Elon Musk Denies $300M Telegram-xAI Deal, Despite CEO's Announcement

A potential partnership between Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup xAI and the popular messaging app Telegram sparked excitement this week—but the deal may not be as concrete as initially believed.

Telegram CEO Pavel Durov announced on Wednesday that the platform would integrate xAI’s chatbot, Grok, and that Telegram would receive a share of subscription revenue through the collaboration. According to Durov, the partnership involved a $300 million package in cash and equity, plus 50% of any Grok subscriptions sold within the app.

However, just hours later, Elon Musk refuted the claim publicly. Responding to Durov’s announcement on his social platform X, Musk stated plainly: “No deal has been signed.”

Durov later clarified that while both parties had reached an agreement "in principle," the deal remains pending until final documentation is completed. The update cast uncertainty over what had appeared to be a landmark collaboration in the AI space.

The initial announcement had an immediate impact on crypto markets. Toncoin—the native token of The Open Network (TON), which Telegram supports—jumped 18.7% to $3.55 following Durov’s statement. But the price retreated to $3.35 after Musk’s denial.

The timing of the announcement is notable. It coincided with Telegram’s reported efforts to raise $1.5 billion through a new bond issuance. The fresh funds would be used to repurchase debt issued in 2021. The bond sale is drawing interest from major financial institutions, including BlackRock, Citadel, and Mubadala, an investment firm owned by the Abu Dhabi government.

While the proposed xAI partnership is still in limbo, it reflects growing interest in integrating advanced AI tools into mainstream platforms—and the market sensitivity surrounding such announcements.