Indian AI researcher and robotics expert Devendra Singh Chaplot has announced that he will be joining Elon Musk’s companies SpaceX and xAI, marking a significant step in his career in advanced artificial intelligence. The IIT Bomabu alumnus revealed the move through a social media post on March 13, stating that he will work on developing superintelligence by connecting physical robotics systems with digital AI models.
I’m joining SpaceX and xAI, working closely with Elon and team to build superintelligence.
Together SpaceX and xAI combine physical and digital intelligence under a leader who understands hardware at the deepest level. Add a high-agency culture with frontier-scale resources, and… pic.twitter.com/tjaPUjGUwK
— Devendra Chaplot (@dchaplot) March 13, 2026
Who Is Devendra Singh Chaplot?
Devendra Singh Chaplot, who was a founding member of one of the leading AI organisations, including Mistral AI, is widely recognised for his research in robotics, embodied AI and autonomous systems.
The announcement comes at a time when Elon Musk’s companies are rapidly advancing the integration of cutting-edge machine learning with physical technologies, from Starship missions to humanoid robots.
Devendra Singh Chaplot’s Early Education
Devendra Singh Chaplot’s journey to becoming a leading figure in the global tech industry began with remarkable academic achievements in India.
In 2010, he secured All India Rank 25 in the IIT–JEE and achieved International Rank 5 in the International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO). These accomplishments paved the way for him to pursue a Computer Science and Engineering degree at IIT Bombay.
After completing his studies in India, Devendra Singh Chaplot went on to earn a PhD from the Machine Learning Department at Carnegie Mellon University.
During this time, his research made important contributions to autonomous systems, particularly in understanding how AI agents navigate and interact with real-world environments.
What Was Devendra Singh Chaplot’s Role at Mistral AI
Devendra Singh Chaplot played a key role in the European AI ecosystem as a founding member of Mistral AI, where he helped develop high-efficiency large language models (LLMs).
He later co-founded Thinking Machines Lab, an initiative focused on expanding LLM training infrastructure and making advanced AI development tools more accessible to a wider community.
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