Shivon Zilis Announces Breakup With Elon Musk on X

Shivon Zilis, an executive at Elon Musk's Neuralink and the mother of four of his children, announced that she and Musk have ended their relationship, using a quote-tweet on the social media platform X.

Zilis's announcement came in response to a post from the account “Big Tech Alert,” which tracks when notable figures follow or unfollow one another online. Her reply confirmed that the relationship had ended, in a disclosure method reminiscent of the way breakups were sometimes signaled on early social networks like MySpace, where a change in relationship status or friend connections could serve as public confirmation of a split.

Musk and Zilis have not publicly detailed the circumstances surrounding the end of their relationship. The two share four children, and their relationship had previously drawn public attention given Musk's prominence as the head of multiple companies, including Tesla, SpaceX, and Neuralink, where Zilis holds an executive role.

Neither Musk nor Zilis has issued a formal statement beyond the social media exchange. It remains unclear whether the end of the relationship will affect Zilis's professional role at Neuralink.

The announcement quickly drew attention online, in part because of the unconventional way it was disclosed — through a reply to an account that monitors social media activity rather than a direct statement from either party.