Elon Musk denies that X, Tesla, or SpaceX will ever issue crypto tokens Elon Musk denies that X, Tesla, or SpaceX will ever issue crypto tokens
While some of his various firms have leaned into making use of existing cryptocurrencies, the billionaire said not to expect native tokens from any of them.
2 min read
Updated: Nov. 6, 2023 at 9:29 pm UTC
Bill Ingalls / Wikimedia. Remixed by CryptoSlate *Public Domain
Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk said in a social media post on on Nov. 3 that his various companies will never issue a cryptocurrency token.
Musk stated:
“To be super clear, none of my companies will ever create a crypto token.”
Musk made that comment in response to news about a token that is attempting to capitalize on a new product from his AI firm, xAI, called Grok. Though that company and project are legitimate, any crypto tokens that use those names are not legitimate.
Musk’s statement indicates that the other companies that he owns or leads — including his rebranded Twitter app X, his automotive company Tesla, and his spacecraft and launch company SpaceX — will not issue a cryptocurrency of their own.
Despite that warning, there appear to be numerous tokens in circulation that intend to capitalize on Musk’s companies and their popularity in the crypto sphere. On the Ethereum blockchain alone, there are 260 tokens that mention SpaceX, 497 tokens that mention Tesla, and countless others that mention Twitter or X.
Though few of those tokens have any market value, some have become high-profile scams. In January 2023, Forbes listed 25 notable Elon Musk-themed scams, including a number of cryptocurrency scams and fake coin offerings.
Musk’s companies already make use of crypto
Though Musk’s firms will not issue new crypto tokens, those companies do make use of existing cryptocurrencies. Tesla holds about $184 million of cryptocurrency, largely or entirely Bitcoin, and accepts Dogecoin for some merchandise transactions.
Elsewhere, X supports Bitcoin tipping. The firm is also planning to introduce extensive payment features that may or may not include support for crypto transactions.
SpaceX, finally, held an unspecified amount of Bitcoin as recently as 2021. One of the company’s customers has also funded a SpaceX mission, called DOGE-1, with Dogecoin; that mission is currently expected to launch in January 2024.
Mentioned in this article
Author 
Mike Dalton
Before transitioning to crypto writing in 2018, Mike studied library and information sciences. Currently, he resides on Canada's West Coast.
Editor Editor 
Jacob Oliver
Jacob Oliver is a recovering academic and English teacher turned crypto journalist and web3 writer. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Washington.
Latest US Stories
In this article
Bitcoin, a decentralized currency that defies the sway of central banks or administrators, transacts electronically, circumventing intermediaries via a peer-to-peer network.
Ethereum
$3,282.22
Ethereum is a decentralized, open-source blockchain platform that enables the creation of smart contracts and decentralized applications (DApps).
Dogecoin
$0.14723
Dogecoin is a cryptocurrency created in December 2013 as a joke by software engineers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer.
X
X (formerly Twitter) is an American social media company based in San Francisco, California, that was founded by Jack Dorsey, Noah Glass, Biz Stone, and Evan Williams in March 2006 and was launched July of the same year.
Tesla
Tesla is a manufacturer of electric vehicles and a clean energy company led by billionaire Elon Musk.
South African-born Elon Musk has founded several companies, including X.com (which later became PayPal), SpaceX and Tesla Motors.