Docs: SpaceX paid $250K to settle a flight attendant's allegation that Elon Musk exposed himself and offered a horse in exchange for an erotic massage in 2016
Complications for the Twitter deal? Bill Chappell / NPR : Elon Musk denies a report accusing him of sexual misconduct on a SpaceX jet Abram Brown / Forbes : How The Sexual Misconduct Allegations Against Elon Musk Could Affect His Twitter Deal Aimee Chanthadavong / ZDNet : Twitter to hide misleading tweets under new crisis response policy Rick Webb / Webb Chatham Report : Good morning. Hello. How are you? #651 Hollywood Reporter : Elon Musk Denies Sexual Misconduct Allegation by Flight Attendant Brett Molina / USA Today : Elon Musk denies ‘wild accusations’ following report of sexual misconduct settlement The Economic Times : SpaceX paid $250,000 to settle Elon Musk sexual harassment claim: report Zachary Snowdon Smith / Forbes : SpaceX Reportedly Paid $250,000 To Settle Sexual Harassment Accusation Against Elon Musk Mitchell Clark / The Verge : SpaceX reportedly paid $250,000 to cover up Elon Musk's sexual misconduct Karissa Bell / Engadget : Elon Musk was accused of sexual misconduct by a SpaceX flight attendant: report Rob Beschizza / Boing Boing : Elon Musk exposed himself to SpaceX employee and paid her $250,000 to keep her mouth shut Ross A. Lincoln / The Wrap : Elon Musk Accused of Exposing Himself to SpaceX Employee and Requesting Sexual Favors Marvie Basilan / International Business Times : Elon Musk Accused Of Inappropriately Touching Flight Attendant; SpaceX Paid $250K To Settle: Report Tyler Wilde / PC Gamer : SpaceX allegedly paid $250K to cover up Elon Musk sexual misconduct claim Tweets: Elon Musk / @elonmusk : Tesla is building a hardcore litigation department where we directly initiate & execute lawsuits. The team will report directly to me. Please send 3 to 5 bullet points describing evidence of exceptional ability. justice@tesla.com Elon Musk / @elonmusk : The attacks against me should be viewed through a political lens - this is their standard (despicable) playbook - but nothing will deter me from fighting for a good future and your right to free speech Elon Musk / @elonmusk : @TaraBull808 And, for the record, those wild accusations are utterly untrue Elon Musk / @elonmusk : @TaraBull808 But I have a challenge to this liar who claims their friend saw me “exposed” - describe just one thing, anything at all (scars, tattoos, ...) that isn't known by the public. She won't be able to do so, because it never happened. John Cook / @johnjcook : For those interested, we reached out to the principals for comment regarding this story at ~9 a.m. eastern yesterday (Wednesday May 18). Nicholas Carlson / @nichcarlson : A SpaceX flight attendant said Elon Musk exposed himself and propositioned her for sex, documents show. The company paid $250,000 for her silence. https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... via @businessinsider Drew Harwell / @drewharwell : @elonmusk Will you support this woman's right to free speech by releasing her from this NDA? https://twitter.com/... @popehat : When Mr. “I Am A Super Genius So I Can Do Anything Better Than So-Called Experts” tries his hand at public relations crisis management https://twitter.com/... Elon Musk / @elonmusk : Finally, we get to use Elongate as scandal name. It's kinda perfect. 🤣 https://twitter.com/... @karacarlson2 : now deleted: https://twitter.com/... Chad Hurley / @chad_hurley : Hey, @elonmusk! Stop horsing around and close this Twitter deal. We all want a happy ending! Molly Jong-Fast / @mollyjongfast : This sounds like a job for sidney powell and her leopard print cardigan https://twitter.com/... Molly Jong-Fast / @mollyjongfast : When you decide just to tweet through it. https://twitter.com/... Stephanie Ruhle / @sruhle : This conduct is reminscient of 16' Trump with a hint of 18' Kanye & a dash of vintage Veruca Salt. https://twitter.com/... Andrea Stroppa / @andst7 : Malicious bots helped Business Insider article and Elongate become viral. I'm doing a thread soon. Be sure to have notifications on. https://twitter.com/... Clara Jeffery / @clarajeffery : If you're keeping track, now Musk is (claiming he'll) starting a litigation department to go after people/publications that say things he doesn't like. Free speech! https://twitter.com/... Elon Musk / @elonmusk : @Chad_Hurley 🤣🤣 Hi Chad, long time no see! Fine, if you touch my wiener, you can have a horse. Parker Molloy / @parkermolloy : Easy to make this challenge when you've got the person involved under an NDA, Mr. Free Speech. https://twitter.com/... Elon Musk / @elonmusk : @Andst7 Interesting, go on ... Christopher Bouzy / @cbouzy : Hours after Elon Musk announced he was purchasing Twitter, we observed a surge of newly created accounts following right-wing accounts here in the United States. We observed a similar surge in Brazil with Jair Bolsonaro and his allies. Today, Elon Musk is visiting Bolsonaro... https://twitter.com/... Gady Epstein / @gadyepstein : We need a word for the period of time on someone's Twitter between when he is informed of an upcoming investigative story about him and publication https://twitter.com/... Imran Khan / @imranzomg : So based on when they would have asked him for comment, this coincides roughly with when he started tweeting about how “They're about to start attacking me for how I vote!!” https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/... Jeff Grubb / @jeffgrubb : “I will now be voting Republican” is one hell of a euphemism for showing