Earlier today, Tesla & SpaceX CEO Elon Musk tweeted “Tesla is to protect life on Earth, SpaceX to extend life beyond.”
If this sounds familiar, that’s because you listened to my interview with him on my podcast a couple of weeks ago.
Elon spoke at length about the purposes of both of these companies and shared the importance of protecting life on Earth.
Tesla is to protect life on Earth,
SpaceX to extend life beyond.— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 15, 2022
In our talk, Elon pointed out the importance of protecting the creatures on earth–and this includes us, humans, as well.
One of the common misconceptions about Elon Musk is that he wants to go to Mars and forget about Earth and its problems. This is not true.
Although he does want to take humanity to Mars, it’s not to escape problems on earth. It’s to solve another problem that many don’t think about. Preserving the light of consciousness.
What The Light Of Consciousness Means To Elon Musk.
I asked him what the light of consciousness meant to him. It can mean many things to different people. Elon told me:
“To the best about knowledge. the only conscious life that we’re aware of is on earth. Conscious in the sense of at least thinking that it has self-awareness. Like I mean, I think therefore I am or whatever you know Descartes.”
“We’ve never found microbial life in the rest of the solar system but it’s possible that we may find microbial life or something maybe even sea life under the ice of Europa. That’s an interesting open question mark, but at least thus far we’ve seen no signs of life whatsoever not even microbial outside of earth. And according to geological records as best as science can determine, Earth is about four and a half billion years old.”
“The universe is about 13.8 billion years old. This suggests that–it’s odd that there’s not–if the universe is this old, if the solar system is this old, it’s odd that only now very recently has life evolved that can talk and write and communicate ideas in a sophisticated way.”
Protecting Life On Earth
Elon also shared how resources should be used to solve problems on earth while also enabling humanity to become multi-planetary.
“I kind of think we’ve got a responsibility to protect the rest of the creatures on earth, too. I think we should do that and I think a reasonable thing would be like I said about a one percent of our resources and 99 for earth problems”
“But I think one percent for making life multi-planetary and ensuring the long-term survival of consciousness and life as we know it is is worth one percent of resources. That’s what I would propose to the people of Earth.”
“And then of course we still need to make sure things are good on earth. Of course, it’s not like ‘oh let’s abandon earth.’ Sometimes people are like, ‘are you just gonna let Earth go to hell?’ I’m like, ‘no we need to make everything we can to make Earth good.’”
“Tesla’s goal is to help ensure a good future for Earth and then SpaceX’s goal is to make life multi-planetary and ensure the long-term survival of consciousness.”
How Tesla Is Helping Earth
The average person may see Tesla as a luxury car company. In reality, it’s more than that. Tesla’s mission is to accelerate the transition to sustainability and is doing a pretty decent job of this already.
However, this doesn’t mean the work is over–far from it. Together, Tesla and EVs have saved at least 120,000 lives from pollution so far. At the very least.
You can read more about his and the study that led to those numbers here.
Elon Musk
Starship V3 is here putting SpaceX closer to Mars than it has ever been
Starship V3 launches May 20 carrying the hardware upgrades that make Moon and Mars possible.
SpaceX is preparing to fly the most significant version of Starship yet. Flight 12, the debut of Starship V3, is targeted for Wednesday, May 20, lifting off from Starbase in South Texas at 6:30 p.m. ET. It will also mark the first launch from the newly built Pad 2, adding another layer of firsts to an already milestone-heavy mission.
Starship V3 is a meaningful step up from what came before, and a next-gen design that improves on raw power and payload capacity. V3 can carry more than 100 metric tons to orbit in reusable configuration, which is roughly three times what the previous version could handle. Additionally, the new design is lighter and simpler than before, thereby reducing risk of component failure, while also reducing flight costs. The launch pad itself is also brand new, meaning SpaceX can now prepare two rockets at the same time instead of one. What makes all of this matter beyond the hardware is what it unlocks. NASA needs V3 to be reliable enough to land astronauts on the Moon, and Musk needs it to eventually carry people and cargo to Mars at a scale that makes a permanent settlement financially possible. Every previous Starship was essentially a prototype. V3 is the version SpaceX actually intends to put to work.
On May 7, SpaceX completed the first full-duration, full-thrust 33-engine static fire with the V3 Super Heavy, following two earlier attempts that ended early due to ground equipment issues. The Ship stage had already cleared its own static fire in April, making Flight 12 the first time both V3 vehicles have been cleared to fly together.
The stakes extend well beyond this single test. As Teslarati reported, NASA needs Starship to work as the Human Landing System for its Artemis program, with a crewed lunar landing now targeted for 2028 under Artemis IV. Before that can happen, SpaceX must demonstrate in-orbit propellant transfer at scale, a process requiring more than ten tanker launches to fuel a single Moon mission. V3 is the vehicle designed to make that economically viable.
Elon Musk has stated that Starship V3 should be capable enough for initial Mars missions, a detail that connects directly to his January 2026 compensation package, which awards him 200 million shares if SpaceX reaches a $7.5 trillion valuation and helps establish a permanent Mars colony of one million people. With SpaceX targeting a Nasdaq IPO as early as June 12 at a valuation of $1.75 trillion, and holding more than $22 billion in active government contracts spanning defense, NASA, and broadband, every successful Starship test adds tangible weight to that number.
Elon Musk
SpaceX just forced Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile to team up for the first time in history
AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon just joined forces for one reason: Starlink is winning.
