SpaceX approached artificial intelligence coding startup Cognition AI Inc. about acquiring the company, according to people familiar with the matter. The approach marks the third major AI-focused move by the Elon Musk-led company in six months.
SpaceX completed a $60B acquisition of coding platform Cursor in August and merged with AI company xAI in February. The Cognition approach, if it had succeeded, would have extended Musk's effort to build internal AI capabilities as a counterweight to Anthropic and OpenAI, the two largest private AI companies by valuation and funding.
Cognition is the maker of Devin, an AI agent designed to write and debug code autonomously. The startup raised $1B at a $26B valuation in May 2026, according to its funding announcement. Devin has been positioned as a tool for software engineering teams to accelerate development work, competing in a crowded market of code-generation products that includes GitHub Copilot, Claude's coding features, and tools from startups like Replit.
Musk has stated that artificial intelligence is critical to SpaceX's future autonomy systems and product roadmap. After merging xAI with X Corp resources in February, Musk moved to pursue AI acquisitions to supplement the company's internal research.
It remains unclear why negotiations with Cognition did not proceed. SpaceX does not typically comment on acquisition discussions. Cognition declined to comment when contacted.
SpaceX has now made at least three AI acquisitions or acquisition attempts in the span of six months, a frequency that places it among the most active large-cap acquirers in the AI space. By comparison, most mature technology companies complete one major AI acquisition per year. The pace shows Musk's stated urgency about AI competition and the belief that acquiring proven teams and products is faster than building from scratch.
The question for investors watching SpaceX's AI strategy is whether these acquisitions will integrate meaningfully into SpaceX's core operations or function as standalone bets on AI market dominance. Cursor and xAI remain largely separate entities within the Musk portfolio despite the capital and attention devoted to them.
