What's the latest development in the relationship between Elon Musk, the world's richest man, and US President Donald Trump, from their public falling out this summer to their joint appearance at an event last month?
This week, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that they have maintained “intermittent” contact since attending the funeral of Arizona conservative activist Charlie Kirk together last month, and described their relationship as “good.”
Trump also specifically mentioned that Musk's public confrontation with him was a "very stupid" moment in Musk's life, but he himself "has always liked" Musk and said he might "always like him."
Over the past few months, Musk has adopted a more low-key approach to politics, a shift stemming from the backlash against his previously high-profile political involvement. According to a recent working paper published this week by Yale University economists at the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), Tesla 's success would have been significantly hampered by Musk's partisan political maneuvering. Sales in the U.S. market could have grown by 67% to 83% between October 2022 and April 2025, equivalent to an additional 1 million to 1.26 million vehicles sold.
From rupture to reconciliation
As the largest individual donor to Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, Musk not only established a Super PAC and donated a total of $277 million, but also served as the head of the U.S. Government's Doge program after Trump took office. However, after his term as a special government employee expired in May of this year, Musk expressed his desire to remain in office, but this was not approved by the White House.
Subsequently, relations between the two sides deteriorated rapidly due to Trump's push for the Bigger & Beautiful Act, leading to numerous clashes and mutual political threats. In July of this year, Musk even announced plans to form the "America Party" to counter the Republican Party; in response, Trump used government contracts won by Musk's SpaceX as leverage in his counterattack.
Their relationship took a turn for the better at Charlie Kirk's memorial event on September 21. At the event, which attracted over 90,000 attendees, Musk sat side-by-side with Trump. On the same day, Musk posted a photo of himself with Trump on social media with the caption "For Charlie."
On October 27, Trump said on his presidential plane, "Elon was also there at Charlie's tribute ceremony. I'm very good to him, I like Elon; I've always liked him, everything is fine." He further commented, "He's a good guy, and a very capable guy. I've always liked him." Trump described their previous falling out as a "bad day" for Musk, saying, "That was a very stupid moment in his (Musk's) life, really stupid. I'm sure he'll tell you that too."
Analysts believe that the renewed friendly relations between Trump and Musk could have political and financial implications for the 2026 midterm elections and the 2028 presidential election. As the owner of the social media platform X, Musk remains one of the most influential voices in conservative media and has the ability to influence elections through large donations.
Refocus on your career
According to a recent study by Yale University, Elon Musk's increasingly partisan behavior has directly impacted Tesla 's sales. His political stance has led to a gradual alienation of environmentally conscious Democratic buyers— Tesla's historically core customer base—from the brand. As Democratic supporters have turned to other brands, Tesla... As a result, competitors' sales of electric and hybrid vehicles increased by approximately 17% to 22%.
However, reports indicate that Musk has not returned to Washington since May, with his private jet travels primarily between Texas, the San Francisco Bay Area, and Vancouver, Canada, home to his companies and the testing grounds for his brain-computer interface company, Neuralink. This suggests that Musk is refocusing his efforts on his industrial empire, including SpaceX, Tesla , and xAI.
As Musk shifts the company's strategic focus to robotics Public sentiment toward Tesla has slightly improved in the areas of taxis, autonomous driving technology, and humanoid robots . Tesla Chairman Robyn Denholm recently stated that public opinion regarding Musk's involvement in government affairs is gradually fading.
Wedbush Securities (USA) "What you're seeing now is a completely different Musk from the dark days of the Trump administration, when Tesla suffered brand damage and he shifted his focus away from work," said Dan Ives, a technology analyst at Wedbush Securities. "I think Musk has returned to wartime CEO mode, focused on leading Tesla into the new chapter of the AI revolution."
Currently, Tesla's stock price has rebounded to $460.55, more than doubling from its low of $220 in April of this year, and the company's market capitalization has reached $1.44 trillion. Ives stated, "I believe the stock price already reflects that Tesla's biggest asset is Musk."
Tesla's third-quarter earnings report, released on October 22, further confirmed the company's recovery. Revenue reached $28.1 billion, a 12% year-over-year increase, exceeding Wall Street expectations and ending two consecutive quarters of decline. However, due to price reduction strategies and its reliance on artificial intelligence... The company's net profit fell by 37% due to large-scale investments in "other R&D projects." The report also stated that Musk has devoted most of his energy to his artificial intelligence company xAI in recent months and has completely restructured the team.
(Article source: CBN)
