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Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk publicly addressed allegations of financial retaliation against influencer Ashley St. Clair and their alleged son on March 31, 2025. The 53-year-old billionaire denied St. Clair's claims in a direct response on X, formerly Twitter.
"I don't know if the child is mine or not, but am not against finding out. No court order is needed," Musk wrote. "Despite not knowing for sure, I have given Ashley $2.5M and am sending her $500k/year."
The public dispute escalated when St. Clair, 26, was filmed selling her Tesla Model S on March 29. She told the Daily Mail the sale was necessary to compensate for an alleged "60 percent cut that Elon made to our son's child support."
St. Clair immediately countered Musk's statements on X, claiming he "refused" paternity testing before the child's birth. "You weren't sending *me* money, you were sending support for your child that you thought was necessary... until you withdrew most of it to maintain control and punish me for 'disobedience,'" she wrote.
"It's ironic that your last effort in court was to try to gag me while you use a social media channel you literally own to distribute derogatory messages about me and our child to the entire world," St. Clair added.
The conflict became legal in February when St. Clair filed for sole custody through the New York Supreme Court. Her legal team at Bikel Rosenthal & Schanfield LLP provided an exclusive statement to People regarding the case.
"Elon Musk has financially retaliated against his own child and reduced his financial support substantially and unilaterally. He did this after Ashley was forced to bring this matter to court, when he refused to respond to her many private attempts to resolve this matter without publicity," they alleged.
St. Clair's attorneys further claimed Musk filed an emergency application to prevent her from speaking about his actions—a request the judge denied as non-emergency, though it remains pending.
The dispute adds another layer to Musk's complex family situation. The tech entrepreneur reportedly has 14 children with four different women, including the son St. Clair claims they share.
The February 14 announcement by St. Clair about their shared child came as a surprise to many. According to her account, direct communication between the two ceased on February 13, just one day before her public revelation.
