Musk cites Alphabet conflicts as Google executive leaves SpaceX board

SpaceX announced that Google executive Donald Harrison has resigned from its board of directors after nearly a decade, citing conflicts of interest with Google’s parent company, Alphabet. Harrison’s resignation took immediate effect, according to a regulatory filing released on Friday. The company stated that his departure was not due to any disagreement over operations, policies, or practices.

Elon Musk later explained the change on X, attributing Harrison’s resignation to too many conflicts of interest involving Alphabet. Musk also expressed gratitude for Harrison’s contributions during his tenure, praising his service. Harrison currently serves as Google’s president of Global Partnerships and Corporate Development, a role focused on the company’s relationships and strategic business initiatives.

His departure marks a change in SpaceX's leadership structure, as Alphabet remains its largest single institutional shareholder, owning roughly 555 million shares, compared to about 551.2 million previously, according to LSEG data. This recent increase in Alphabet’s investment coincided with Harrison’s exit. While the board change eliminates a senior Google representative from SpaceX’s leadership, it does not indicate any alteration in the companies’ investment relationship.

Harrison’s resignation also occurs as SpaceX broadens its business scope, encompassing rocket launches, satellite communications, and artificial intelligence. The combination of Alphabet’s substantial ownership stake and Harrison’s executive responsibilities at Google created overlapping interests between the two companies, as per Musk’s explanation.

SpaceX did not disclose specific transactions, commercial arrangements, or board decisions contributing to the conflicts mentioned by its CEO.