Elon Musk, the world’s richest person with a net worth of $917 billion, has relocated to an Airstream trailer in Memphis to personally oversee the expansion of xAI’s Colossus supercomputer facility. Musk confirmed his living arrangement during a taping of the All-In podcast alongside Gwynne Shotwell, president and COO of SpaceX.
Musk’s presence in Memphis follows xAI’s rapid deployment of Colossus, a massive data center completed in 122 days in 2024. The facility provides computing power for xAI’s Grok large language model and has since struck deals to sell excess capacity to Google and Anthropic for billions. In late July, xAI announced plans to construct a fourth data center, Minihard, in the area.
Shotwell described Musk’s living situation as emblematic of his hands-on approach to projects. “This is Elon, by doing what people don’t believe he does: He sleeps on the factory floor. He’s in Memphis, helping build buildings,” she said during the interview. Musk has a history of sleeping near work sites, including during Zip2’s early days in the 1990s, when he and his brother slept in a small office for six months.
The Airstream trailer, an iconic riveted-aluminum camper with a sleeping area, kitchen, and bathroom in a 16-foot space, is parked steps from xAI’s facilities. Musk did not specify the model but noted the trailer as his “palace” during the podcast, eliciting laughter from hosts and Shotwell.
xAI’s Memphis expansion aligns with its broader infrastructure push, which includes SpaceX’s absorption of xAI earlier this year. The company’s rapid deployment of Colossus and subsequent deals underscore its role in the AI compute market. Musk’s relocation reflects his reported preference for proximity to critical operations, including his past stays at Twitter’s (now X) San Francisco headquarters and a rented home near SpaceX’s Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas.