Leverage CEO meets Elon Musk in meeting with Indian entrepreneurs

Defining Musk as “charismatic” and an “India fan”, the Leverage boss shared that the South African-born business magnate appeared optimistic about India’s potential for innovation.

“He [Musk] emphasized thrice that “India is an ancient and great civilization”, and that is pretty much how Indians should think about themselves today in 2025, a civilization that is knocking on the door to become the greatest again,” Chaturvedi told The PIE News.

“Elon spent time talking about India adapting to the newest frontier tech, even innovating on many counts that are more natural to its topography, geographic moats, and frugal second–nature.”

The meeting, which, led by India Global Forum founder Manoj Ladwa and saw the delegates visit Space X’s Starbase facility in Texas to witness the launch of Starship Flight 7.

According to Chaturvedi, Musk expects India-US relations to go beyond mere collaboration between Indian and American companies.

“More than collaboration between Indian and US companies, he thinks about both sides transcending into each other without effort, almost blurring, and that will then set the fundamentals for what we can do collectively for the human conscience.”

The Indian delegation also included Prashant Ruia, director of Essar Capital, Jay Kotak of Kotak811, Ritesh Agarwal, founder and group CEO of Oyo, Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO of Flipkart, and acclaimed author Amish Tripathi.

The meeting between the X and Tesla figurehead and Indian business leaders comes at a time when Musk has emerged as one of the closest aides to the second-time US President, Donald Trump.

Despite questions about Musk’s influence on the US government, the “world’s richest ma” now runs the brand-new Department of Government Efficiency, which aims to cut down on “wasteful and fraudulent” government spending.

Musk’s close ties with Trump and his vast level of influence are seen as beneficial by Indian business leaders.

“As the world’s most powerful democracy transitions to a Trump presidency, meaningful dialogue is more important than ever in these challenging times,” said a post on X by Ladwa.

“Pleased to have led a conversation with [Elon musk] whose groundbreaking work is shaping our collective future. As I often say, democracies thrive when they work together. This moment underscores the need for collaboration, bold ideas, and shared purpose.”

According to Chaturvedi, the recent meeting with Musk also underscored that tech collaborations between India and the US are anchored in long-term talent mobility, which serves as the “bedrock of both great democratic nations.”

“Both US and India are increasingly aligning on critical areas like Semiconductor Manufacturing, Cybersecurity, and Supply Chain Resilience, and this is going alive through Indians in America and Americans in India,” stated Chaturvedi.

“AI, Space Exploration, and Sustainable Energy are natural areas for synergy. India’s frugal innovation and scale can complement US technological leadership and capital.”

US and Indian universities are working closely together in key areas such as artificial intelligence, healthcare, and technology, The PIE reported in March last year.

Moreover, a task force on expanding US-India university partnerships, formed by the Association of American Universities, has been meeting regularly to discuss challenges in strengthening higher education and increasing scientific research.