A former friend of tech billionaire Elon Musk told Politico in an interview that Musk is not going to forgive President Donald Trump after their public falling out — and will do what he can to sabotage the presidency.
Trump and Musk have been firm allies for over a year, with Musk bankrolling much of Trump's campaign voter outreach and helming the president's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) task force. However, things began unraveling when Trump canceled the nomination of one of Musk's associates to head up NASA.
Musk then began publicly attacking Trump's "big, beautiful bill" on tax cuts, saying it would undermine federal solvency and urging his fans on his X platform to lobby Congress to kill the legislation. Trump responded by threatening to defund Musk's federal contracts and subsidies, and Musk suggested Trump might be a child predator.
Ultimately the two backed off their back-and-forth, at least publicly.
But Philip Low, a renowned neuroscientist and fellow Silicon Valley tycoon who once fired Musk from the board of his startup in 2021, explained to Politico that Musk will not let his anger go.
Through the course of the interview, Low "weaved something of a psychological portrait of his former adviser, casting him as obsessive, prone to seeking revenge, power hungry and in constant search of dominance. He suggested Musk aims to explore every available avenue to establish competition with and ultimately overshadow bitter rivals. Low has known him for 14 years but doesn’t believe Musk has matured over time, and he’s convinced he never will."
“I’ve had my share of blowouts with Elon over the years,” said Low. “Knowing Elon the way I know him, I do think he’s going to do everything to damage the president.”
Low added that Musk might still partner up with Trump on some things, but that going forward it won't be the same.
“He has been humiliated,” he said. “The whole idea that Elon is going to be on his side and help woo Congress and invest in election campaigns for right-wing judges — Elon might do all of that, but deep down, it’s over.”