But if Musk’s rationale for keeping SpaceX private was to protect the Mars dream, is he abandoning this long-standing aim?
Not necessarily. It’s likely that Musk sees artificial intelligence as a key part of the Mars vision. Whether one believes the Optimus robot will become a viable product or not, Musk does. And he’s spoken about sending the robots to Mars to make the way smoother for the first human settlers.
Musk also believes that a larger and more financially robust SpaceX is necessary to undertake the settling of Mars. He understands that NASA will not pay for this, as the civil space agency is in the business of
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