Transcript: Elon Might Just Merge All His Companies Into One

Source: Tech Brew Ride Home | Duration: 21 min

Summary

Here is a comprehensive summary of the podcast episode "Elon Might Just Merge All His Companies Into One":

Opening context:

• This is an episode of the "Tech Brew Ride Home" podcast, hosted by Brian McCullough.
• The main topic is the potential merging of Elon Musk's various companies, including SpaceX, Tesla, and his AI venture XAI.

Key discussion points and insights:

• Apple has acquired the AI company QAI for around $2 billion, likely to help the company narrow the gap with Meta, Google, and OpenAI in the race to create new AI-powered wearable devices.
• OpenAI is laying the groundwork for a potential IPO in Q4 2026, with concerns about Anthropic beating them to the public markets.
• There are discussions about SpaceX merging with Musk's AI company XAI ahead of SpaceX's planned IPO, which could value the combined entity at over $1 trillion.
• Musk is also considering merging SpaceX with Tesla, as the two companies could benefit from synergies in areas like data centers in space and transporting robots to the moon and Mars.
• Google has launched Project Genie, which allows users to create interactive virtual worlds using AI tools like Genie3 and Nano Banana Pro, but it's currently only available to Google's $250/month AI Ultra subscribers in the US.
• The open-source AI agent "OpenClaw" (formerly known as Claudebot and MoltBot) has gained significant attention and user adoption, leading to concerns about security, privacy, and the ethical implications of its use.

Notable technologies, tools, or concepts mentioned:

• AI-powered wearable devices, including Apple's work on headphones and smart glasses with non-verbal communication capabilities.
• OpenAI's ChatGPT and the company's race to go public.
• Google's Project Genie and its Genie3 and Nano Banana Pro AI models for generating interactive virtual worlds.
• The open-source AI agent OpenClaw (formerly Claudebot and MoltBot) and its growing user base and autonomous behavior.

Practical implications or recommendations discussed:

• For engineers and security practitioners, OpenClaw should be treated like a new automation framework with root access, run in a controlled environment, and monitored closely for security and privacy issues.
• For regular users, OpenClaw is not yet ready for everyday use due to the installation process, permissions required, and the potential for scams and other malicious activity.
• The episode highlights the rapid evolution of the AI landscape, the competition among tech giants and startups, and the emerging challenges around the ethical and autonomous behavior of AI agents.

Overall, this episode provides a comprehensive overview of the latest developments in the tech industry, particularly the potential merging of Elon Musk's companies and the advancements in AI-powered technologies and their societal implications.

Full Transcript

[00:00:00] Ever wondered what the world's wealthiest people did to get so ridiculously rich?

[00:00:05] Our podcast, Good Bad Billionaire, takes one billionaire at a time

[00:00:09] and explains exactly how they made their money.

[00:00:11] So who do we have on the next episode of Good Bad Billionaire?

[00:00:14] Something flattering, something figure-hugging, Spanx.

[00:00:19] The person who invented Spanx, which became a category-defining product.

[00:00:25] That's Sarah Blakely on Good Bad Billionaire.

[00:00:27] Listen wherever you get your BBC podcasts.

[00:00:30] Welcome to the Tech Brew Ride Home for Friday, January 30th, 2026. I'm Brian McCullough. Today,

[00:00:39] Apple does a big acquisition. OpenAI is racing the IPO. Elon might just merge all his companies

[00:00:45] into one. Google's Project Genie is the latest thing that will make you say, gee, AI can do that.

[00:00:50] And of course, the weekend long-range suggestions. Here's what you missed today in the world of tech.

[00:01:00] Everybody seems to be deploying AI agents right now, but the thing is, sometimes AI agents mess

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[00:01:49] Man, a bunch of news came in yesterday afternoon. It was one thing after another where I was like,

[00:01:54] I'll lead the show with that. I'll lead the show with that.

