Elon Musk contradicts Telegram’s $300M xAI partnership announcement: ‘No deal has been signed’
Quick Take
- Elon Musk, CEO of xAI, said his company has not formally partnered with Telegram to integrate the Grok AI chatbot across the messaging platform.
- The rebuttal followed an announcement from Telegram founder Pavel Durov on Wednesday, which said the two entities had agreed on a $300 million cash and equity deal.
American billionaire entrepreneur and Tesla boss Elon Musk stated that no formal agreement has been signed between his AI venture, xAI, and messaging platform Telegram regarding the integration of Grok AI on the private messaging app, contradicting earlier remarks from Telegram CEO Pavel Durov.
On Wednesday, Durov announced that Telegram would integrate Grok, xAI’s chatbot, across its social platform and receive a share of the revenue. He said the partnership included a $300 million cash-and-equity package and 50% of xAI subscription sales made through Telegram.
“No deal has been signed,” Musk replied to Durov’s post on X. Telegram’s chief later confirmed Musk's statement, claiming that the agreement was reached in principle pending final documentation.
Following a wave of positive developments, Toncoin (TON), the network’s native token, surged 18.7% to $3.55 on Wednesday, before pulling back to $3.35 after Musk’s clarification, per The Block’s price page.
Durov shared the announcement shortly after news of Telegram’s plans to raise $1.5 billion through a new bond issuance. Telegram will repurchase debt issued in 2021 using the fresh cash. The sale, reported by The Wall Street Journal, would allow participation from new investors, such as Citadel, and existing backers, including BlackRock and Abu Dhabi-owned investment firm Mubadala.
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