US AI crypto leader David Sacks was interviewed this morning 7/16 discussing the US reopening of NVIDIA H20 chip sales to China, Huawei's rapid technological catch-up, and US corporate global market competition strategies. He also previewed that President Trump will deliver his first major AI policy speech on 7/23. He emphasized that the energy demands behind AI development have become a national security-level issue, and the US must accelerate power grid construction to avoid being overtaken by China.
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With support from the Trump administration, Musk briefly became a symbolic figure in Washington, which also boosted the market value of Tesla and SpaceX. However, from his falling out with Trump to controversies surrounding Robotaxi and Grok AI, he has been steadily walking a path of self-destruction. When a president becomes an enemy and investors start to waver, it inevitably raises concerns about whether Musk's tech empire is collapsing.
(The following content is sourced from Bloomberg, translated by ABMedia, original title: Elon Musk's Empire Is Creaking Under the Strain of Elon Musk)
[The rest of the translation follows the same professional and accurate approach]The dispute between the two cooled down over time. Although Musk deleted and apologized for posts related to Epstein, he subsequently reduced subsidies for Tesla and began to criticize Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill". Trump coldly said:
Do you know what Doge is? Doge is a monster that might turn around and swallow Musk.
(Musk announces forming the "America Party", Trump: Considering deporting him back to South Africa)
Trump holds all the chips, how can Musk escape?
Worryingly, Trump's influence and threat to Musk are not as small as imagined. The Bloomberg Billionaires Index shows Musk's assets are around $360 billion, but in reality, his assets heavily depend on the performance of his companies (especially Tesla's stock price), relations with the US government, and his personal and corporate fundraising capabilities.
Now, these three pillars appear to be crumbling under his obvious conflict with Trump, with investors also beginning to express concerns about Musk's every move. Bloomberg commented:
Musk's company finances are intertwined and highly tied to his actions, making it difficult to remain unscathed if problems arise. If Trump truly takes serious action, he has many tools to strike at Musk's business and potentially subject him to an "invisible hand of retaliation".
Starting from Musk's core business, is the tech empire in danger?
Robotaxi self-driving promises continue to break, is Tesla's market value overestimated or has explosive potential?
Musk has always been pushing dates and making promises, from claiming his cars would have full self-driving capability in 2015 to continually postponing target dates. In recent years, there have been incidents of mistaken entry and self-collision, raising public concerns. Despite this, investors like Cathie Wood, founder of ARK Invest, still believe in him. Regarding Tesla:
In terms of market value, Tesla's is about 20 times that of General Motors (GM), yet GM's annual vehicle sales are three times Tesla's. This gap can only mean two things: either Tesla is overvalued, or it is about to experience explosive growth.
However, the reality is that Tesla's delivery volume has declined for two consecutive quarters, Cybertruck has only sold 1/10 of expected units, the affordable car project has been quietly postponed, and management has been rumored to be in disarray with high-level departures. Trump's new tax reform bill has also canceled the $7,500 electric vehicle tax credit and carbon credit sales that Tesla relied on, with JPMorgan predicting the company's annual profit will be halved this year.
Starship Falling: Political Interference Threatens SpaceX's Space Dominance
SpaceX has always been Musk's most solid company, almost monopolizing US space satellite launch, cargo, and personnel transport missions, but now it is also in turmoil.
The company previously refused to allow the Ukrainian military to use Starlink network during the Russia-Ukraine war, raising doubts about its stance. Subsequently, after Musk criticized the "One Big Beautiful Bill", Trump contacted SpaceX's competitor EchoStar on one hand, and on the other, injected $4.1 billion into Boeing's SLS rocket in the bill, actions clearly aimed at retaliating against Musk.
As Musk's most trusted company, SpaceX's space commercial territory is now imbalanced due to Musk's personality and political operations.
(ARK Analyzes SpaceX's Grand Ambitions, Estimated to Increase Seven-Fold by 2030)
xAI Burning Money, Losses and Controversies, Relying on SpaceX and Tesla for Transfusion
Musk's newly established xAI is his latest high-stakes bet and biggest money-burning machine. The latest model Grok 4, which he claims is the world's strongest AI, was immediately found to contain anti-Semitic, white supremacist, and genocide rhetoric, often citing Nazi memes and conspiracy theories, sparking widespread condemnation.
Investors are worried that xAI is expected to lose up to $13 billion this year, with revenue of only $500 million, but plans to raise over $20 billion, including allocations from SpaceX. Musk even stated that he would ask Tesla's board to allocate funds to support xAI.
When the Hero Becomes the Source of Chaos: Is Musk's Tech Empire Crumbling?
Musk has always been a master of survival in dire straits, with both Tesla and SpaceX having been on the brink of bankruptcy. However, this time it's not just a single issue - from losing his White House ally, creating a new party "America Party", to being spread thin across his various enterprises, everything is consuming time, resources, and energy.
As a global technology evolution driver, Musk's business empire is built not just on technology and innovation, but also on his personal charisma and investor trust. Now, these foundations are gradually crumbling due to his political fanaticism, ideology, and verbal storms. As Bloomberg commented:
While the president has the ability and means to harm Musk's business empire, if we had to say who is the biggest variable in that empire, Trump would probably rank behind Musk himself.
Now, he has lost Trump's protection and made himself the biggest risk in his business territory. The empire hasn't fallen yet, but cracks have appeared. And the first brick was knocked down by Musk himself.
Risk Warning
Cryptocurrency investment carries high risk, and prices may fluctuate dramatically. You may lose all your principal. Please carefully assess the risks.
