Musk and Trump have come closer and are often seen together in various contexts. Recently, it was about Trump being present at the launch of Musk's space rocket Starship and Musk is said to have attended talks between Trump and other world leaders.
The background to the relationship is the Tesla CEO's decision to support Trump during the presidential election campaign, which meant campaign contributions in the billions. Since the election, it is also clear that Musk has been tasked by Trump to lead the work on reducing government spending through a new advisory body called Doge. The relationship between the two raises questions in the outside world. Lena Fahlén, who is also vice CEO of the "sofa fund" AP7, sees it as far from uncomplicated:
It's not clear what applies. Does the one who is best friends with Trump get benefits for their company, she asks.
Rushed strongly
Tesla's stock has rushed strongly lately on hopes that the relationship between Trump and Musk will benefit the company. For the seventh AP fund, where Tesla is a large holding, it naturally has a major positive effect, but Lena Fahlén points out that it becomes strange at the same time as competitors such as European car stocks are backing down due to concerns about American car tariffs and escalating trade barriers.
The market and companies need transparency and clear rules. It's not good if stock prices are controlled by who is friends with whom. I think it's an alarming development.
Not alone
Musk is, however, not alone among corporate leaders to socialize with Trump. Apple's CEO Tim Cook has met him at the residence in Florida. According to media reports, Jeff Bezos, Amazon's founder, will do the same next week.
I think it's Trump's way of leading. He wants to have these individual conversations. It's clear that you also have a dialogue between the state and business in other countries, but in a more transparent way, says Lena Fahlén.
