Surprised? Musk invested $1 billion in TSL stock, just one of the scripts for 2025.

Musk's $1 billion investment to increase his stake in TSL: is it value investing or a carefully orchestrated power play? This is not just about the boss having confidence in the company, but a return script to reshape market confidence, laying a solid foundation for the future AI empire. (Background: Musk spent $1 billion to buy TSL, and the stock price surged past $410) (Additional context: Musk cut 500 employees at xAI; what’s the AI strategy behind this?) In the symphony of power, capital, and narrative, Elon Musk is always the conductor who never misses a beat. In mid-September this year, he made a jaw-dropping $1 billion transaction, personally getting on board to buy his own TSL stock (Tesla) in Spot, rather than options, which is extremely rare. This is not only his first increase in the open market since 2020 but seems more like a carefully choreographed dramatic climax. The market reacted immediately, with the stock price soaring, successfully reversing the downward trend since the beginning of the year. However, if this act is merely interpreted as the CEO's simple endorsement of TSL's prospects, it underestimates the deep calculations of this tech maverick. This $1 billion, rather than being a financial investment, is more like a massive 'marketing expense'; it is a grand return ceremony held by the king to quell doubts within the empire and restore public confidence. It is a bet on paradigm shifts, a declaration mocking Wall Street’s outdated valuation models. More importantly, this script must establish a market-symbolic power cornerstone for the vast tech empire spanning electric vehicles, AI, robotics, and even space travel. Musk is not buying stock; he is buying narrative dominance, shareholder loyalty, and his legitimacy as an absolute monarch who will dictate the global tech landscape for the next decade. The king has not left, but must symbolize his return. To understand the true meaning of Musk's stock purchase, we must return to the backdrop of the event. Over the past two years, Musk’s image has been less of a helmsman for TSL and more like a distracted monarch fighting battles everywhere. After he spent a fortune to acquire Twitter ( and renamed it X), he flamboyantly intervened in political issues, continuing to sell TSL stock to support other ventures. All this has left investors, who regard TSL as a faith, feeling uneasy and betrayed; their core question is: Does our king still care about his 'original kingdom'? This narrative of 'too much distraction' is fatal for a company that relies heavily on charismatic leadership. TSL's chairman Robyn Denholm publicly called for Musk to 'return to the company spotlight', implying that the tacit understanding between investors and management has become painfully evident. Therefore, this $1 billion increase primarily serves as a grand 'purification ceremony' for the board. Musk, with the most direct and irrefutable cash, washes away his past image of being distracted and declares to the market: that focused Musk on TSL is back. By re-binding his personal wealth with the company's stock price, Musk has repaired the trust chain with shareholders, and the signal becomes clear: 'I am getting on board with you.' This costly PR performance aims to reshape market confidence and internal cohesion, which is the most valuable intangible asset for TSL faith investors and paves the way for the massive compensation plan and key proposals like investment in xAI to be presented at the shareholder meeting in November, clearing the public relations hurdles. Valuation Restructuring: Betting on AI's Explosion If the return ceremony is the prologue to this grand drama, the inner core is Musk's launch of a 'valuation revolution' against Wall Street. He believes the market is still using outdated metrics from the industrial age (like vehicle delivery volumes and gross margins) to measure a company on the verge of igniting the AI revolution, which is itself the greatest fallacy. This stock purchase is his personal 'arbitrage' action against this. While analysts worry about TSL's slowing electric vehicle sales and profit pressures, Musk's perspective has already transcended these tactical bumps. What he sees is TSL's unique core asset that has yet to be correctly priced by the market: 1. Data Assets: Millions of TSL vehicles are driving in the real world, collecting the fuel most needed for training general artificial intelligence: data from the physical world. This is a moat difficult for any competitor to reach. 2. Computing Power Assets: From the self-developed Dojo supercomputer to the continuously upgraded hardware, TSL is building a strong infrastructure to support AI computation, which, of course, consumes billions of dollars. 3. Scenario Assets: Whether it’s the soon-to-be-mass-delivered Cybertruck or the future Optimus humanoid robot potentially entering general factories and homes, TSL holds the key to the entrance of AI from virtual to reality. Musk spent $1 billion to publicly declare: 'Wall Street, you have miscalculated.' You are pricing a 'slowing growth electric vehicle company', whereas what I see is the dawn of a 'physical AI company' about to experience exponential growth. He bets that he has seen the singularity of valuation model change earlier than the market. This money is his personal heavy bet, even though $1 billion is not a huge sum for Musk. Power: From TSL CEO to Monarch of the Tech Empire Whether it’s narrative management or value reassessment, ultimately, both serve a greater ultimate goal: consolidating power and paving the way to establish a cross-company, cross-national 'Musk Tech Empire'. This is the most profound strategic intent behind Musk’s stock purchase action in the script. Musk has repeatedly stressed in recent years that he needs to secure at least 25% of the voting rights in TSL; otherwise, he would prefer to develop AI and robotics businesses outside the company. These statements are not mere rhetoric but thoughtful political declarations. Musk knows well that to realize a global AI system map supported by xAI providing the brain, Optimus providing the body, and Starlink providing the network, he must ensure absolute control over TSL as the 'hardware execution department' and 'capital engine'. This $1 billion purchase, while only slightly increasing his stake from about 13%, carries far greater political significance than financial significance. It demonstrates determination to the board and shareholders, providing the strongest endorsement for the massive compensation plan that could significantly elevate his stake and reach the 25% threshold. Musk is transforming TSL from an independent listed company into an indispensable leverage point in his personal AI landscape. This $1 billion is the 'political insurance' paid for future billion-dollar, even trillion-dollar cross-company collaborations, ensuring that his grand vision will not be thwarted midway due to short-sightedness or opposition from shareholders. Are you surprised by Musk's surprises? There exists another voice in the market that believes Musk's actions are merely to pump up the stock price before the shareholder meeting, even suggesting possible market manipulation. This viewpoint sees the surface but misses the essence. To characterize his stock increase as market manipulation clearly underestimates the complexity of the strategy. Yes, this increase has indeed successfully boosted the stock price and will inevitably have a positive impact on shareholder voting, but this is itself the purpose of the 'king's return ceremony'. This purpose is not a one-time victory at the polls; he aims to win the 'full power of attorney' that he can fully manipulate for the next decade. This is not a simple 'boss has confidence in the company', as it overlooks Musk's obsession with 25% control and the critical juncture in TSL's transition from 'automobile company' to 'AI company' positioning. This is a brilliant preview of the future, as he reclaims the narrative dominance about TSL, more clearly delineating the...