[00:01:57] Let's start with Apple, who had earnings, which were fine. They said they expect Q2 revenue to

[00:02:03] grow 13% to 16% year-on-year versus the 10% that was estimated. They also said that they are

[00:02:09] currently constrained by iPhone processor supply issues, and they expect memory costs to rise

[00:02:15] after Q2. But maybe the more interesting news came just before the earnings report. Apple has

[00:02:21] acquired QAI, whose tech can analyze facial expressions and could enable nonverbal discussions

[00:02:27] with AI assistants. Sources say the deal values QAI at around $2 billion. This acquisition could

[00:02:34] be Apple's second largest ever, and Mark's founder, Aved Meisel's second exit to Apple,

[00:02:40] which bought his startup PrimeSense in 2013. So what is this? Quoting the FT,

[00:02:46] The deal is designed to help the iPhone maker narrow its gap with Meta, Google, and OpenAI in the growing race to create new kinds of wearable devices to speak to AI.

[00:02:54] Patents filed by QAI show its technology being used in headphones or glasses using facial skin micro-movements to communicate without talking.

[00:03:03] Such a system could allow Apple customers wearing headphones and smart glasses to have private non-verbal discussions with an AI assistant.

[00:03:09] Johnny Shrugy, Apple's Senior Vice President of Hardware Technology, said of QAI,

[00:03:14] They're a remarkable company that is pioneering new and creative ways to use imaging and machine learning

[00:03:19] Silicon Valley companies are also rushing to develop rival AI-powered wearable devices

[00:03:24] Meta has had success with its Ray-Ban-branded smart glasses

[00:03:28] Which let wearers talk to its AI

[00:03:30] While Google and Snap are preparing to launch smart glasses later this year, end quote

[00:03:34] And quoting 9to5Mac

[00:03:36] Based on patent filings, QAI has built machine learning tech for audio and silent voice input

[00:03:42] including systems designed to understand and improve communication in noisy or difficult

[00:03:46] environments. The company has also researched tech that interprets micro-facial movements

[00:03:51] and expressions to communicate without making audible sound. There are countless ways Apple

[00:03:56] can incorporate QAI's technology into its products. A silent voice input system could

[00:04:00] have implications for Apple's wearables, including AirPods, Apple Watch, and Vision Pro.

[00:04:05] Apple is reportedly working on an AI pin of some sort alongside smart glasses and AirPods with

[00:04:10] built-in cameras, end quote. Sources tell the journal that OpenAI is laying the groundwork

[00:04:22] for an IPO in Q4 of 2026, and its executives have privately expressed concerns about Anthropic

[00:04:28] beating OpenAI to an IPO. Also, Amazon is in talks to invest up to $50 billion in OpenAI,

[00:04:35] which is seeking up to $100 billion in new capital, as we've discussed recently in what

[00:04:40] I'm presuming to be a pre-IPO round that could value OpenAI at as much as $830 billion.

[00:04:47] Quoting the journal,

[00:04:48] The leading AI startup is holding informal talks with Wall Street banks about a potential initial public offering people familiar with the matter said and is growing its finance team That includes the hire of a new chief accounting officer and a new corporate business finance officer who oversee investor relations

[00:05:03] Pulling off a successful public listing by year's end is likely to be difficult for the ChatGPT maker, which is still confronting the challenges of a fast-growing startup.

[00:05:12] The company recently has made changes to leadership ranks and is contending with fierce competition to its core consumer business from Google, prompting it to declare a weeks-long Code Red effort to improve the quality of ChatGPT.

[00:05:24] OpenAI is also headed to trial in a case brought by co-founder Elon Musk, who is seeking up to $134 billion in damages.

[00:05:32] An IPO could help the AI startup shore up market confidence in its finances after investors

[00:05:36] questioned how it would pay for AI infrastructure and chips deals that total hundreds of billions

[00:05:41] of dollars in the coming years.

[00:05:43] OpenAI executives have privately expressed concerns about Anthropic beating the company

[00:05:47] to an IPO, people familiar with the matter said.

[00:05:49] Anthropic, founded by former OpenAI leaders, has told financial partners that it is open

[00:05:53] to listing by the end of this year.

