A German Minister has shared some insights about his political disagreements with Elon Musk and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, going on to add that he “still values” the Tesla CEO and the company’s Gigafactory in Brandenburg.
In an interview shared by German outlet Tagesspiegel on Monday, Brandenburg Economic Minister Jörg Steinbach said that he wouldn’t be willing to congratulate Musk on a Trump victory, calling the win “highly problematic” and saying that he has directly argued with the Tesla CEO in recent months. Steinbach also tells the outlet that he still values Musk as an investor, entrepreneur, and innovator, adding that Musk was even receptive to some of his criticisms.
The Minister also says he has been in regular contact with Musk over long text messages in the months leading up to the election, ultimately noting that he would not congratulate the Tesla CEO on a Trump victory:
I will not congratulate him on this election result either. Donald Trump’s victory is highly problematic for us. I have had contact with Elon Musk more often in the past months, I have argued intensively with him.
I have responded to his comments on the AfD, but also to others. I have made it clear that I think all this is fundamentally written—that for us Donald Trump is not an advocate for democracy, but an autocratic president.
He was able to deal with my criticism. Elon Musk has a completely different view of this. We agreed that we did not come together. In English, they say, agree to disagree.
Tesla’s Giga Berlin and police are still dealing with a protestor problem
Still, Steinbach also went on to echo some concerns about bureaucracy, saying that, while it may irritate some, he believes that even Germany could use a little less bureaucracy. Despite this, he thinks Musk will soon see some of Trump’s issues with climate protections, and will go on to retreat from his support for the President-elect in just a few months:
But my prognosis is that after a few months, Musk will retreat frustratedly. He will notice that certain positions of Donald Trump are totally contrary to his convictions, for example in climate protection. And he will find that administrative, political rules, for example, are not easy to put on strength for spending money.
The Minister notes that, while Musk’s support for Trump could affect who buys a Tesla in Germany, the company’s Gigafactory is just one of many throughout the world, and he doesn’t expect it to have a negative impact on sustainable transportation in the country. He also says that Tesla could continue to play an important role in the ongoing crisis across the automotive industry, adding that the company is still looking to expand its facility in Grünheide in the coming months.
Germany’s recent automotive struggles and what role Tesla could play
Volkswagen and other automakers, both in Germany and elsewhere, have struggled amidst the electric vehicle (EV) transition, with some even set to close down factories. One example includes VW’s Potsdam Design Center, along with another factory from the company in Belgium that may move future EV production to its factories in Germany or Slovakia.
Steinach says he is in favor of electrification, adding that he thinks the German automotive industry has been effectively asleep for the past decade. Meanwhile, battery projects in Germany have been put on hold for at least a year, though he says there is light at the end of the tunnel. While he has previously said that every fifth company or so may unfortunately disappear, he also notes that companies should follow Volvo’s example in choosing to stop building internal combustion engines (ICEs) and to pour that effort into EVs.
Even as some companies may disappear, the outlook isn’t all bleak. The Minister also says that Tesla’s economic influence in the country is still underrated, and workers that become unemployed in the EV transition may find a home at the U.S. automaker’s Grünheide plant, which employs around 12,000 workers.
What are your thoughts? Let me know at zach@teslarati.com, find me on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send us tips at tips@teslarati.com.
Tesla Giga Berlin proposed expansion’s failed community vote can be an opportunity: Minister
Tesla’s dreams of operating a fully autonomous ride-hailing platform just took a massive step toward reality, as two separate events have indicated the company is perhaps closer than ever to achieving self-driving as a product.
On Thursday, Tesla was granted authorization by the State of Texas to operate driverless vehicles in a commercial manner. On May 28, Senate Bill 2807, passed by the 89th Texas Legislature, took effect after being passed back on September 1, 2025.
The bill establishes a statewide regulatory framework requiring authorization from the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles for companies to operate automated vehicles commercially on Texas roads.
This covers driverless, or SAE Level 4+, operations for passenger transport, meaning Robotaxi, or freight.
Tesla and other companies can self-certify their vehicles and tech as long as they:
- Operate in compliance with Texas traffic laws
- Maintain proper registration, title, and insurance
- Use compliant automated driving systems
- Record onboard activity and handle system failures and glitches safely.
The new authorization, which was first reported by James Stephenson on X, allows companies to utilize their own processes to determine if their vehicles are ready to operate without drivers.
🚨BREAKING:
Tesla has been authorized by the State of Texas to operate driverless vehicles commercially under the new law that took effect today, May 28th, 2026. Tesla has officially self-certified the software running on its robotaxis as Level 4. $TSLA pic.twitter.com/KSJdsvlaW5— James Stephenson (@ICannot_Enough) May 28, 2026
It is a rule that expedites the entire approval process, keeping agencies out of a usually long, lengthy, and frustrating task that is essential to technological advancements. It essentially means Tesla can launch commercial Robotaxi operations at this point.
On the very same day, Tesla continued the momentum as CEO Elon Musk shared a video of Cybercab units autonomously driving off the property at Gigafactory Texas. This is a major step in the story of the Cybercab.
Mass production of the Cybercab started at Giga Texas in April, and it is already heading out of the factory on its own.
