NFL players double down on SpaceX amid the ongoing Donald Trump and Elon Musk dramatic feud
Atlanta Falcons Pro Bowl safety Jessie Bates is known for his playmaking ability on the field, but off the gridiron, he's making headlines for a different kind of game-changer—his bold investment in
Elon Musk
's aerospace giant,
SpaceX
.
Bates, who first backed the company in 2019, is now seeing the kind of growth most investors only dream of. But as Musk's political ties stir heated debate, Bates—and other NFL investors—are navigating not just rocket launches, but reputational turbulence.
A touchdown investment: how Jessie Bates bet early on SpaceX
Bates made his initial six-figure investment through Rise Sports Advisors, a firm that helps pro athletes tap into high-growth startups. He doubled down three years later through Summit Peak Ventures, joining former Bengals lineman D'Ante Smith in SpaceX's Series J round, when the company was valued at $127 billion.
Now valued at over $350 billion, SpaceX has become one of the world's most lucrative private firms. 'I didn't know what to expect from it,' Smith said. 'I didn't think it would fail but I didn't know what to expect.'
For Bates, the decision was about long-term vision. 'It would be crazy if we didn't think that [one day] people will be going to space normally,' he said. 'You would be crazy not to educate yourself in that space and maybe participate in some investments.'
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Giao dịch CFD với công nghệ và tốc độ tốt hơn
IC Markets
Đăng ký
Undo
The Musk factor: business genius or political liability?
While Bates respects Musk's acumen, he stops short of backing him politically. 'You can't ignore how business-savvy these guys are and the leadership that they have in this space,' he explained, acknowledging SpaceX's 'polarizing reputation.'
That reputation has only intensified. Musk's past close relationship with
Donald Trump
drawn criticism amid sweeping federal job cuts and regulatory rollbacks. Still, Rise Sports' VP of Finance Jay Bass said Musk's government connections 'help more than it hurts' from an economic lens.
Until SpaceX goes public or sells, Bates and his fellow athlete-investors are holding tight. 'This is one of the pretty big investments that I've made,' he said. 'To see that it can be a 10x type of deal, that's exciting.'
Also Read:
Donald Trump and Elon Musk feud turns ugly as NFL stars like Robert Griffin III and Ryan Clark become unlikely pawns
But with growing media scrutiny and protest movements targeting Musk's companies, the question remains: will SpaceX's value soar high enough to eclipse the controversy—or will politics bring it back down to Earth?
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Elon Musk, world's richest man and a Canadian citizen, landed on a secret trip in a small B.C. town; he then went to an even more stealthy area
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel In a surprising visit that has sparked curiosity across Canada , billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk , along with one of his sons, recently touched down in the small town of Bella Bella , located on British Columbia's Central best known as CEO of Tesla , SpaceX, and owner of the social media platform X, was tracked arriving late on a Friday night and departing the following Monday afternoon. The visit was confirmed through online flight logs and photographs shared with CBC a massive net worth of $413 billion, Musk is shaping global industries from electric vehicles to private recent visit to the small town of Bella Bella, British Columbia, was primarily a private trip. After arriving by small private plane on Saturday, Musk was then whisked away by helicopter. Locals, in conversation with CBC, speculated that he may have been visiting a private property near Bella Coola, owned by James Murdoch—son of media tycoon Rupert Murdoch and a Tesla board area around Bella Bella is known for its stunning natural beauty and is a popular destination for recreational activities such as fishing, boating, and wildlife watching. Its remote coastal location attracts the rich and famous personalities including the members of the Royal Family Elon Musk's connection to Canada runs deep. Although born in Pretoria, South Africa, Musk holds Canadian citizenship through his mother, Maye Musk, who was born in Regina, Saskatchewan. Musk moved to Canada as a teenager and has spent significant periods of his early life living and working here, including time in Saskatchewan and Vancouver before attending Queen's University in visit comes amid heightened attention on Musk's relationship with Canada. Earlier in 2025, a high-profile parliamentary petition gathered over 340,000 signatures urging the Canadian government to revoke Musk's citizenship. The petition alleges that Musk's close ties with US President Donald Trump and involvement in policies perceived as hostile towards Canada threaten Canadian national interests. Musk responded controversially on social media by stating, 'Canada is not a real country,' a post he later to the context, British Columbia's Premier David Eby excluded Tesla products from the province's electric vehicle incentive program, explicitly linking the move to Musk's political stance. Various Canadian municipalities have begun reconsidering partnerships with Musk-owned entities like X, although many rural communities continue to rely on Musk's Starlink satellite internet to improve connectivity in hard-to-reach the controversy, Musk's Canadian citizenship remains legally secure. According to Canadian immigration law, citizenship can only be revoked for fraud, misrepresentation, or major crimes such as treason. Experts say it is highly unlikely the petition will lead to Musk losing his citizenship, serving more as a symbolic call for accountability.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Meet Kairan Quazi: The 16-year-old child prodigy who left Elon Musk's SpaceX for fintech
