Musk confirms Tesla, SpaceX boards formed special committees to discuss merger

The governance mechanics are the story here: Musk's recusal and the two independent special committees signal that any combination would be run as a conflicted transaction rather than a founder's handshake. The 50% approval threshold is unusually demanding, because abstentions count as opposition, giving dissenters real leverage over a deal that has no agreed terms. Tesla holders are the constituency that matters most, and the absence of a merger proposal at the Dec. 3 annual meeting suggests no near-term vote. Whether the committees produce agreed terms, and how the abstention rule shapes any eventual tally, is the open question.