Elon Musk is reportedly requiring banks and other advisors working on SpaceX’s planned initial public offering (IPO) to purchase subscriptions to Grok, his artificial intelligence chatbot. This is according to a New York Times report citing individuals familiar with the matter. Some banks have agreed to spend tens of millions of dollars annually on the chatbot and have begun integrating it into their IT systems, according to the report.
Reuters reported earlier this week that Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Citigroup are serving as active bookrunners, or the lead banks managing the deal. Representatives from JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, and Bank of America have declined to comment on the matter. Morgan Stanley did not immediately respond to queries. Musk and SpaceX have also not responded to requests for comment.
SpaceX, headquartered in Starbase, Texas, is a rocket manufacturer and space transportation company that designs, manufactures, and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft. According to a Bloomberg News report from the previous day, the company has boosted its target IPO valuation above $2 trillion, setting the stage for what could potentially become the largest stock market listing on record.
The company aims to raise a record $75 billion, which would surpass previous mega-IPOs such as Saudi Aramco in 2019 and Alibaba in 2014.
