Tesla remains Musk’s best-known business, but its fortunes are less directly tied to the government than SpaceX, his rocket-building company.

Musk pledged to start a new political party and Trump threatened to use the federal government to punish his former adviser’s companies.

Elon Musk may find out what happens when DOGE bites man. The billionaire SpaceX, Tesla and X owner who catapulted his zealous embrace of President Donald Trump into a powerful position slashing government spending now risks sweeping cuts to his own bottom line after resuming the feud that led to their very public bitter split last month.