Elon Musk reportedly invests $1 billion in media company Skydance
Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has invested about $1 billion in the newly formed media company Skydance, Semafor reports. The company was created after Paramount's acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery.
Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has invested roughly $1 billion in the newly formed US media company Skydance, according to a report by the news outlet Semafor, cited by TechCrunch on October 22. The investment matters because the company is merging two major media businesses while trying to cut costs and lift its stock price.
Background: Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery combine
The news came a few weeks after Paramount completed its $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, creating a combined company. Its co-CEOs, David Ellison and Ynon Kreiz, are tasked with bringing two major streaming platforms, Paramount+ and HBO Max, together with a portfolio of networks including CBS, CNN, MTV, TBS, Comedy Central and Food Network, under a single corporate umbrella.
Other investors and cost cuts
Semafor reports that Musk's investment was made around the same time as equity contributions from other Skydance investors, including board member Laurene Powell Jobs. The report says the funds will provide a much-needed financial boost. Skydance has already committed to cutting costs by $6 billion over the next three years.
Ties to the Ellison family
Musk has publicly praised the Ellisons in the past and has close ties with Larry Ellison, whom he appointed to Tesla's board of directors in 2018. The Oracle founder invested $1 billion to help Musk buy Twitter in 2022 and also invested in Tesla in 2018.
Skydance did not immediately respond to TechCrunch's request for comment.
