold tens of billions of dollars worth of Tesla shares to buy Twitter at $44 billion valuation, which he himself admitted was inflated.

Private investors wrote off most of the valuation over the next 3 years. As of late 2024, it was reportedly worth only $9 billion, but then Musk, a master of self-dealing, had xAI buy it/merge with it, magically raising its valuation back to $44 billion.

This also contributes to inflating any investment in xAI.

Finally, and perhaps the most troubling aspect of this whole thing, Tesla, which has as its mission to accelerate the world’s transition to renewable energy, would be investing in a company that currently primarily produces AI slop that consumes a ton of energy for questionable uses, including an extremely controversial AI companion program.

In short, Elon Musk is double-dipping into Tesla to keep his obsession with controlling AI alive.


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Podcast: Electricity is the base currency, Tesla Robotaxi crashes, new Porsche Cayenne EV, and more

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November 21, 2025

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Podcast: Electricity is the base currency, Tesla Robotaxi crashes, new Porsche Cayenne EV, and more

electrek podcast

In the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy. In this week’s episode, we discuss electricity becoming the base currency, Tesla Robotaxi crashes, the new Porsche Cayenne EV, and more.

The show is live every Friday at 4 p.m. ET on Electrek’s YouTube channel.

As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.

After the show ends at around 5 p.m. ET, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:

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We now have a Patreon if you want to help us avoid more ads and invest more in our content. We have some awesome gifts for our Patreons and more coming.

Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the podcast:

Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 4:00 p.m. ET (or the video after 5 p.m. ET:


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Wallbox pushes new wave of EV chargers across the Mountain West

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November 21, 2025

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Wallbox pushes new wave of EV chargers across the Mountain West

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Wallbox is ramping up its partnership with distributor Codale Electric Supply to roll out more EV chargers across the Mountain West, a region that’s seeing a rapid escalation of electrification programs and regional highway corridor build-outs.

Codale has become one of Wallbox’s most active distributors over the past two years, helping contractors, developers, and fleet operators procure Wallbox gear while also providing technical support and logistics. Now the two companies are scaling both AC and DC fast charging across Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, and Nevada.

Under the new agreement, Codale will prioritize Wallbox Supernova DC fast chargers and Pulsar Family AC chargers. Codale is already coordinating upgrades of older charging systems and installing new ones across public, commercial, and multifamily sites. Early projects include collaborations with several charge point operators and large commercial portfolios, some of which are rolling out Supernova units in Q4.

The Mountain West has become a hotspot for charging expansion, and Wallbox and Codale say their partnership is designed to keep pace by streamlining installation and improving network reliability.

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Ignasi Alastuey, Wallbox’s chief business officer, said, “This partnership combines Wallbox’s innovation with Codale’s on-the-ground capabilities to rapidly scale charging networks across the Mountain West and set a new benchmark for EV infrastructure growth.”

Read more: Wallbox expands its bidirectional EV charger program in the US

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Black Friday savings keep growing with up to 80% off EcoFlow power stations, Samsung smart appliances, Autel EV charger/solar cams, more

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November 21, 2025

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Black Friday savings keep growing with up to 80% off EcoFlow power stations, Samsung smart appliances, Autel EV charger/solar cams, more


Following suit from yesterday’s edition, today’s Green Deals are packed with better-than-ever full holiday savings, led by EcoFlow’s next phase of its Black Friday Sale event with up to 80% discounts on backup power solutions, complete with bonus savings, free gifts, and new low prices – all starting from $149 + the phase’s first 48-hour flash sale. There’s also Samsung’s Black Friday appliance sale that can save you hundreds to thousands on smart energy-conscious washer/dryers, refrigerators, ovens, dishwashers, and more – starting from $269, as well as a new low price on Autel’s 50A MaxiCharger AC Lite EV Charging Station at $398 (plus the latest solar-powered security cameras). There’s also Black Friday roundups of DJI equipment, EGO Power+ tools, smart ambient lighting devices, a collection of one-day-only Best Buy deals, like Greenworks’ STEALTH electric mini-bike, and more waiting for you below. And don’t forget about the hangover deals that are collected together at the bottom of the page, like yesterday’s increased Anker SOLIX Black Friday savings, Segway’s new Navimow robotic lawn mower lows + increased Ninebot EV savings, and more.

Head below for other New Green Deals we’ve found today and, of course, Electrek’s best EV buying and leasing deals. Also, check out the new Electrek Tesla Shop for the best deals on Tesla accessories.

