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Career chronology

What roles did Elon Musk hold, and when?

Elon Musk

Business executive who is chief executive officer of Tesla, Inc. and chief executive officer, chief technology officer and chairman of SpaceX.

Latest source Oct 2026Updated 26 Oct 202628 sources

CurrentNow

Currently Chief Executive Officer (also styled Technoking of Tesla), Tesla, Inc., since Oct 2008. 12 dated roles on record.

Identity record: Public Figure Record Verified

Roles, most recent first

  1. Mar 2025
    President, Treasurer, Chief Executive Officer and director X.AI Holdings Corp. Date uncertain

    Holding company formed when xAI acquired X in an all-stock deal (March 2025); Tesla's 2026 proxy describes his roles there in the past tense and says the company became a SpaceX subsidiary in February 2026, without giving an end date.1 2 3

  2. 2025 – May 2025
    Senior Advisor to the President (special government employee) Executive Office of the President, United States (associated with the Department of Government Efficiency, DOGE) Former

    White House special government employee advising on the DOGE effort; a February 2025 White House court filing said he was not a DOGE employee or its administrator. He announced his departure on 28 May 2025 and a White House official said off-boarding would begin that night.4 5 6

  3. Mar 2023 – Mar 2025
    Chief Executive Officer and board member xAI Former

    Chief executive and director of the artificial intelligence company that makes the Grok chatbot; Tesla's 2026 proxy describes these roles as running through the March 2025 merger of X and xAI. His position after xAI became part of SpaceX (Feb 2026) is not stated in the sources reviewed.1 7

  4. 27 Oct 2022 – Mar 2025
    Acquirer of Twitter, Inc. Twitter, Inc. (now X Corp.) Former

    Completed the US$44 billion (US$54.20 per share) purchase of Twitter; the platform was later combined with xAI in March 2025.8 2

  5. Oct 2022 – Mar 2025
    Chief Technology Officer and board member X Corp. (formerly Twitter) Former

    Technology chief and director of the social media company; Tesla's 2026 proxy describes these roles as running 'through the March 2025 merger of X and xAI'.1

  6. Apr 2021 – Jun 2022
    Board member Endeavor Group Holdings, Inc. Former

    Director of the entertainment holding company.1 7

  7. Oct 2008 – present
    Chief Executive Officer (also styled Technoking of Tesla) Tesla, Inc. Current

    Chief executive of the electric vehicle and energy company, per Tesla's 2026 proxy statement.1 7

  8. Jul 2006 – Nov 2016
    Chairman of the Board SolarCity Corporation Former

    Chaired the solar company until Tesla acquired it.1

  9. May 2002 – present
    Chief Executive Officer, Chief Technology Officer and Chairman Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) Current

    Leads the launch and satellite company, per Tesla's 2026 proxy statement.1 7

  10. 2018
    Chairman of the Board Tesla, Inc. Former

    Left the chairman role under the 2018 SEC settlement; Robyn Denholm has chaired the board since November 2018.9 7

  11. Founder and Chief Executive Officer Neuralink Corp. Current

    Founder and chief executive of the brain-computer interface company, per Tesla's 2026 proxy statement.1

  12. Founder The Boring Company Current

    Founder of the tunnelling company, per Tesla's 2026 proxy statement.1

Where the dates come from

  1. PrimaryTesla, Inc. 2026 Proxy Statement (Form DEF 14A)Tesla, Inc. / U.S. SEC EDGAR · Oct 2026
  2. SecondaryMusk's xAI buys social media platform X for US$33bil (Reuters)Reuters, via Free Malaysia Today · 29 Mar 2025
  3. SecondarySpaceX acquires xAI in record-setting deal as Musk looks to unify AI and space ambitions (Reuters)Reuters, via Ada Derana · 3 Feb 2026
  4. SecondaryWhite House says Musk is not DOGE employee (NPR)NPR, via MPR News · 18 Feb 2025
  5. SecondaryElon Musk leaves Trump admin (Reuters)Reuters, via DZRH · 28 May 2025
  6. SecondaryElon Musk announces departure from Trump administration as 130-day role endsABC News · 29 May 2025
  7. PrimaryTesla, Inc. Form 10-K/A for fiscal year 2025 (Amendment No. 1)Tesla, Inc. / U.S. SEC EDGAR · 2026
  8. SecondaryElon Musk has finally bought Twitter; fires top executivesSemafor · 27 Oct 2022
  9. PrimaryElon Musk Settles SEC Fraud Charges; Tesla Charged With and Resolves Securities Law Charge (Press Release 2018-226)U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission · 29 Sep 2018

Changes

26 Oct 2026 Published after review.

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