America’s three largest wireless carriers, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon, announced on On May 14, 2026 that they had agreed in principle to form a joint venture aimed at pooling their spectrum resources to expand satellite-based direct-to-device (D2D) connectivity across the United States in what can be seen as a direct response to SpaceX’s Starlink initiative. D2D, in plain terms, is technology that lets a standard smartphone connect directly to a satellite in orbit, the same way it connects to a cell tower, with no extra hardware required.
The alliance is widely seen as a means to slow Starlink’s rapid expansion in the satellite internet and mobile markets. SpaceX’s Starlink Mobile service launched commercially in July 2025 through a partnership with T-Mobile, starting with messaging before expanding to broadband data. SpaceX secured access to valuable wireless spectrum through its $17 billion deal with EchoStar, paving the way for significantly faster satellite-to-phone speeds.
SpaceX was not shy about its reaction. SpaceX president and COO Gwynne Shotwell responded on X: “Weeeelllll, I guess Starlink Mobile is doing something right! It’s David and Goliath (X3) all over again — I’m bettin’ on David.” SpaceX’s VP of Satellite Policy David Goldman went further, flagging potential antitrust concerns and asking whether the DOJ would even allow three dominant competitors to coordinate in a market where a new rival is actively entering.
Weeeelllll, I guess @Starlink Mobile is doing something right! It’s David and Goliath (X3) all over again — I’m bettin’ on David 🙂 https://t.co/5GzS752mxL
— Gwynne Shotwell (@Gwynne_Shotwell) May 14, 2026
Financial analysts at LightShed Partners were blunt, saying the announcement showed the three carriers are “nervous,” and pointed to the timing: “You announce an agreement in principle when the point is the announcement, not the deal. The timing, weeks ahead of the SpaceX roadshow, was the point.”
As Teslarati reported, SpaceX’s next generation Starlink V2 satellites will deliver up to 100 times the data density of the current system, with custom silicon and phased array antennas enabling around 20 times the throughput of the first generation. The carriers’ JV, which has no definitive agreement, no financial structure, and no deployment timeline yet, will need to move quickly to matter.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is targeting a Nasdaq listing as early as June 12, aiming for what would be the largest IPO in history. With Starlink now serving over 9 million subscribers across 155 countries, holding 59 carrier partnerships globally, and now powering Air Force One, the carriers’ joint venture announcement landed at exactly the wrong time to look like anything other than a defensive move.
Elon Musk cannot be fired from SpaceX, and there’s a reason for that.
In a blunt post on X on Friday, Elon Musk confirmed plans to structurally shield his leadership at SpaceX, ensuring he cannot be fired while tying a potential trillion-dollar compensation package to the company’s long-term goal of establishing a self-sustaining colony on Mars.
Yes, I need to make sure SpaceX stays focused on making life multiplanetary and extending consciousness to the stars, not pandering to someone’s bullshit quarterly earnings bonus!
Obviously, IF SpaceX succeeds in this absurdly difficult goal, it will be worth many orders of…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 15, 2026
The revelation stems from a Financial Times report detailing SpaceX’s intention to restructure its governance and compensation framework. The moves are designed to protect Musk’s control and align his incentives with the company’s founding mission rather than short-term financial pressures. Musk’s reply left no ambiguity:
“Yes, I need to make sure SpaceX stays focused on making life multiplanetary and extending consciousness to the stars, not pandering to someone’s bullshit quarterly earnings bonus!”
He added that success in this “absurdly difficult goal” would generate value “many orders of magnitude more than the economy of Earth,” though he cautioned that the journey will not be smooth. “Don’t expect entirely smooth sailing along the way,” Musk wrote.
The strategy reflects Musk’s deep concerns about how public-market expectations could derail SpaceX’s core objective. Founded in 2002, SpaceX has repeatedly stated its purpose is to reduce the cost of space travel and ultimately make humanity a multiplanetary species.
Unlike Tesla, which went public in 2010 and has faced repeated battles over Musk’s compensation and board influence, SpaceX remains privately held. Musk has long resisted taking the rocket company public precisely to avoid the quarterly earnings treadmill that forces most CEOs to prioritize short-term stock performance over ambitious, high-risk projects.
By embedding protections against his removal and linking any outsized pay package to verifiable milestones—such as a functioning Mars colony—SpaceX aims to insulate its leadership from activist investors or board members who might demand faster profits or safer bets.
Musk has referenced past experiences, including his ouster from OpenAI and shareholder lawsuits at Tesla, as cautionary tales. In those cases, he argued, external pressures risked diluting the original vision.
Critics may view the arrangement as excessive, especially given Musk’s already substantial voting power and wealth. Supporters, however, argue it is a necessary safeguard for a company pursuing goals measured in decades rather than quarters. Achieving a Mars colony would require sustained investment in Starship development, orbital refueling, life-support systems, and in-situ resource utilization—technologies that may deliver no immediate financial return.
Musk’s post underscores a broader philosophical point: true breakthrough innovation often demands tolerance for volatility and a willingness to ignore conventional business wisdom. As SpaceX prepares for increasingly ambitious Starship test flights and eventual crewed missions, the new governance structure signals that the company’s North Star remains unchanged—humanity’s expansion beyond Earth.
Whether the trillion-dollar package materializes depends on execution, but Musk’s message is clear: SpaceX exists to reach the stars, not to chase the next earnings beat. For investors or employees who share that vision, the protections are not a perk—they are a prerequisite for success.
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