WASHINGTON: Billionaire Elon Musk sparked fevered speculation when he turned up with a black eye for his Oval Office farewell with US President Donald Trump on Friday.
But the South African-born tech magnate said he had a simple explanation: his son had punched him in the face.
“I was just horsing around with lil’ X, and I said, ‘go ahead punch me in the face,‘” 53-year-old Musk told reporters when asked how he got the shiner.
“And he did. Turns out even a five-year-old punching you in the face actually is…” he added, before tailing off.
“I didn’t really feel much at the time but I guess it bruises up.”
Trump hosted the press conference with Musk to mark the Tesla boss’s last day at the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Musk had expressed increasing disillusionment with the job but said he would remain a “friend and advisor.”
Musk’s appearance was overshadowed by allegations in the New York Times that he had engaged in heavy drug use while on the campaign trail for Trump in 2024.
Trump said he “didn’t notice” the purple bruise next to Musk’s right eye, but added: “X could do it, if you knew X.”
Musk’s son X — full name X Æ A-Xii — made frequent appearances in the White House when his father was running DOGE’s cost-cutting rampage through the federal government.
He even sat on Musk’s shoulders during the SpaceX magnate’s first Oval appearance back in February, and was seen picking his nose next to Trump’s “Resolute” Desk.
Musk took the chance to joke at French President Emmanuel Macron’s expense when it came to his black eye.
After Trump was asked for his reaction to a video of Macron’s wife apparently shoving the French leader’s face, Musk laughed and said: “I’ve got a little shiner here.”
Musk, wearing a DOGE baseball cap and a T-shirt saying “The Dogefather,“ joked about it again when he was asked how he got the injury.
“I wasn’t anywhere near France,“ he said.
