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Elon Musk’s rocket company, SpaceX, is looking to hire engineers for its new AI software engineering team.
The company said in a job list published on July 11 that the new team will be “focused on solving complex data problems for our launch vehicles and spacecraft.” SpaceX said the team will also support the company’s satellite internet service, Starlink.
The listing said it was considering candidates with majors in computer science, data science, engineering, mathematics, or physics. It said that those without a degree could be considered if they had at least four years of professional experience in building software.
“Aerospace experience is not required to be successful here,” the listing said, adding that candidates should have at least one year of experience in AI software engineering, full-stack development, and data science.
The company said its AI software engineers will be paid between $120,000 to $170,000 a year. This is on top of any company stock, stock options, or bonuses the engineer might receive.
SpaceX’s latest AI recruitment efforts come as a surprise considering Musk’s earlier remarks about AI and space travel. The billionaire said at the 27th annual Milken Institute Global Conference in May 2024 that SpaceX and Starlink “uses basically no AI.”
“I mean, oddly enough, one of the areas where there’s almost no AI used is space exploration,” Musk said.
“I’m not against using it. We haven’t seen a use for it,” he added.
Musk said he had been asking AI questions about rocket engine design and electrochemistry but found the models “terrible at all those questions.”
“So, there’s still a long way to go,” Musk said then.
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But developments within the industry appear to have changed Musk’s mind.
Last week, Musk’s AI startup xAI launched the latest version of its chatbot, Grok 4. The SpaceX chief said during the presentation that Grok 4 is “smarter than almost all graduate students in all disciplines simultaneously.”
AI appears to be a key focus area for Musk and his various businesses, or what insiders call the “Muskonomy.”
On Sunday, Musk said his EV company, Tesla will hold a shareholder vote on whether to invest in xAI. Musk did not specify when exactly the vote will take place. The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday that SpaceX was eyeing a $2 billion investment into xAI.
“It’s not up to me. If it was up to me, Tesla would have invested in xAI long ago,” Musk wrote in an X post on Sunday night.
Representatives for SpaceX did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
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