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, Shivon Zilis, 40, posted on X following her split from billionaire Elon Musk. The director of operations and special projects at Neuralink shared that the relationship ended abruptly, noting she would miss the father of four of her children dearly while hoping to remain friends and co-parents.
The public disclosure follows visible shifts on the social media platform X, where Zilis noted that Musk had unfollowed her. In a series of shared messages, Musk had expressed affection for Zilis as recently as last week, stating he would have invited her to a state dinner between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping had he realized the event included significant others. Zilis described her role as a counterbalancing force, providing stability and gentleness to the billionaire.
According to The Telegraph, Zilis and Musk, 55, have four children conceived via in-vitro fertilisation over the past five years. Their relationship history includes Zilis’s service on the board of OpenAI, where she frequently acted as a go-between during legal tensions between Musk and the company. She previously testified that their personal connection originated from a one-off encounter at a corporate event in 2015.
Reports from The Times of India highlight that Musk had previously referenced Zilis’s background in public, including her Indian ancestry, while addressing questions about his personal life. Zilis concluded her announcement by wishing Musk well, stating that the world is lucky to have him. There are no further details regarding the future of their professional collaborations at Neuralink.