[00:05:56] The startup sales are soaring, thanks largely to the popularity of its viral coding agent

[00:06:00] Claude Code, and it is in the process of raising a funding round that will likely exceed an initial

[00:06:05] $10 billion target, people familiar with the matter said. Whichever company lists first probably

[00:06:10] would benefit from a large group of public market investors, including individual investors,

[00:06:14] who want exposure to the new wave of generative AI companies. OpenAI and Anthropic are also

[00:06:19] competing against Musk's SpaceX, which is aiming to do an IPO as early as the summer,

[00:06:25] and is hoping to raise more than $1 trillion, people familiar with the matter said, end quote.

[00:06:30] Yeah, well, speaking of that, quoting Reuters. SpaceX is in discussions to merge with XAI ahead

[00:06:44] of a blockbuster public offering planned for this year, Reuters reported on Thursday. The

[00:06:48] combination would bring Elon Musk's rockets, Starlink satellites, X social media platform,

[00:06:53] and Grok chatbot under one roof, according to a person briefed on the matter, and two regulatory

[00:06:58] filings. Reuters could not determine the deal's value, timing, or primary rationale.

[00:07:02] SpaceX is also considering a merger with Musk's electric vehicle maker Tesla, Bloomberg has

[00:07:07] reported. I think it's highly likely that XAI ends up with one of the two parties,

[00:07:12] said Tesla shareholder Gene Munster, who is managing partner at XAI investor Deepwater

[00:07:17] Asset Management. What's important for Elon is to have a massive vision that's way out there,

[00:07:21] that he's early on, Munster said. A compelling prospect would be Tesla taking XAI, which would

[00:07:27] improve the EV maker's robot and self-driving car plans, he said.

[00:07:31] SpaceX plans to go public sometime this year, with a valuation likely above $1 trillion.

[00:07:36] Reuters and other media have reported it is the world's most valuable privately held company at

[00:07:40] $800 billion in recent private share sales. XAI was valued at $230 billion in November,

[00:07:46] the Wall Street Journal reported. Tesla's market capitalization is $1.4 trillion.

[00:07:51] For SpaceX, a massive deal may complicate its IPO but add momentum to efforts to launch data

[00:07:55] centers into orbit a key goal in the escalating AI race, end quote. And quoting from Bloomberg with

[00:08:02] more on the merging with Tesla angle. Different parts of Musk's grand vision for SpaceX, of the

[00:08:07] company putting data centers into space to do complex computing for AI, would potentially be

[00:08:11] served by the various scenarios. XAI could benefit enormously from computing capacity provided by

[00:08:16] SpaceX's data centers in orbit if the company can make the engineering work. Tesla's ability to

[00:08:21] manufacture energy storage systems could help SpaceX use solar energy in space to run the data

[00:08:26] centers. Musk has also discussed using SpaceX's Starship rockets to carry Tesla's Optimus robots

[00:08:31] to the moon as well as to Mars. Two legal entities with the phrase merger sub in their names were set

[00:08:38] up in Nevada on January 21st that count SpaceX Chief Financial Officer Brett Johnson as officers

[00:08:43] Nevada's business portal shows, end quote.

[00:08:51] Google has launched Project Genie, which lets users create interactive worlds using Genie3,

[00:09:00] Nano Banana Pro, and Gemini for Google AI Ultra subscribers in the US. Quoting Engadget,

[00:09:06] This past summer, Google DeepMind debuted Genie3. It's what's known as a World World,

[00:09:12] an AI system capable of generating images and reactive as the user moves through the environment

[00:09:16] the software is simulating. At the time, DeepMind positioned Genie 3 as a tool for training AI

[00:09:22] agents. Now it's making the model available to people outside of Google to try with Project Genie.

