Musk, who also runs SpaceX and a number of other companies, has been known to make big often exaggerated promises. For example, he once called the Hyperloop, which was never built, the "fifth mode of transport" and famously promised to take Tesla private in a Twitter post, saying he had secured financing that he didn't have.

A State Department spokesperson told Forbes the department has “no current plans” to move forward with the potential contract, which was initiated under the Biden administration.

This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them. Now worth well over $395 billion, Elon Musk’s wealth soared by another $10 billion today.