Neuralink executive Shivon Zilis announced her breakup with Elon Musk on X. The announcement followed a post from the account Big Tech Alert noting that Musk was no longer following Zilis on the platform.

Zilis quote-tweeted the Big Tech Alert post to make the separation public. The account had its post sponsored by Kalshi.

"It’s hard to go from in love to let go in a week with no warning, but that’s just how it is sometimes," Zilis said. She shared a screenshot of a text exchange with Musk from a week earlier in which she wrote, "It was really wonderful to see you for breakfast. Love you very much 💕."

"Given the tumultuous nature of his early life, his often tortured soul, and how hard he fights for humanity I wanted him to feel the deepest and most stable form of love this world can provide," Zilis said. "I feel happy that I got to show Elon how it feels to be deeply understood, nurtured, and peacefully loved with stability and gentleness."

"A needed break from the battlefield where he could recharge his heart and soul before heading back out," She said. "I loved being that counterbalancing place of safety, sense of calm and love — and delighted in bringing a smile back to his face when he was down. I will miss him dearly."

"I’ve loved him more than life itself and he’s taught me 100 lifetimes of knowledge and made my cup overflow with life meaning, so there is a lot of loss, but luckily we created four beautiful little loves of my life," She said. "My heart is full knowing I got to do that, and I hope it leaves a lasting, good effect."

"I am so beyond grateful for our children, and they make every single day the best day of my life!" She said. "I do hope and pray he and I can be great friends and co-parents," she said. "I’m hurting but care deeply about E and will always be cheering for his happiness. Godspeed, Elon. The world is lucky to have you."

Zilis and Musk have four children together. They have twins named Strider and Azure, born in November 2021. A daughter named Arcadia was born in early 2024, and a son named Seldon Lycurgus was born in February 2025.

She claimed to work 80-to-100-hour weeks for Musk "to go find bottlenecks and solve them" during the trial. However, she denied under oath that she was Musk's chief of staff during a trial earlier this year. Musk testified that Zilis was his chief of staff. Musk lived with Zilis at the time of the testimony in the Musk v. Altman trial.

She testified that Musk offered to donate his sperm so they could have children through in vitro fertilization in 2020. Zilis was a member of OpenAI’s board when she gave birth to twins.

Musk has 14 known children. Jared Birchall orchestrates privacy deals for Musk with the mothers of his children.

Musk has previously faced legal action from Ashley St. Clair, one of his ex-partners, who rejected a $40 million non-disclosure agreement and is now suing him over the creation of deepfake nudes using his chatbot Grok. Grimes sued Musk to establish a parental relationship. Grimes posted and deleted a tweet in 2023 saying "Tell Shivon to unblock me and tell Elon to let me see my son or plz respond to my lawyer" to Walter Isaacson.

Justine Musk said she "learned the term ‘gaslighting’ through" her relationship with Musk. She said Musk "was constantly remarking on the ways he found me lacking." Musk and Justine Musk share five children: twins Griffin and Vivian, aged 22; triplets Kai, Saxon and Damian, aged 20; and their late son Nevada Alexander, who died at 10 weeks old in 2002.

Zilis recently posted about a memoir written by Maye Musk. "During tough moments I think about the resilience she’s shown and realize she’s encountered 100x the difficultly I’ve faced and she made it through with grace! It gives me resolve," She said.

"I would highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a beacon of resilience to draw inspiration from." Zilis is 40 years old. Musk is 55 years old.

Timeline

In November 2021, Shivon Zilis and Elon Musk had twins named Strider and Azure.

In 2023, Grimes posted and deleted a tweet saying "Tell Shivon to unblock me and tell Elon to let me see my son or plz respond to my lawyer" to Walter Isaacson. In early 2024, Zilis and Musk had a daughter named Arcadia. In February 2025, they had a son named Seldon Lycurgus.

What's New

Further details indicate that Zilis and Musk have twins named Strider and Azure, born in November 2021, and a daughter named Arcadia, born in early 2024. Zilis was a member of OpenAI's nonprofit board from 2020 until 2023, during which time she was involved in high-level discussions about the company's strategic direction and its relationship with Musk. In 2022, Zilis testified under oath during Elon Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI, stating that she did not share any confidential information with Musk that she was not authorized to disclose.

Musk has a history of legal disputes involving his relationships with women who have children with him, including a 2022 trial in which he sued Sam Altman over donations to OpenAI, which involved Zilis as a key witness. Zilis is 40 years old.

Why It Matters

The breakup shows the intersection of personal relationships and professional obligations within Musk's business empire. Zilis served in leadership roles across Tesla, Neuralink, and OpenAI while raising four children with Musk. Her testimony in the Musk v. Altman trial revealed the extent of her involvement in Musk's operations and the legal complexities surrounding their partnership.

Musk's history of legal disputes with partners, including suits from Grimes and Ashley St. Clair, establishes a pattern of separations. The involvement of figures like Jared Birchall in orchestrating privacy deals suggests a structured approach to managing these relationships. Zilis's public announcement and emphasis on co-parenting stability offer a different narrative from previous disputes, though the long-term implications for their professional and personal lives remain to be seen.