Elon Musk is under investigation over CEO benefits received from Tesla and whether they were properly disclosed. According to a new report, the perks may date back further than investigators previously realized, and broadened interest from federal prosecutors appears to signal the pursuit of potential criminal charges.
Federal prosecutors are conducting an investigation of Musk and Tesla over the disclosure and use of company resources for various personal benefits, including a project to build a house for the CEO, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. Musk is under investigation from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) over the Tesla benefits, which may date back as far as 2017. Additionally, criminal charges could be on the table.
The WSJ says it spoke with “an array of people” about Tesla and the government investigations for this report.
According to people familiar with the matter, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York has also been investigating Musk for transactions made between Tesla and other entities connected to him. Prosecutors on the case have alluded to potential involvement from a grand jury, the WSJ reports.
In addition, a separate civil investigation has been opened into allegations of the house project for Musk by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The housing plans were internally dubbed “Project 42,” set to construct a large glass building near Tesla’s Gigafactory Texas.
The SEC requires publicly traded companies to disclose executive perks and benefits if their total exceeds $10,000, including reimbursement for private security, housing or airplane use. Companies are also required to disclose transactions over $120,000 in which executive officers have a material interest.
Notably, Musk posted last year about wanting to build himself a home on a nearby horse farm on the other side of the Colorado River from Giga Texas. He met with an architect to talk designs and even suggested utilizing a glass shard coming out of a lake, according to Walter Isaacson’s recent biography of the billionaire. Ultimately, Isaacson says Musk just “put off building it.”
Project 42 and its purpose were considered a secret within the company, the WSJ explains.
When employees became worried about the use of millions of dollars in glass panels ordered by Tesla, lawyers and board members began scrutinizing the project. One such concerned party reportedly included former CFO Zachary Kirkhorn, who stepped down last month but will remain through the end of the year.
Earlier this month, Musk denied claims of his plans to have Tesla build a glass house or any house in a post on X, and he and his representatives didn’t respond to the WSJ’s requests for comment.
Just want to reiterate that there is no glass house (metaphors don’t count lol) built, under construction or planned!
I’m not building any house of any kind anywhere. Period.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 1, 2023
“Companies have been paying attention to the SEC’s enforcement efforts and tightening their controls in this area, which is likely resulting in changes to perks or increased disclosures,” says Sidley Austin lawyer and regulatory enforcement group leader Stephen L. Cohen. “But I believe there is also a view at the SEC that the public cares about executive perks.”
Tesla toxic workplace lawsuit from shareholders dismissed, for now
What are your thoughts? Let me know at zach@teslarati.com, find me on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send your tips to us at tips@teslarati.com.
News
Tesla launches new loaner program that owners will love
Tesla is now giving owners the opportunity to rent a vehicle from them, and it includes a few very attractive features that will have you second-guessing another loaner from insurance.

Tesla has launched a new loaner program that owners will love, as it resolves some concerns over a replacement vehicle while it is being repaired.
Earlier this week, Tesla launched the option to rent a Tesla loaner vehicle for just $45 per day if your vehicle is in Collision Repair. Collision repairs did not formerly warrant the issuance of loaner vehicles, as the insurance provider of the car owner would provide transportation arrangements.
Tesla is now giving owners the opportunity to rent a vehicle from them, and it includes a few very attractive features that will have you second-guessing another loaner from insurance.
The Tesla you rent while your car is in collision repair will come with free Full Self-Driving, free Supercharging, and free toll coverage, no small print included.
🚨 Tesla is offering loaner vehicle for $45/day if your car is in collision repair for body work.
It includes Free Full Self-Driving, Free Supercharging, and Free Tolls https://t.co/cMYxIb1MLF pic.twitter.com/n0Of4OTLvt
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 18, 2025
All things considered, this is a great deal for those who require a car for transportation while their car is being repaired.
The cost of Supercharging and Full Self-Driving alone would warrant the $45 per day price tag. Add in the tolls for those who commute on turnpikes for work or are planning an extensive trip that would require it, and it truly becomes an even more attractive deal.
Tesla has done a good job at improving its Service division over the past few years, and it truly needed it. In hopes of launching an F1-style service experience, Tesla started doing away with some of its perks, including loaner vehicles for single-day visits and even Uber credits.
Tesla’s ‘F1’ Service strategy eliminates same-day loaner vehicles, Uber credits
However, it has listened to the complaints of its owners and tried to cater an experience that is more advantageous and less of a hassle. It’s already made tremendous steps in the past few years, and this is the icing on the cake.
Elon Musk
SpaceX Starship Flight 10: What to expect
SpaceX implemented hardware and operational changes aimed at improving Starship’s reliability.

