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Elon Musk Faces Assassination Threat · Elon Musk Podcast

• 0:01
  Hey everybody. Welcome back to the Elon Musk
• 0:04
  Podcast. This is a show where we discuss
• 0:07
  the critical crossroads that shape SpaceX, Tesla X, The
• 0:11
  Boring Company, and Neurolink. I'm your host, Will Walden.
• 0:21
  In the wake of the shocking assassination of United
• 0:24
  Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson, an apparent threat has now been
• 0:28
  made against Elon Musk. Now, the threat emerged over the
• 0:33
  weekend on Blue Sky, a social media platform billed as an
• 0:36
  alternative to Musk's own X platform.
• 0:39
  A user with the handle smiling, nodding dot Blue Sky dot Social
• 0:44
  posted an image that appeared to depict Musk standing on a
• 0:48
  sidewalk while an unseen assailant aims at Gunahim.
• 0:52
  The post was accompanied by the caption #manifesting now.
• 0:58
  Musk, who serves as the CEO of both Tesla and SpaceX in
• 1:01
  addition to owning X, has faced heightened security concerns in
• 1:04
  recent years as his prominence has grown.
• 1:06
  According to a New York Times report from September, Musk
• 1:10
  travels with a security detail of up to 20 professionals, some
• 1:13
  of whom are armed and dangerous and accompanied by medical
• 1:17
  personnel. At the same time, however, the
• 1:20
  latest threat shows that the increased vulnerability of top
• 1:24
  corporate executives exists, even those with substantial
• 1:27
  security resources at their disposal.
• 1:29
  The killing of Thompson, who was shot dead on December 4th as he
• 1:32
  arrived at a company event in New York City, has prompted a
• 1:36
  broader reexamination of executive protection measures
• 1:39
  across multiple industries, Charlie Carroll, who's the CEO
• 1:43
  of ASET Aset Corporation, said. As you can imagine, people are
• 1:47
  scrambling, Companies are scrambling, which ASET provides
• 1:52
  security services for individuals, corporations, and
• 1:54
  also for government agencies. Now Glenn Kusira, who's the
• 1:58
  president of Allies Universal Enhanced Protection Services,
• 2:01
  reported that his firm has been inundated with calls from
• 2:05
  executives in the 24 hours after Thompson's shooting.
• 2:09
  Now allies Universal provide security to about 80% of all
• 2:13
  Fortune 500 companies. The apparent threat against Musk
• 2:18
  adds a troubling new dimension to the evolving security
• 2:20
  landscape for high profile business leaders.
• 2:23
  Musk's rise to global prominence, coupled with his
• 2:25
  house spoken political views and high profile feuds have made him
• 2:29
  an increasingly visible target. And Musk's role in the upcoming
• 2:34
  Trump administration has further heightened his profile.
• 2:37
  The world's richest man has been tapped, along with entrepreneur
• 2:40
  Vivek Ramaswamy, to lead president-elect Donald Trump's
• 2:44
  Department of Government Efficiency and Non Governmental
• 2:47
  Task Force assigned to find ways to fire federal workers, cut
• 2:51
  programs and slash federal regulations.
• 2:54
  Now, disappointment, combined with Musk's well documented
• 2:56
  clashes with government regulators and critics has
• 2:59
  thrust him into the political spotlight in a way that could
• 3:03
  make him a more attractive target for those harboring
• 3:05
  grievances. Now the Blue Sky post
• 3:08
  encouraging an attack on Musk was apparently removed by the
• 3:11
  platform's moderators, though the user behind the account
• 3:14
  claimed the post was taken down because a bunch of cry babies
• 3:18
  complained. Now neither Musk nor the user
• 3:20
  has responded for our request of comment.
• 3:23
  Elon Musk and other billionaire CE OS have full time security
• 3:26
  details, but the top executives and many smaller companies
• 3:30
  don't. That can leave them vulnerable.
• 3:32
  And the shooting of Thompson, who was just walking alone on a
• 3:35
  New York City sidewalk when a masked gunman ambushed and
• 3:38
  killed him, has sent shock waves through the business world.
• 3:41
  Surveillance footage show the assailant approaching Thompson
• 3:43
  from behind and firing multiple shots before fleeing the scene.
