Elon Musk Gave Apple 72 Hours to Accept His $5 Billion Offer—Tim Cook Said No, and Paid the Price

Elon Musk made a bold $5 billion offer to Apple, but the tech giant turned him down. What followed was a fierce competition for satellite connectivity that would change the way we use our phones.

In 2022, just weeks before Apple was set to reveal its iPhone 14, Elon Musk made a bold offer to the tech giant. His company, SpaceX, would provide satellite connectivity for the iPhone, but it came with a hefty price tag: $5 billion upfront, followed by $1 billion annually after an 18-month exclusivity period. Musk, convinced Apple couldn’t turn down such a deal, gave Tim Cook 72 hours to make a decision. If Apple refused, Musk threatened to develop a competing service that would work directly with iPhones.

Musk’s ultimatum set off a series of events in the ongoing rivalry between the two tech giants. But Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, rejected the offer. Instead, Apple chose to partner with Globalstar, a smaller satellite provider. While Musk’s deal would have provided more expansive satellite services, Cook’s choice was driven by a mix of caution and strategic priorities.

Despite the rejected offer, Musk stayed true to his word and went ahead with his plan to introduce a competing satellite service, according to Apple Insider. Within months, Starlink Direct to Cell was launched, a collaboration between SpaceX and T-Mobile that promised to provide satellite-powered communication for smartphones.

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