EcoFlow launches next Black Friday Sale phase with up to 80% off expanded lineup – starts from $149

EcoFlow has officially switched to its next Black Friday Sale phase of deals with up to 80% discounts, plenty of FREE gifts, bonus savings, and more. Among the new lineup, we spotted EcoFlow’s DELTA Pro Portable Power Station bundled with 2x 220W solar panels and a FREE protective bag at $1,699 shipped, which is not only being exclusively offered direct from the brand, but is also dropping things lower than ever. One thing to note here is that, sadly, the extra savings code isn’t valid on this bundle. It would normally run you $5,199 for everything (including the $99 bag), with the bagless bundle at Amazon keeping lower at a starting rate of $3,999 and only dropping to $1,999 right now. This deal comes in $100 under its previous offer during the brand’s Halloween Sale, giving you a total $2,300 off the going rate ($3,500 off the MSRP) for the best new price that we have tracked anywhere. Be sure to head below to check out the newest phase of full Black Friday deals.

EcoFlow’s DELTA Pro power station is among the most beloved and highly rated backup power solutions from under the brand’s flag, and this solar bundle is quite the setup to grab now that it’s fallen so low in price. Covering away-from-home trips, as well as at-home emergencies, this station starts at a 3,600Wh LiFePO4 capacity that you can expand up to its 25kWh max with further investments. Your devices and appliances can receive up to 3,600W of regular power through the 14 output ports, with it even surging as high as 7,200W for those larger appliances that need more. You’ll be 440W closer to reaching its 1,600W max solar input, thanks to the bundled panels, with additional options for recharging from an AC outlet, as well as your car’s auxiliary port (or by using a compatible alternator charger).

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***Note: EcoFlow is continuing the usage of the promo code 25EFBFAFF at checkout for an extra 5% savings off your cart’s total, with none of the prices below having it factored in. Keep in mind that a number of offers are ineligible to receive the extra savings, but be sure to try it at checkout to ensure you’re getting the best possible savings during EcoFlow’s Black Friday Sale!

EcoFlow’s other direct Black Friday website-only deals/bundles:

EcoFlow’s best Black Friday Amazon deals:

EcoFlow’s best Black Friday Sale picks:

EcoFlow’s 1-2kWh Black Friday Sale deals:

EcoFlow’s 3-6kWh Black Friday Sale deals:

EcoFlow’s outdoor adventure power deals:

EcoFlow solar panel deals:

EcoFlow’s other add-on accessory deals:

Samsung smart appliance washer and dryer installed in wall with clothes hanging around it

Save thousands for Black Friday on Samsung smart washer/dryers, refrigerators, ovens, and more starting from $269

As part of Samsung’s ongoing Black Friday Sale event, we’re seeing deals that can save you hundreds to thousands of dollars on the smartest home appliance upgrades, including the Bespoke AI All-in-One Ventless Washer/Dryer Combo at $1,999 shipped, which is actually going for $110 less at Best Buy. There’s also the newer Vented Bespoke AI All-in-One Combo at $1,999 shipped, which you won’t find at Best Buy. The ventless model normally fetches $3,299 without discounts ($3,099 for the vented counterpart) direct from the brand, and starts lower at $2,970 at Best Buy, with 2025 having seen it more often down at $2,199 during sales. While we have seen it go lower in the past, especially 2024, you’re otherwise looking at the best prices we have tracked this year, letting you upgrade to a smarter way to do laundry with up to $1,300 savings, or save more by going with Samsung’s open-box option for $1,599 on the washer/dryer’s sale page down on the right-side options.

Alongside the washer/dryer combos above, we’ve curated a full list of Samsung’s best Black Friday appliance deals on other washers, dryers, refrigerators, ovens, dishwashers, and more that you can browse by checking out our original coverage of this sale here.

man uses Autel EV charger with electric vehicle

Autel’s MaxiCharger AC Lite level 2 EV charger grants up to 50A speeds at new $398 Black Friday low (Save $171)

As part of Amazon’s ongoing Black Friday Sale event, Autel’s official storefront is offering its MaxiCharger AC Lite Home 50A Level 2 EV Charging Station for $398.20 shipped, matching the price we’re seeing direct from the brand’s website. Normally going for $569 outside of discounts, we’ve seen this model go as low as $450 in 2025, with today’s deal giving you a total $171 markdown off the full rate that beats out last year’s Black Friday pricing by $1 for a new all-time low.

You can learn more about this higher-powered EV charging solution by checking out our original coverage of this deal here. You can also find the brand’s latest solar-powered 2-cam and 4-cam Outdoor Wireless Security Camera kits that sport some unique features and currently start from $249.

DJI Power 2000 power station in living room in front of couch with sleeping man
holiday banner for EGO Power+ tools
Govee Matter Outdoor Lamp Post illuminating yard

Best Fall EV deals!

Best new Green Deals landing this week

The savings this week are also continuing to a collection of other markdowns. To the same tune as the offers above, these all help you take a more energy-conscious approach to your routine. Winter means you can lock in even better off-season price cuts on electric tools for the lawn while saving on EVs and tons of other gear.


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