SpaceX is expanding recruitment for its artificial intelligence (AI) organisation, and Elon Musk (일론 머스크) said he will personally review applications that pass a certain standard.

On May 21, Business Insider reported that Musk said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that SpaceX's AI organisation is actively hiring engineers and physicists. He also said he would personally look over applications that pass an initial review.

The hiring comes as SpaceX prepares for an initial public offering (IPO). SpaceX filed an S-1 on May 20, and the official IPO is scheduled for June. The company expects to raise $75 billion to $85 billion and is looking for a valuation of $1.5 trillion to $2 trillion.

Musk did not put AI experience at the forefront of the requirements. He asked applicants to email about 3 pieces of evidence showing exceptional ability. He said applicants can apply even with no AI experience and that smart people learn fast. He added that experience making complex things work simply would be a big advantage.

The hiring is for SpaceX's AI unit. Musk integrated rocket company SpaceX and AI startup xAI in February. Until then, xAI operated as an independent business. The recruitment is interpreted as a signal that SpaceX plans to grow its AI organisation in earnest after the integration.

Musk's hiring approach is similar to past cases. In January, during hiring related to Tesla AI chips, he asked applicants to send 3 of the most difficult technical problems they had solved. The aim is to focus on real achievements and problem-solving history rather than formal career credentials.

Intensifying competition to secure AI talent is also cited as a background factor for the hiring expansion. Recently, Andrej Karpathy, Tesla's former AI director and a founding member of OpenAI, said he would move to Anthropic, drawing renewed attention to the movement of key talent in the industry. SpaceX's AI organisation also appears to be accelerating efforts to secure engineers and physicists amid such competition.

xAI is also continuing to reshuffle its workforce. In March, after several co-founders left the company, Musk said he would personally look over interview histories to contact promising candidates again. Musk again stepping in to review applications himself is seen as meaning the chief executive officer will be directly involved in selecting key talent.

SpaceX's hiring expansion appears to be more about preparing its AI organisation ahead of the IPO than simple staffing. It emphasises experience turning complex problems into real results over whether someone has AI experience, and it appears to focus on strengthening the competitiveness of its technical organisation ahead of the listing.

SpaceX is actively hiring world-class engineers/physicists for SpaceXAI, even if you have zero prior experience in AI. Smart humans figure it out fast. Please send an email with about 3 bullet points demonstrating evidence of exceptional ability to ai_eng@spacex.com.