Cybercab driving itself out of the GigaTexas factory pic.twitter.com/EwAMVVDjYy
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 28, 2026
These two major events mark a drastic step forward in Tesla’s progress toward Cybercab and the permissions it needs to operate a self-driving ride-hailing service. Tesla is now able to operate autonomously under Texas law by self-certifying, and with the potentially imminent rollout of Cybercab, Tesla’s autonomous dreams are starting to take serious shape.
Elon Musk
The Tesla and SpaceX merger everyone is talking about is quietly building
Tesla and SpaceX may be closer to merging than Wall Street or either company is admitting.
Elon Musk has reportedly discussed merging Tesla and SpaceX with people close to him, according to CNBC, which cited sources familiar with the conversation. Tesla employees have long expected such a transaction and the topic is openly discussed internally, according to internal sources. With SpaceX is days away from kicking off its Wall Street roadshow for what could be the largest IPO in market history, this would be the first time the company will have public market currency to execute a stock-for-stock deal with Tesla.
The financial logic for a merger would make sense. A combined SpaceX and Tesla would create a conglomerate spanning rockets, satellites, electric vehicles, AI infrastructure, and energy storage valued at roughly $3.35 trillion to $3.6 trillion based on SpaceX’s IPO target range and Tesla’s current market capitalization. The two companies are already more intertwined than most people realize. SpaceX bought $697 million worth of Tesla Megapack systems for xAI data centers and $131 million worth of Cybertrucks. Tesla invested $2 billion in xAI, which subsequently merged with SpaceX. Past transactions also include Tesla selling solar equipment and parts to SpaceX, and SpaceX helping with Cybertruck materials.
Will Tesla join the fold? Predicting a triple merger with SpaceX and xAI
Musk himself signaled where this was heading in November 2025 when he posted on X, “My companies are, surprisingly in some ways, trending towards convergence.” Tesla and SpaceX announced a joint semiconductor fabrication facility in Austin called Terafab on the Gigafactory Texas campus, covering two advanced chip factories, with one serving Tesla’s AI needs for vehicles and Optimus robots, the other targeting space-based data centers under SpaceX’s infrastructure vision.
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives places the probability of a merger at 80% to 90% with a target completion in the first half of 2027. The mechanics of a deal became possible the moment SpaceX filed its S-1. Legal experts said a merger likely would not spark antitrust issues but would raise concerns among shareholders in each company, with questions around which company would be the parent, how a stock swap would take place, and who determines the appropriate price. Musk holds about 20% of Tesla’s equity but controls 85.1% of SpaceX’s voting power through a super-voting share class, meaning he would largely be negotiating the terms with himself.
Not everyone is convinced the timing is imminent. Traders on Kalshi place only 33% odds that a merger will happen before May 2027. The more immediate concern for Tesla shareholders is whether the SpaceX IPO pulls capital and Musk’s attention away from Tesla before any merger consolidates the upside for both.
What is clear is that the structural groundwork is already being laid. The Terafab announcement, the xAI merger, the shared supply chain, the cross-company balance sheet transactions, and now the IPO all point in the same direction. Whether the merger follows in 2027 or later, the two companies are already operating more like divisions of a single entity than independent competitors.
Elon Musk
SpaceX to become America’s Military data backbone for missiles, drones, and warfighters
The Space Force just handed SpaceX $2.29 billion to build the military’s space internet backbone.
The U.S. Space Force awarded SpaceX a $2.29 billion contract on May 26, 2026 to build the backbone of its Space Data Network, a satellite-based communications system designed to keep American military forces connected anywhere on Earth in real time. The contract is firm-fixed-price and requires SpaceX to deliver a fully operational prototype by the end of 2027.
In plain terms, the SDN Backbone is the plumbing behind the military’s space-based internet. It functions as a low Earth orbit satellite constellation providing robust, high-capacity, and low-latency data transport for the Joint Force, connecting sensors and weapons systems continuously, globally, and securely. Think of it as a private, hardened version of Starlink built specifically for battlefield communications, one that soldiers, ships, and aircraft can rely on even in contested environments where ground-based networks have been disrupted.
SpaceX is quietly becoming the U.S. Military’s only reliable rocket
The Space Force was direct about why SpaceX was selected. “The SDN Backbone leverages the best of commercial innovation and delivers a strong foundation for the SDN mission set — a huge benefit and enabler for our warfighters,” said USSF Col. Ryan Frazier.
“We aren’t trading speed for scale; we are demanding both. By using rapid prototyping and Other Transaction Authorities, we are ensuring our advanced solutions are integrated and delivered to the warfighter as fast as possible,” added USSF Lt. Col. Fry, SDN Backbone system program manager.
The SDN Backbone will work alongside the Space Development Agency’s Transport Layer, with the two systems forming a unified open architecture to provide critical data transport for current and future Department of War missions.
As Teslarati has reported, this is not SpaceX’s first Space Force contract of 2026. In April, the Space Force awarded SpaceX $178.5 million to launch missile tracking satellites, and SpaceX is already embedded in the Golden Dome missile defense software group. The $2.29 billion SDN Backbone award puts SpaceX at the center of how the American military communicates in space, a position with direct implications for its reported $1.75 trillion IPO valuation as the company heads toward a public offering as early as June 2026.
Tesla’s Robotaxi dreams just took a massive step toward reality
The Tesla and SpaceX merger everyone is talking about is quietly building
