Musk’s announcement adds to his list of business ventures that stands to divide his attention even further over his already operational companies
By Hannah Parker | 25 Aug 2025
Elon Musk said he’s launching yet another company.
The CEO of xAI said Friday on his social media site X that he plans to create a “purely AI” software company to rival offerings from companies like Microsoft. He’s calling his latest venture "Macrohard."
“Join @xAI and help build a purely AI software company called Macrohard. It’s a tongue-in-cheek name, but the project is very real! In principle, given that software companies like Microsoft do not themselves manufacture any physical hardware, it should be possible to simulate them entirely with AI,” he wrote.
One user asked Grok, Musk’s AI chatbot, to explain the new project. The chatbot responded on X, saying Macrohard — xAI’s “playful project name” is a “nod to Microsoft.”
“The goal: since firms like Microsoft produce no physical hardware, AI could theoretically replicate their entire operations—from coding to management. It's real, and we're hiring!” Grok said.
When asked what Macrohard will sell, Grok said it will offer “software solutions” like “specialized agents for coding, image generation, workflow automation, and more—collaborating in multi-agent systems powered by Grok. Essentially, AI building and running the entire operation to output innovative tools.”
xAI filed for a trademark on August 1 for Macrohard, according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Business Insider first reported.
The application says its purpose is for “downloadable computer programs and downloadable computer software for the artificial production of human speech and text” and for “agentic artificial intelligence,” among other uses.
Musk’s latest side project adds to his growing list of undertakings, which include Tesla, xAI, X, SpaceX, political causes and parties, and legal bids.
At the beginning of August, Tesla’s board approved a stock award worth around $29 billion, granting Musk 96 million restricted shares under the company’s long-term incentive plan, in a move to “incentivize” the CEO to remain at the company as other “extensive and wide-ranging” business ventures take up more of Musk’s time and attention.
— Shannon Carroll contributed to this article.
Source: https://tinyurl.com/4fv2duac