• 3:46
  They caught the guy. But back on Monday, the killer
• 3:49
  was at large, and police hadn't determined the motive for the
• 3:53
  shooter's identity. He was out there.
• 3:55
  The brazen nature of the attack, carried out in broad daylight in
• 3:58
  a crowded urban setting, highlights the concerns about
• 4:02
  the safety of corporate leaders. Right now, people are really
• 4:05
  worried about this. They're worried that it could
• 4:07
  happen to them, but looking at their security plans and trying
• 4:10
  to figure out what more they can do to protect themselves and
• 4:13
  their employees. Now For Elon Musk, the latest
• 4:16
  threat is just the latest in a string of security challenges he
• 4:20
  has faced as his influence in public profile have grown.
• 4:24
  The New York Times report noted that Musk's security apparatus
• 4:27
  has expanded significantly in recent years, with a billionaire
• 4:30
  often traveling with armed guards, numerous armed guards,
• 4:35
  medical personnel, personal assistants and family at times.
• 4:40
  Now this level of protection and no more autonomy for Elon shows
• 4:46
  there's unique risks faced by such a high profile person.
• 4:50
  He's outspoken. His persona is controversial.
• 4:53
  His business decisions are also controversial, Has made him a
• 4:56
  target for criticism, harassment and even violence.
• 4:59
  From his battles with government regulators to his high profile
• 5:02
  feuds with other tech leaders, Musk has cultivated a combative
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  public image that has drawn the ire of both supporters and
• 5:10
  detractors. I want to take a step back for a
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  second and let you all remember. Remember when Elon was just this
• 5:18
  tech guy with these broad ambitions to send people to Mars
• 5:22
  to make electric cars, to do all the fun things.
• 5:26
  And now he's a competitive public figure that's working
• 5:31
  with the government to shut down a lot of people's businesses and
• 5:35
  a lot of people's jobs. So of course people are going to
• 5:38
  be upset. And you know, this public
• 5:41
  outrage against Elon has been culminating for years.
• 5:45
  And the apparent threat against Musk on Blue Sky is just the
• 5:48
  latest in a series of incidents that shows that he needs
• 5:52
  heightened security measures right now.
• 5:54
  All corporate executives are looking into this.
• 5:57
  So back in 2022, Musk was the target of a foiled kidnapping
• 6:01
  plot which a group of individuals was arrested for
• 6:04
  allegedly planning to abduct him.
• 6:07
  Such incidents have prompted Musk and other high profile
• 6:10
  business leaders to invest heavily in their own personal
• 6:13
  security, with many relying on teams of trained pros to protect
• 6:17
  them both at work and at home and their personal lives.
• 6:19
  When they go out shopping or whatever, they have armed guards
• 6:22
  with them. However, the killing of Thompson
• 6:24
  has highlighted the vulnerabilities that even the
• 6:26
  most well protected executives may face.
• 6:30
  Now, it remains to be seen whether SpaceX or any other
• 6:32
  commercial launch companies are ready for such a major
• 6:36
  commitment for this. Can they sustain the security
• 6:42
  detail of Elon Musk over at X Is?
• 6:46
  Are they going to be around all the time?
• 6:48
  Can he walk in public anymore? We're not 100% sure.
• 6:52
  And as this investigation of Thompson's killing continues and
• 6:56
  the threat against Musk remains under scrutiny, and it's a real
• 7:00
  thing, the business community is grappling with the unsettling
• 7:04
  reality that even the most powerful and well connected
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  executives are not immune to the risks of violence.
• 7:11
  Now. The implications of this new
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  security landscape extend far beyond the personal safety of
• 7:17
  individual leaders, though, raising broader questions about
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  the stability and resilience of the corporate world when they
• 7:24
  face such drastic and incredibly increasing threats.
• 7:35
  Hey, thank you so much for listening today.
• 7:37
  I really do appreciate your support.
• 7:39
  If you could take a second and hit the subscribe or the follow
• 7:42
  button on whatever podcast platform that you're listening
• 7:44
  on right now, I greatly appreciate it.
• 7:47
  It helps out the show tremendously and you'll never
• 7:49
  miss an episode. And each episode is about 10
• 7:52
  minutes or less to get you caught up quickly.
• 7:55
  And please, if you want to support the show even more, go
• 7:58
  to patreon.com/stagezero and please take care of yourselves
• 8:04
  and each other and I'll see you tomorrow.