Washington, Oct 10 (IANS) Ashley St. Clair, the mother of one of billionaire Elon Musk’s children, has alleged that she was offered a financial arrangement worth nearly $40 million in exchange for remaining silent about their relationship, a claim Musk has publicly denied.
In an interview published by The New York Times on Friday, St. Clair, a former conservative social media influencer, said she rejected a proposed nondisclosure agreement because it would have prevented her from discussing Musk and their relationship indefinitely.
The proposed arrangement included a $15 million lump-sum payment and $100,000 a month for 21 years, according to St. Clair. Together, those amounts would total $40.2 million.
Musk disputed the allegation after an earlier report about the proposed agreement.
“She was never offered that and has a history of making false claims,” Musk wrote on X, according to the newspaper.
St. Clair, who gave birth to a child in 2024, said the proposed confidentiality agreement was sent to her two months after childbirth by Jared Birchall, Musk’s financial manager.
She alleged that the document was transmitted through Signal, an encrypted messaging application, and would have restricted her ability to discuss the relationship even with members of her family.
According to St. Clair, the restrictions would also have extended to her heirs.
She said she rejected the agreement because she considered the proposed conditions unacceptable, particularly where they concerned her children.
The newspaper reported that Musk did not respond to its requests for comment on the interview.
St. Clair’s account comes as she appears in “Musk,” a nearly four-hour documentary directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Alex Gibney examining the technology entrepreneur’s personal life, business interests and public influence.
The former influencer told the newspaper that her decision to participate in the documentary was partly motivated by concerns about the influence of wealth and power.
She said she had become increasingly uncomfortable with the expectation that people should trust powerful individuals simply because of their financial success.
St. Clair described meeting Musk in 2023 after he contacted her through Twitter, now known as X, where she had developed a following by promoting conservative political positions.
At the time, she was working for the conservative satirical publication The Babylon Bee and raising a child from an earlier relationship.
She said the two began communicating regularly and subsequently developed a personal relationship.
During a trip to St. Barts in January 2024, Musk raised the possibility of having a child together, according to her account.
St. Clair said she initially viewed the relationship positively but became concerned after learning more about Musk’s custody dispute with musician Grimes, with whom he shares three children.
She also described becoming increasingly disillusioned with the political movement surrounding President Donald Trump, which she had previously supported.
In the interview, St. Clair acknowledged having promoted political positions and rhetoric that she now regrets, including commentary concerning race, gender and transgender people.
She said her changing views developed gradually and were not solely the result of her personal dispute with Musk.
Musk has criticised Gibney’s documentary, accusing the filmmaker of assembling accounts from people with grievances against him or little personal knowledge of him.
The allegations surrounding the proposed financial agreement remain disputed, and the interview does not establish that Musk personally authorised the terms described by St. Clair.
Musk is the chief executive of Tesla and SpaceX and the owner of X. His business interests span electric vehicles, space exploration, artificial intelligence and digital communications, giving him a prominent role in American technology and public affairs.
–IANS
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