someone your genitals. https://twitter.com/... Nicholas Carlson / @nichcarlson : Reporters are asking us to respond to Musk's denial. Our response is: “We stand by our story, which is based on documents and interviews and speaks for itself.” https://twitter.com/... @parikpatelcfa : Elon Musk to rename SpaceX to SpaceXXX @samthielman : “Oh, I exposed myself to you? Describe my penis” https://twitter.com/... Dan Primack / @danprimack : If it's true that SpaceX paid $250k to settle, it's not a “hit piece.” The revelation itself won't impact the Twitter buyout. How Musk handles it publicly from here on out, however, could. Irony is Musk seems to be the one w/ cold feet. So if story hurts deal, it benefits him. Eric Newcomer / @ericnewcomer : Not the first time Musk has been accused of acting with impunity with someone who worked for him. Musk allegedly pushed an employee who had just resigned from Tesla. Reported in 2019 that Musk followed the worker into the parking lot & threatened him https://twitter.com/... Ashley Feinberg / @ashleyfeinberg : if i didn't want people to think there were countless other stories out there like this i probably would have rephrased but that's just me! https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... https://twitter.com/... Mike Masnick / @mmasnick : A story about what you did, and paid to hush up is not an attack. It's journalism. Which is, in fact, free speech. Speaking of free speech, the report says she was made to sign an NDA. Which seems kinda not very free speechy. But, sure, go on. https://twitter.com/... Laura Bassett / @lebassett : Imagine exposing yourself to someone who's clearly not into you, offering to buy them a horse in exchange for sex, them still saying no, and then paying them $250K not to tell anyone. The utter humiliation of that existence. https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... Ken Klippenstein / @kenklippenstein : It's always the people you most suspect Jack Crosbie / @jscros : billionaires using massages as gateways to sex crimes on private jets is an awfully familiar trope at this point https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... Jon Phillips / @jowiph : Everyone is (rightly) talking about Musk showing his dick, but I want to highlight the context that SpaceX flight attendants *WERE PRESSURED TO BECOME LICENSED MASSEUSES FOR ELON MUSK AND OTHER EXECS ON THEIR OWN DIME* https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... Cody Johnston / @drmistercody : & Dogecoin https://twitter.com/... @pixelatedboat : Just as Elon Musk predicted, now that he's a Republican his political enemies are smearing him by making him pay $250,000 four years ago to settle a sexual misconduct claim Clara Jeffery / @clarajeffery : This from a great editor at the Insider re timing of them seeking comment ... https://twitter.com/... and note time stamp https://twitter.com/... @tedfrank : Fwiw, doesn't look very damning to me. A $250,000 payment is a shakedown nuisance settlement. It would have cost Musk more in time and money to litigate the case—and he might not have bothered to pay under current law that precluded the NDA implicit extortion. https://twitter.com/... @parasocialyte : very normal and not suspicious at all to pay someone $250,000 to silence them from coming forward with “utterly untrue” accusations https://twitter.com/... @goadgatsby : Paying a flight attendant a quarter of a million dollars on severance because it's all untrue https://twitter.com/... Chad Hurley / @chad_hurley : The emperor has no clothes... with a boner and he'll give you a horse! Magnificent @elonmusk! Michael Harriot / @michaelharriot : All they have is allegations, emails & testimony corroborating the allegations, records of a financial settlement & a tacit admission to the settlement by Musk & Space X. But according to MuskTwitter, this is clearly a political hit job. I'm just hoping they call it “Elongate” https://twitter.com/... Seth Abramson / @sethabramson : Who is “they”? And @ElonMusk, how is a major-media report you can either confirm or deny—and have thus far refused to do either—an “attack”? You have a feed with millions of readers: if you want to call this SpaceX employee a liar, *do it*. Or are you afraid she'll sue if you do? https://twitter.com/... Ashton Pittman / @ashtonpittman : Insider reached out to Musk at 9 am EST yesterday. His tweet about incoming “political attacks” was a little over two hours later at 12:22 pm EST. https://twitter.com/... @internethippo : his only argument for this whole soap opera is that the timing of the sexual harassment allegations is suspicious but it's not clear why. his enemies want to derail his twitter deal, which he himself is presently trying to weasel out of? https://twitter.com/... David Frum / @davidfrum : The only mega-rich and mega-famous person who is not sunk in bottomless self-pity victimhood is Queen Elizabeth II. We will so miss her when she's gone - after that, it's going to be 100% “poor me” from all the people on this earth with the least to complain about https://twitter.com/... Tim O'Brien / @timobrien : Sounding very Trumpy. https://twitter.com/... @joemcken : @sarahjeong @Popehat “On the site where people post their thoughts & opinions, he doesn't follow any women; but on the site where people post photos of themselves looking cute & sexy, he follows mostly women” is ... not the defense against claims of sexism these PR professionals apparently think it is https://twitter.com/... Andi Zeisler / @andizeisler : My “If I were going