Washington [US], June 1: The news that billionaire Elon Musk used drugs published in The New York Times attracted much attention after he appeared with a bruise on his eye when he left the US Government Efficiency Board.
AFP news agency on June 1 quoted billionaire Elon Musk denying information that he used ketamine and other drugs regularly during the 2024 election campaign.
Earlier on May 30, The New York Times reported that the billionaire advisor to US President Donald Trump had used so much ketamine that he had bladder problems.
The article said he also used ecstasy and magic mushrooms, and carried a box of the pills with him when he traveled last year. It is also unclear whether Musk continued to use drugs while he was head of the Office of Government Efficiency (DOGE) after Trump took office in January, the article said.
"To be clear, I do not use drugs! The New York Times is blatantly lying," Musk wrote on social network X on May 31.
"I tried ketamine on prescription a few years ago and talked about it on X social media, so this isn't news. It helped me through some dark times mentally, but I haven't used it since," he added.
Musk initially dodged questions about his drug use when he appeared at DOGE's farewell ceremony with President Trump at the White House on May 30. During the ceremony, Musk - CEO of Tesla and SpaceX - appeared with a visible bruise around his eye as he officially ended his role as the leader of DOGE's efforts to cut the budget and streamline the federal government.
News of the bruises drew widespread attention because they came on the heels of a New York Times report alleging Musk had used drugs, which also highlighted past erratic behavior, such as Musk's enthusiastically giving a Nazi salute last year.
Musk said he was playing with his young son, X, when he told him to punch him in the face. "And he did. Turns out a five-year-old punching you in the face is." he said, trailing off.
Later on May 31, when a reporter asked if he knew about Musk's "regular drug use," President Trump replied, "I don't know." "I think Elon (Musk) is a great guy," Trump added.
Billionaire Musk is currently the richest person in the world with a fortune of 422.7 billion USD, far behind 2nd place billionaire Mark Zuckerberg with 223.6 billion USD and 3rd place billionaire Jeff Bezos with 220.3 billion USD, according to Forbes magazine on June 1.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper