Errol Musk, the father of the world's richest man did not hold back in a recent podcast appearance.
Image: Angela Weiss / AFP
The world's richest and arguably most politically influential man, Elon Musk — who has a direct line to US President Donald Trump —has a complicated relationship with his father, Errol Musk.
This is according to Musk Senior, who currently resides in Cape Town, South Africa. The 79-year-old appeared as a guest on Joshua Rubin's Wide Awake Podcast, where he suggested that there is a significant rift between him and his son, allegedly due to Musk Senior having children with his own stepdaughter.
Full of braggadocio, he spoke after how he was wealthy and provided a cushy childhood for Elon and his siblings.
He boasted about providing the best for his family, claiming they lived in houses resembling palaces and had numerous servants to cater to their needs. He asserted that the SpaceX owner enjoyed a childhood that many could only dream of.
However, when asked whether Elon felt like an outcast because of his autism spectrum disorder (ASD), he deflected, saying that because the family had fancy cars, a private plane and took overseas trips, the other school children must have felt that they lived in concentration camps in comparison.
"I never knew he has Asperger's until he went on Saturday Night Live ... What I knew was that he had intense focus, my brother was also like that," Musk senior said.
The World Health Organization (WHO) describes ASD as a broad set of conditions. They are distinguished by some level of difficulties in social engagement and communication. "The abilities and needs of autistic people vary and can evolve.
"While some people with autism can live independently, others have severe disabilities and require life-long care and support. Autism often has an impact on education and employment opportunities," added the group.
Despite having autism, the X owner has been against the US' diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programmes that cater to those who are often discriminated against such as people with disabilities and mental health conditions.
Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is planning to gut all DEI services. "The White House's position is that we are ridding the federal government of DEI, full stop...DOGE is there as a collaborator ensuring that we get rid of waste, fraud and abuse. And if DEI is waste, fraud, and abuse, it's gone," a White House representative was quoted as saying by the Post.
The Tesla owner's father also disputed the claims that the billionaire did not enjoy his childhood in South Africa claiming that Elon wants some sympathy points by allegedly painting a grim picture of his youth in the country.
Elon was still shy in the latter part of his teen years, he added, his relationships with girls were non-existent despite the Tesla owner's constant attempts.
"On one occasion, he did invite a girl to go to the movies with him and the arrangement was that I would pick them up, take them to the cinema. Her parents were going to pick them up. But I got a call that the girl had been picked up and they had left him at the cinema."
IOL