to sexually harass ONE person, wouldn't I probably also sexually harass A LOT of people?” t-shirt is raising a lot of questions already answered by the t-shirt https://twitter.com/... Heidi N. Moore / @moorehn : Instagram follows are always the giveaway https://twitter.com/... John Iadarola / @johniadarola : If I had gotten wind that this was finally going public, I probably would have rushed to publicly identify with the party that literally never believes women, too https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... via @businessinsider Shauna / @goldengateblond : tldr a dude known for bullying and misogyny was exactly as advertised https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... Will Oremus / @willoremus : OK obviously I'm late to this but how wild is it that Insider contacted Elon for comment yesterday morning, and by yesterday afternoon he was publicly announcing that he's become a Republican and to expect politically motivated “dirty tricks” from the left in retribution? Will Oremus / @willoremus : Musk's initial public response to the story is not a denial https://twitter.com/... Kim Masters / @kimmasters : So much for being an officer of any public company. And I would think there's a good chance more will come forward. https://twitter.com/... Sarah Jeong / @sarahjeong : and you fucking bet it was all Instagram models plus his ex-wife 😭😭😭😭 😭😭😭😭 Sarah Jeong / @sarahjeong : I once did a fun cute little blog about how elon musk follows zero women on Twitter (not even his own mother). I asked SpaceX and Tesla for comment because duh and they (the PR professionals!!!) came back to me with “but he follows more women than men on Instagram.” https://twitter.com/... Mary Branscombe / @marypcbuk : ponying up for frisky business? https://twitter.com/... Dennis Romero / @dennisjromero : I mean, he is a genius. ‘Clairvoyant’ even. https://twitter.com/... Sawyer Hackett / @sawyerhackett : Elon Musk is a passionate believer in free speech, just not for the women he silenced with hush money after exposing himself to them. https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... Eriq Gardner / @eriqgardner : “If I were inclined to engage in sexual harassment, this is unlikely to be the first time in my entire 30-year career that it comes to light.” Um, not the usual lawyer-vetted dry response to a sexual misconduct story. https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... @apollozac : oh wow https://twitter.com/... Ben Adida / @benadida : Nothing against horses but, if you're trying to convince/coerce me to do something, offering me a horse is not going to help. https://twitter.com/... @wagatwe : Ah, that's why he has been flailing about wokes and warning about being “under attack” https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... Nicole Einbinder / @nicoleeinbinder : Musk is currently in a bid to purchase Twitter, due to his professed beliefs about free speech. He recently wrote on Twitter that “sunlight is the best disinfectant.” Yet, SpaceX paid $250,000 for the flight attendant's silence. https://twitter.com/... Cathy Gellis / @cathygellis : So the allegations are true then. https://twitter.com/... @popehat : “Okay. How about $54.20 a share AND a sweet horse?” “Dude, just walk away.” @mavenofmayhem : Yesterday, Musk tweeted “Political attacks on me will escalate dramatically in coming months.” Just a hunch, but this might have something to do with it. https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... Marlow Stern / @marlownyc : looks like this is the story elon musk was trying to get ahead of, and it's a damning one https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... Linette Lopez / @lopezlinette : SpaceX had to pay a flight attendant $250K bc @elonmusk thinks that “if you're a star they let you do it,” I guess. https://www.businessinsider.com/ ... See also Mediagazer
Context & Ripple Effects
The report put a SpaceX settlement and Musk's denial into public view while coverage was assessing possible implications for his Twitter deal. Later reporting described blurred boundaries involving female SpaceX employees, extending the issue from a single allegation to questions about workplace conduct.
The related coverage also records SpaceX's firing of employees who circulated an open letter criticizing Musk's behavior. Together, the reports make the company's handling of internal dissent part of the story's significance.
First-order effects
- SpaceX is tied to a documented $250,000 settlement over the flight attendant's claim, while Musk publicly denies the allegation.
- The disclosure makes Musk's personal conduct an immediate reputational and governance issue for SpaceX as well as for his separate Twitter transaction.
Second-order effects
- The later employee letter and subsequent firings show that criticism of Musk's conduct can become an employment-management issue inside SpaceX, not just an external public-relations dispute.
- Reporting on additional alleged boundary violations increases pressure on SpaceX to address whether the settlement reflected an isolated complaint or a broader workplace concern.
Third-order effects
- If this pattern persists, founder conduct at privately held companies will be treated more directly as a workplace-governance issue, with employee speech and company responses becoming part of the accountability record.
The trend: Scrutiny of powerful founders is increasingly reaching beyond public reputation to encompass workplace culture, internal dissent, and corporate governance.