Alternative Investing Report - February 3, 2026

*as of 2/2; Sources: S&P, BTC, FTSE, DJRE, GOLD

Last week, it was rumored that Elon Musk was looking to merge two of his companies, xAI and SpaceX, and that quickly came to fruition, with Musk announcing the combination of the two businesses yesterday. Though it’s hardly an arms-length transaction, it is technically the largest M&A deal of all-time, with SpaceX acquiring xAI for $250 billion, and xAI shareholders receiving 1 share of SpaceX for every 7 shares of xAI. SpaceX is the world’s most valuable private company, with the transaction reportedly boosting its value to $1.25 trillion.

➨ TAKEAWAY: Musk has now combined three of his businesses — X (formerly known as Twitter), xAI, and SpaceX — into one behemoth, and there are already rumors that once SpaceX goes public, he will try to merge it with his carmaker Tesla. All of this activity comes in advance of a highly anticipated potential IPO that could come as soon as this summer. SpaceX reported an $8 billion profit on $16 billion of revenue last year, and just filed a request to launch 1 million satellites that will act as AI data centers, though with only 15,000 satellites currently in orbit, that latter request may take awhile.

Vincent’s Slava Rubin and Sacra's Jan-Erik Asplund discussed Perplexity, the $20 billion AI search startup, digging into its origins, growth trajectory, market positioning, revenue streams, and competitive landscape.

Presented by Augment, whose Collective funds are the easiest way to invest in the most popular private tech companies.

🪙 UAE official & Trump: A top royal from the United Arab Emirates known as the “Spy Sheikh” secretly purchased a 49% stake in President Trump’s World Liberty Financial crypto company last year for $500 million. Months later, the President agreed to sell advanced AI chips to the UAE, a deal now under scrutiny from lawmakers. These types of inside dealings have the potential to further damage and politicize the image of the crypto world, which has struggled during Trump’s presidency despite his pro-crypto stance.

🤖 Apple buys Q.ai: In its second-biggest acquisition ever, Apple has agreed to buy the AI audio startup Q.ai for a reported $2 billion, nearly 30 times what it was valued at in its 2023 seed round.

🚀 Waymo’s big raise: The Alphabet-owned self-driving car startup raised $16 billion at a post-money valuation of $126 billion, a massive jump over its last valuation of $45 billion in October 2024.

🏡 Homebuyer discounts: The average U.S. homebuyer in 2025 paid 3.8% less than the listing price, with nearly two-thirds of transactions coming at a discount — the highest share since 2019.

🎨 Saudi Arabia auction: Sotheby’s second-ever auction in Saudi Arabia netted $19.6 million, well above the pre-sale high estimate of $16.6 million, and a new record was set for an artwork by a Saudi artist, with Safeya Binzagr’s “Coffee Shop in Madina Road” selling for $2.1 million.

🏢 Open-air shopping centers: Net operating income per square foot in top-tier open-air shopping centers has averaged 9% annual growth since 2020, with occupancy rates and tenant demand rising.

It may not be a castle, but this 7,000 square foot mansion near the Woodlands in the suburbs north of Houston, Texas, sits on a private island complete with a full moat. The 5 bedroom, 7 bathroom house was completely renovated last August and has an infinity pool, outdoor kitchen, and 4-car garage. The house sits on an 11-acre property that also has a private pond with a beach, a basketball court, a workshop, and additional parking. Previously listed for $3.55 million, it is now being auctioned off beginning February 12 with a starting bid of $1 million.