Elon Musk and Donald Trump\u2019s once-cozy relationship is deteriorating in a very public fashion. The two billionaires have been feuding and trading barbs on social media, while Musk\u2019s companies get caught in the crosshairs.<\/p>\n
Tesla stock has taken a dive, but some investors are now worried that SpaceX<\/a>, which is heavily reliant on government contracts, may also be vulnerable.<\/p>\n Ross Gerber, CEO of investment firm Gerber Kawasaki, told Bloomberg TV <\/a>that Musk\u2019s recent antics risk triggering investor lawsuits \u2014 and could slash SpaceX\u2019s valuation by half.<\/p>\n \u201cElon isn\u2019t functioning to the benefit of his shareholders and hasn\u2019t been for many years,\u201d said Gerber, who has significantly trimmed his Tesla stake in recent years. He called the feud a \u201cdisaster\u201d for Musk, adding the world was \u201cwatching the dismantling of the Musk empire in real-time.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe truth is SpaceX\u2019s valuation was probably cut in half today because of this behavior,\u201d he said, adding that it wasn\u2019t clear \u201cwhether SpaceX investors will realize that on the short or medium term because it\u2019s a private company and insulated from the stock market, but this is devastating to SpaceX as well.\u201d<\/p>\n Representatives for SpaceX and Musk did not immediately respond to Fortune\u2019s <\/em>request for comment, made outside normal working hours.<\/p>\n Musk and his multiple companies originally benefitted from his close relationship with the U.S. president. In November, Tesla\u2019s market value surged significantly reaching a valuation of $1.1 trillion<\/p>\n However, the billionaire\u2019s tenure in the White House has been marred by controversy that has impacted his companies, especially Tesla. Public anger at the billionaire\u2019s mass-firing of federal workers sparked widespread protests against the EV maker and tanked the share price.<\/p>\n With Trump now also taking aim at Musk, it could be SpaceX that feels the pain as a result of the company\u2019s reliance on global government contracts, especially from the United States.<\/p>\n \u201cTrump is the president of the United States, whether we like it or not, and Elon is going to have to live with this for quite some time and it could be very detrimental to him and his companies,\u201d Gerber said.<\/p>\n Trump has already vaguely threatened to terminate some of these. Taking to his social media platform, Truth Social, the President said:<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThe easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon\u2019s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts. I was always surprised that Biden didn\u2019t do it!\u201d<\/p>\n In response, Musk threatened to decommission the company\u2019s Dragon spacecraft but later appeared to walk back the comments.<\/p>\n The public spat between two of the world\u2019s most powerful men began over federal spending, specifically Trump\u2019s new spending bill. Musk has opposed the bill, calling it a\u00a0\u201cdisgusting abomination\u201d and urging Americans to demand that their representatives in Washington \u201ckill the bill.\u201d<\/p>\n Musk\u2019s key role in the Trump administration was to reduce federal spending, something he did largely by firing federal workers, shuttering agencies, and canceling government contracts.<\/p>\n Despite these efforts, his DOGE team did not meet their original target of $1 trillion saved. According to the team\u2019s official website,<\/a> the current tally saved by DOGE is $180 billion.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Introducing the 2025 Fortune 500<\/strong>, the definitive ranking of the biggest companies in America.\u00a0Explore this year’s list.<\/a><\/p>\nMusk and Trump\u2019s relationship<\/h2>\n
A fight over federal spending<\/h2>\n