SpaceX IPO Proceeds Amidst Elon Musk's Controversial UK Immigration Posts

Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, posted extensively on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday and Thursday, advocating for the deportation of immigrants from the United Kingdom. These statements were made just before SpaceX's initial public offering (IPO).

Musk's posts coincided with public outrage over a knife attack against an Irish man in Belfast on Monday evening. Officials reported that a 30-year-old Sudanese refugee, who is a legal resident, allegedly committed the stabbing and has been charged with attempted murder.

Among his posts, Musk amplified the views of Rupert Lowe, a British Parliament member and founder of the anti-immigrant Restore Britain movement. Musk shared video clips where Lowe called for the deportation of migrants unable to financially support themselves. He also reshared a Restore Britain post announcing efforts to "reverse the third-worldification of our country" and affirmed Lowe's declaration that "Britain doesn't have a racism problem, it has an immigration problem." Musk further agreed with a user quoting Lowe's support for "reverse mass migration" and calling to "Deport the invaders. Imprison the government."

Anger stemming from the Belfast attack led to riots in Belfast and other locations in Northern Ireland. Protesters reportedly set fire to cars, garbage cans, and a city bus, and appeared to target the homes of immigrants. Firefighters assisted families whose homes were set ablaze. The hospitalized victim, who sustained serious injuries, released a statement through his family calling for calm, according to the New York Times.

Musk denied that social media contributed to the riots, instead attributing public anger to "murderous migrants." The UK regulator Ofcom will not reprimand X for posts inciting violence against immigrants for at least two months, according to the Guardian.

SpaceX's IPO filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission previously acknowledged that "the actions and statements of Mr. Musk and his affiliated ventures... could potentially have a positive or negative impact on our business, relationships with customers and regulators, or stock price." SpaceX's affiliated company, xAI, also faces a class-action lawsuit alleging its AI chatbot Grok used real photographs to create child sexual abuse material. An inflatable effigy of Musk, placed by the Safe AI Now (SANE) coalition, appeared in New York City's Times Square to highlight these issues ahead of the IPO, as reported by Wired.

SpaceX announced plans to offer 555,555,555 shares at $135 each, with the IPO scheduled for Friday, June 12. The company is projected to achieve a $1.75 trillion valuation. Despite Musk's comments on immigration, retail traders have reportedly ordered $100 billion in SpaceX stock in anticipation of the public offering, according to Forbes.

(Source: Mashable Tech)