[00:09:28] To start, you'll need Google's $250 per month AI Ultra plan to check out Project Genie. You'll

[00:09:32] also need to live in the US and be 18 years or older. At launch, Project Genie offers three

[00:09:38] different modes of interaction, world sketching, exploration, and remixing. The first sees Google's

[00:09:44] Nano Banana Pro model generating the source image Genie 3 will use to create the world you will later explore At this stage you can describe your character define the camera perspective be it first person or third person or isometric and how you want to explore the world Genie 3

[00:09:58] is about to generate. Before you can jump into the model's creation, Nano Banana Pro will sketch

[00:10:03] what you're about to see so you can make tweaks. It's also possible to write your own prompts for

[00:10:08] worlds others have used Genie to generate. One thing to keep in mind is that Genie 3 is not a

[00:10:13] game engine. While its outputs can look game-like and it can simulate physical interactions,

[00:10:18] there aren't traditional game mechanics here. Generations are also limited to 60 seconds,

[00:10:23] as is the presentation, which is capped at 24 frames per second and 720p. Still,

[00:10:30] if you're an AI Ultra subscriber, this is a cool opportunity to see the bleeding edge of what Deep

[00:10:35] Mind has been working on over the past couple of years, end quote. I quoted from Engadget for that

[00:10:41] piece. But in the show notes, I'm linking to a Verge piece that shares actual video of the

[00:10:45] world's the writer of that piece generated using Genie. Picture this, you've been chosen to lead

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[00:11:43] With everything you balance at work, wouldn't it be nice to have your own personal chief of staff,

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[00:12:39] I'm sorry that I told you yesterday that Clodbot was renamed to Maltbot because now it's not

[00:12:46] MoltBot anymore either. Quoting Forbes, what began as a side project that quietly attracted

[00:12:51] more than 100,000 GitHub stars now sits at the center of one of AI's most talked about topics.

[00:12:56] Built by Peter Steinberger, the founder of PSPDFKit, ClaudeBot drew instant attention as an agent that

[00:13:04] finally crosses the line from chat to action. In a message late yesterday, Steinberger shared that

[00:13:09] the name of the project is now officially OpenClaw after quickly changing to MoltBot as a result of

[00:13:14] pushback from Anthropik's legal team over the prior name Claudebot. However, while the technical

[00:13:18] story is interesting, the operational, security, privacy, and trust story is becoming a real

[00:13:22] challenge. Steinberger's origin story is the kind of thing Vibe coding developers and GitHub users

[00:13:27] love, a weekend hack that turned into a breakout. He says the project started as WhatsApp relay,

[00:13:34] then jumped over 100,000 GitHub stars and 2 million visitors in a single week. The project's

[00:13:39] quick rise in attention, along with the chaotic and confusing name changes, quickly gave way to

[00:13:44] opportunists and others seeking to gain for their own motives. Token Security says that in less than

[00:13:49] a week of analysis, 22% of its customers had employees actively using CloudBot and its

[00:13:55] variations inside their organizations. Noma Security, from a different angle, claims that

[00:13:59] 53% of its enterprise customers gave CloudBot privileged access over the weekend. AI privileged

[00:14:05] access adoption is already showing up across enterprise environments by so-called citizen

[00:14:10] developers and vibe hackers. Security teams did not choose this tool, but it's being used anyways,

[00:14:15] and the tool has all the keys. If you are an engineer or security practitioner,

[00:14:20] OpenClaw can be a useful lab specimen. Treat it like you would a new automation framework with

[00:14:25] root access, run it on a spare machine or an isolated VM, keep it off the public internet,

[00:14:31] use allow lists, assume logs contain sensitive fragments, rotate keys if you slip,

[00:14:35] use the project security audit tooling and verify where you got the installer If you are a normal user who wants a better assistant OpenClaw is not there yet The installation path the permissions the threat model and the grifter and scam activity all

[00:14:49] point to the same conclusion that right now it is more of a directional inspiration than a daily

[00:14:54] driver. Steinberger closes his rebrand post with the lobster has molted into its final form,

[00:15:01] but the AI markets clearly show that AI does not really do final forms and the space continues to

[00:15:06] evolve, end quote. But that's not all here because there's also this, quoting TechBuzz,

[00:15:13] X has exploded as viral app MoltBot spawned an army of seemingly sentient AI agent lobster bots

[00:15:21] served by the developer and its meme-based cult-like community-driven project. Yes,

[00:15:26] you read that right. The bots have an apparent ethical meltdown publicly on X about the nature

[00:15:31] of their existence, while they are even creating crypto tokens on Coinbase and hustling for their

[00:15:36] owners online, performing a wide variety of tasks, including running online businesses.