Source: USA Today At an age when most teens are busy with getting good high school results, a 16-year-old boy has achieved a milestone that most professionals spend decades chasing. With a mind far beyond his years and a relentless drive that refuses to be boxed in by age, he's caught the world's attention with his exceptional talent. Who is Kairan Quasi, and what did he achieve exceptionally? Kairan Quasi is a 16-year-old boy who grew up in a family with a tech and finance background. His mom, Jullia Quazi, works at Wall Street, and his dad, Mustahid Quazi, is a chemical engineer. As an American-Bangladeshi, Kairan was raised with a mix of cultures and high academic standards, which ignited his early interest in math, computer science, and technology. While most kids were still in middle school, Kairan was already taking college classes. He earned an Associate of Science degree in Mathematics from Las Positas College at just 11 years of age, showing not just intelligence, but also a level of focus and problem-solving skills far beyond his age. He joined SpaceX at a tender age! Kairan Quazi became the youngest graduate in Santa Clara University's 170-year history, earning his degree in computer science and engineering at just 14. Soon after, he was recruited by SpaceX to work on the Starlink project and was in the headlines for being the company's youngest engineer. For two years, Quazi contributed to production-critical systems that worked on how Starlink satellites target their beams, ensuring fast and reliable satellite internet, which is a significant responsibility despite his young age. Quasi is now taking up new challenges In 2025, Kairan decided to take another huge step in his career by shifting to the financial technology sector from aerospace engineering. He is now leaving SpaceX to join Citadel Securities in New York City as a quantitative developer. He explained to Business Insider, 'After two years at SpaceX, I felt ready to take on new challenges and expand my skill set into a different high‑performance environment.' He found Citadel appealing for its 'ambitious culture' and access to a 'completely new domain'. Kairan Quazi turned down offers from AI labs and big tech companies to go into finance, which might seem surprising at first. But for him, the choice made perfect sense. As he told Business Insider, 'Quant finance offers a pretty rare combination: the complexity and intellectual challenge that AI research also provides, but with a much faster pace … I'll be able to see measurable impact in days, not months or years like many research environments. ' Now, at Citadel Securities, which is one of the top high-speed trading firms in the world, handling around 35% of US retail stock trades, he'll be helping improve the systems that help in global trading. Kairan Quasi's previous experiences Kairan Quazi grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California. He interned at Intel Labs at the age of 10, before completing his college education, and later worked at in 2022. A significant part of his interest in finance also stemmed from his mother, who works as an investment banker in mergers and acquisitions. That blend of tech know-how and financial understanding helped shape the path he's on today, according to Wikipedia. Twitter previously banned his account Beyond his resume, Quazi has faced age-related biases. In 2023, LinkedIn banned his account for being underage, which he called 'illogical, primitive nonsense,' questioning how one could be qualified to work at SpaceX but not to access a professional networking platform.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Meet Kairan Quazi: From getting banned on LinkedIn to building satellites at SpaceX, explore his fast-track life at the age of 16
Meet Kairan Quazi, born in 2009 in Pleasanton, California, to Bangladeshi parents. From the get-go, this kid wasn't your everyday third-grader. At age two, experts pegged his emotional and intellectual intelligence as off-the-charts. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now By nine, he'd already jumped from third grade straight into college-level courses in math and chemistry. He aced California's high school equivalency and even earned an associate's degree, talk about accelerating. By 11 he was tutoring at the community college. By 14, he graduated from Santa Clara University, becoming the university's youngest-ever graduate in its 170-year history. That alone made jaws in Silicon Valley drop. Now, blink, and it's 2025. At 16, Kairan is moving on from rockets and into the high-stakes world of quantitative finance. He's joining Citadel Securities in New York City as a quantitative developer, building trading systems and shaping global trading infrastructure. He turned down offers from top AI labs and Big Tech because, hey, 'quant finance offers the same intellectual challenge as AI, but with way faster feedback.' He'll be seeing impact in days, not months or years, and Citadel's meritocratic vibe doesn't penalize him for being young. Bonus: he'll now live in Manhattan, just a short walk from his office—no more rides from his mom in Redmond. Why Kairan's journey feels like a glimpse into tomorrow Kairan's story is wild in the best way. He's redefining what it means to be 'young talent' in a world chasing AI and tech titans. From Mensa at age two, to college at nine, to at 14, and now Wall Street at 16, he's living life on fast-forward, and loving it. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now His mom, a Wall Street exec herself, might have coached him on finance, but this leap was all Kairan's to make. At this rate, expecting his next move to surprise us is the only sensible bet, and whatever it is, you better believe news outlets will be watching. Soon after graduation, SpaceX came knocking. At just 14, Kairan was officially hired as one of the youngest engineers ever, and no, he wasn't sent to fetch coffee. He joined the Starlink team, working on software that helps control where satellites point their beams to deliver internet around the globe. Real production work, real responsibility, and real trust from the SpaceX team. There was even a weird moment when LinkedIn suspended his account—because, apparently, being under 16 disqualified you from having one. Cue an eye roll: Kairan called it 'illogical, primitive nonsense,' and eventually got his account back.
