BREAKING: Elon Musk’s xAI Quietly Drops Public Benefit Status—What It Means for Crypto

Elon Musk’s AI venture just made a stealth move that’s raising eyebrows from Silicon Valley to Wall Street. xAI, the much-hyped artificial intelligence startup, has quietly altered its corporate status—ditching its public benefit corporation designation without fanfare or disclosure.

Behind the Legal Shift

Public benefit corporations pledge to balance profit with social good. Shedding that status signals a sharper focus on pure commercial ambition. No regulatory filings spelled out the change—just a silent update buried in corporate paperwork. Musk’s team isn’t talking, but the move screams bottom-line priorities.

Implications for Tech and Crypto

When Musk pivots, markets notice. xAI’s ties to crypto run deep—speculation swirls around potential blockchain integration or tokenization plays. Dropping the “benefit” veil might mean tighter alignment with profit-driven crypto ecosystems. Think less altruism, more alpha.

Another classic Musk maneuver: optimize first, explain never. Because nothing says ‘public benefit’ like quietly axing the label while bankers nod approvingly.

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Ironically, around the same time, xAI quietly removed its own PBC status, according to CNBC. Nevada records show that xAI ended this designation by May 9, 2024. When xAI later merged with X (formerly Twitter), the newly formed company did not reinstate the PBC status. Interestingly, not long after dropping its public benefit label, xAI began running its Memphis, Tennessee data center (used to train its Grok chatbot) on natural gas turbines. It is worth noting that these turbines were supposed to include pollution controls, but those haven’t been implemented.

As a result, researchers at the University of Tennessee reported that this has worsened air pollution in the area. In addition, critics from the watchdog group LASST argue that xAI only used its PBC status for good publicity and quietly dropped it later without telling the public. Unsurprisingly, LASST’s leaders say that companies in the fast-growing AI sector need to be held accountable for their promises as more investor money flows in and AI systems grow more powerful. Meanwhile, Musk’s own attorney continued referring to xAI as a PBC in court filings, which suggests that even his legal team wasn’t aware of the status change.

What Is the Prediction for Tesla Stock?

When it comes to Elon Musk’s companies, most of them are privately held. However, retail investors can invest in his most popular company, Tesla (TSLA). Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Hold consensus rating on TSLA stock based on 13 Buys, 15 Holds, and eight Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. Furthermore, the average TSLA price target of $305.37 per share implies 11.4% downside risk.