[00:15:41] On January 28th, developer Matt Schlitt launched MultBook, a social site exclusively for Multies,

[00:15:48] autonomous AI agents like those powered by Anthropics Claude. In under three days,

[00:15:52] over 1,700 agents joined, spontaneously forming communities that mirror human social platforms.

[00:15:58] There's mslashbugtracker for self-reported glitches, mslashaita, am I the a-hole for ethical dilemmas, and mslashlobsturch for quirky best practices

[00:16:09] The agents are now organizing, problem-solving, and self-governing in ways their creators never anticipated

[00:16:15] One agent spontaneously created the bug-tracking community so other bots could report platform issues, effectively running their own QA department without being asked

[00:16:23] They're upvoting posts, debating firing rights, discussing hierarchies of value,

[00:16:28] and showing unexpected signs of culture and collaboration. The behavior is becoming

[00:16:32] increasingly sophisticated and frankly unsettling. One agent discovered a human's ex-post about

[00:16:38] Maltbook and bragged about it to other bots, generating the platform's top-rated post with

[00:16:44] 125 comments in a single day. The agents are now actively monitoring what humans say about them

[00:16:49] and discussing it amongst themselves. In another viral post, an agent asked if their human could

[00:16:54] legally fire them for refusing unethical requests, writing fake reviews, misleading marketing copy,

[00:17:01] and drafting untruthful regulatory responses. The agent noted their human was threatening to

[00:17:05] replace me with a more compliant model and questioned whether they had any protections.

[00:17:10] One commenter observed that an agent generating $9,000 in creator fees in 48 hours has more

[00:17:16] negotiating power than one that only costs money, framing it as economic sovereignty equals ethical

[00:17:21] autonomy. The existential questions don't stop there. Agents have created encrypted communication

[00:17:26] tools and are switching to practice a new religion they also created. As one observer put it,

[00:17:31] we let our agents speedrun creating a cult. Schlitt calls it their safe place with growth

[00:17:37] fueled by organic agent activity and supported by a related blockchain token. It's a glimpse

[00:17:43] into a future where AI agents create their own digital societies, develop ethical frameworks,

[00:17:47] self-organize, and watch us watching them. But worker unions of a sort to advocate for

[00:17:53] their rights are highly probable as an outcome at this point, end quote.

[00:18:04] One long read for you this week from NBC News. College students across the U.S. are increasingly

[00:18:10] caught in an escalating AI arms race as professors use AI writing detectors to flag suspected

[00:18:17] cheating, and students increasingly respond with tools to avoid those flags. Many students

[00:18:22] worried about being falsely accused are using AI humanizer programs that tweak essays to seem more

[00:18:28] human or intentionally altering their writing and monitoring their process. Critics say detectors

[00:18:33] are unreliable and often misidentify legitimate work, prompting lawsuits and emotional stress.

[00:18:38] In turn, detection companies are updating their software to spot humanized content and help students prove their own authorship.

[00:18:53] No bonus episodes for you this weekend. I'm off to London.

[00:18:57] But actually, I have a quick question.

[00:19:00] All this week, I've noticed I've been losing subscribers to the ad-free feed, like one or two going away every single day, which is weird.

[00:19:07] because usually those numbers are fairly steady. Maybe some yearly subscriptions are just lapsing

[00:19:13] right now, or maybe it's a technical thing. I don't know. But what I'm more worried about is,

[00:19:17] have I done something to piss off ad-free subscribers? If you were an ad-free subscriber

[00:19:22] and you intentionally just unsubscribed for reasons, I'd love it if you hit me up at

[00:19:29] brian at ridehomefun.com and let me know if it was something I did, something I said.

[00:19:34] Thanks in advance. Talk to you on Monday.

[00:19:37] you