SpaceX is preparing to launch the tenth test flight of its Starship vehicle as early as Sunday, August 24, with the launch window opening at 6:30 p.m. CT.
The mission follows investigations into anomalies from earlier flights, including the loss of Starship on its ninth test and a Ship 36 static fire issue. SpaceX has since implemented hardware and operational changes aimed at improving Starship’s reliability.
Booster landing burns and flight experiments
The upcoming Starship Flight 10 will expand Super Heavy’s flight envelope with multiple landing burn trials. Following stage separation, the booster will attempt a controlled flip and boostback burn before heading to an offshore splashdown in the Gulf of America. One of the three center engines typically used for landing will be intentionally disabled, allowing engineers to evaluate whether a backup engine can complete the maneuver, according to a post from SpaceX.
The booster will also transition to a two-engine configuration for the final phase, hovering briefly above the water before shutdown and drop. These experiments are designed to simulate off-nominal scenarios and generate real-world data on performance under varying conditions, while maximizing propellant use during ascent to enable heavier payloads.
Starship upper stage reentry tests
The Starship upper stage will attempt multiple in-space objectives, including deployment of eight Starlink simulators and a planned Raptor engine relight. SpaceX will also continue testing reentry systems with several modifications. A section of thermal protection tiles has been removed to expose vulnerable areas, while new metallic tile designs, including one with active cooling, will be trialed.
Catch fittings have been installed to evaluate their thermal and structural performance, and adjustments to the tile line will address hot spots observed on Flight 6. The reentry profile is expected to push the structural limits of Starship’s rear flaps at maximum entry pressure.
SpaceX says lessons from these tests are critical to refining the next-generation Starship and Super Heavy vehicles. With Starfactory production ramping in Texas and new launch infrastructure under development in Florida, the company is pushing to hit its goal of achieving a fully reusable orbital launch system.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk takes aim at Bill Gates’ Microsoft with new AI venture “Macrohard”
It is quite an appropriate name for a company that’s designed to rival Microsoft.

Elon Musk has set his sights on Microsoft with a new company called “Macrohard,” a software venture tied to his AI startup, xAI.
Musk described the project as a “purely AI software company” that’s designed to generate hundreds of specialized coding and generative AI agents that could one day simulate products from companies like Microsoft entirely through artificial intelligence.
Macrohard‘s Purpose
Musk announced Macrohard on Friday, though xAI had already registered the trademark with the US Patent Office a few weeks ago, as noted in a PC Mag report. Interestingly enough, this is not the first time that Musk has mentioned such an initiative.
Just last month, he stated that xAI was “creating a multi-agent AI software company, where Grok spawns hundreds of specialized coding and image/video generation/understanding agents all working together and then emulates humans interacting with the software in virtual machines until the result is excellent.”
At the time, Musk stated that “This is a macro challenge and a hard problem with stiff competition,” hinting at the venture’s “Macrohard” moniker. A few years ago, Musk also posted “Macrohard >> Microsoft” on X.
Powered by xAI and Colossus
Macrohard appears to be closely linked to xAI’s Colossus 2 supercomputer project in Memphis. Musk has confirmed plans to acquire millions of Nvidia GPUs, joining rivals such as OpenAI and Meta in a high-stakes race for AI computing power. Colossus is already one of the most powerful supercomputer clusters in the world, and it is still being expanded.
xAI is only a couple of years old, having been founded in March 2023. During its Engineering Open House event in San Francisco, Elon Musk highlighted that the company’s speed will be its primary competitive edge. “No SR-71 Blackbird was ever shot down and it only had one strategy: to accelerate,” Musk said.
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