Mark Zuckerberg texted Elon Musk in early 2025 offering the help of Meta's teams to protect people working on Musk's controversial government-slashing initiative, according to court documents published on Friday. The texts, sent on 3 February 2025, were released as part of Musk's ongoing lawsuit against artificial intelligence firm OpenAI.
The exchange occurred shortly after Zuckerberg appeared on Joe Rogan's podcast, where he complained that corporate America had become "emasculated." Referring to Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Zuckerberg wrote: "Looks like DOGE is making progress. I’ve got our teams on alert to take down content doxxing or threatening the people on your team. Let me know if there’s anything else I can do to help."
Musk's Response and a Business Proposal
Musk replied to the offer of assistance with a heart emoji. He then immediately pivoted to a potential business collaboration, asking Zuckerberg: "Are you open to the idea of bidding on OpenAI with me and some others?"
The Meta CEO suggested they discuss the idea over the phone. However, according to previously released documents, Zuckerberg never formally joined Musk's bid for the AI company.
Context of a Thawing Rivalry
The friendly exchange marks a notable thaw in the relationship between the two tech billionaires. Their rivalry had previously been intense enough for Musk to publicly challenge Zuckerberg to a cage fight in 2023.
The released texts indicate a period of cooperation during the early days of the second Trump administration, with Zuckerberg positioning Meta's content moderation resources as a potential shield for Musk's politically contentious DOGE project.