Elon Musk is preparing to reap the benefits of his electoral alliance with Trump

Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, is preparing to reap the benefits of his alliance with future President Donald Trump, including exerting influence in the federal government beyond just overseeing administrative efficiency, and which could turn into benefits for your business.

The businessman evolved from a character who avoided politics to a full-fledged participation in Trump’s campaign, especially after the attempted assassination of the candidate during a rally in Pennsylvania last July, which was a turning point as from then on he devoted all his resources used his power. available to support him: his face, his loudspeaker and his money.

Musk has invested about $130 million through his campaign committee in helping Trump return to the White House, but experts suggest he has also funded groups that are not required to reveal their donors, and swayed voters with monetary rewards if they commit to their cause.

The New York Times revealed Thursday that Musk has already asked Trump to hire several employees of his company SpaceX as senior government officials, including the Defense Department, which is one of his clients, according to two people aware of their calls .

Officially, Musk has declared his candidacy to lead a non-existent Department of Government Efficiency and has advocated cutting the federal budget by “two trillion dollars.”

It is the market that has given a clear sign of the weight that Musk is starting to gain thanks to his close relationship with Trump: during the first session of the stock market after Trump’s victory, his electric car company Tesla rose by about 15%, more than major banks, and this allowed the magnate to increase his assets by approximately $15 billion.

Business plus politics, a sum with predictable outcomes

Trump has expressed a “distinct lack of support for climate-friendly solutions,” but Tesla, born as a clean alternative to traditional cars, credits its rise in the stock market to the belief that Musk will “play an important role in the new administration.” .”, even if nothing fundamentally changes for Tesla,” Mirova’s equities team wrote in a note.

Musk is the co-founder and investor of numerous companies, but today he is responsible for six companies: Tesla (electric cars), SpaceX (spacecraft and satellites), ), The Boring Company (infrastructure and tunnels) and xAI (artificial intelligence).

In addition, he spends some of his money on philanthropy at the Musk Foundation, which provides grants to develop sectors in which it invests, such as artificial intelligence and space exploration, as well as renewable energy, pediatrics and science education, according to his short web. page.

If anything, Musk’s companies are sensitive to the government’s policies because they are largely funded by government contracts, and Tesla in particular benefits from tax breaks for purchasing electric vehicles; and at the legislative level he already had Republican allies, who now number more and can promote regulations that benefit Musk’s various businesses, whether in space exploration or artificial intelligence.

The NYT compares the role that Musk could play with that of another technology magnate, Peter Thiel, who was influential during Trump’s first term, recalling that the president-elect has already moderated some positions due to the influence of the SpaceX founder . for example, in his distrust of electric vehicles, and has stated that this will help him.

In addition to allying himself with Trump on economic issues, Musk, who calls himself a champion of free speech, has joined his “culture war,” the conservative crusade against progressive or “woke” ideas on immigration or gender, since your X network , which you will probably continue to use as a speaker.