Mr. Musk has turned to Silicon Valley to help recruit executives who will take up unofficial positions across the federal government.

Elon Musk walked back his previous claim that he could cut at least $2 trillion from the federal budget, saying Wednesday that half that amount would be “an epic outcome.”

I think if we try for $2 trillion, we’ve got a good shot at getting one,” Musk said, during a recent live streamed conversation on his platform, X. He added that eliminating $2 trillion was “like, the best-case outcome.