co-president
Senior Advisor to the President for Government Efficiency (2025–2025)
| Born | 1971-06-28 · Pretoria |
|---|---|
| Citizenship | South Africa (since 1971), Canada (since 1971), United States (since 2002) |
| Party | Independent |
| Offices |
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| Education | University of Pennsylvania (BA, BS) |
| Occupation | CEO and product architect of Tesla, Founder, CEO, and chief engineer of SpaceX, Founder and CEO of SpaceXAI, Founder and CTO of X Corp., Co-founder of Neuralink, The Boring Company, OpenAI, Zip2, X.com and PayPal, President of the Musk Foundation |
| Awards | Full list |
What this person said on the record, as reported, newest first.
Elon Musk accused Ukraine’s military of using Starlink for offensive drone strikes in breach of its terms, a claim Ukrainian officials denied, saying commercial Starlink could not technically be used for such missions. The dispute follows Ukrainian accusations that SpaceX restrictions disrupted military drone operations. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Starlink and Starshield services had been fully restored.
TThe Verge
Elon Musk said the risk of Russia destroying Starlink satellites is one of the main reasons the service should remain civilian and not support clearly offensive strikes. In mid-October, restrictions affected Ukraine’s military Starshield terminals, with connections dropping when drones exceeded 160 kilometers per hour. Ukraine’s armed forces denied using Starlink for offensive drone attacks, saying this was technically impossible because the service does not operate over Russian territory.
MMeduza
Elon Musk said Ukraine violated Starlink’s terms of service by using the commercial service for lethal offensive drone strikes. His remarks followed a SpaceX restriction on using the satellite technology aboard drones flying above certain speeds. A current and a former Ukrainian official rejected his claim, saying earlier limits already prevented the military from using Starlink as he described. Ukrainian officials have also accused Musk of restricting access to Starshield, the military version available to Ukraine through a US government deal.
A
Ars Technica
After Kyiv said Starlink access had been restored, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk accused Ukraine’s armed forces of breaking the service’s terms by using it for offensive drone strikes to kill people. President Volodymyr Zelensky’s adviser Serhiy Beskrestnov disputed the claim and referred to speed restrictions and the service’s unavailability.
C
CNN
Elon Musk accused Ukraine’s military of breaching Starlink’s terms of service, saying it used the satellite system for offensive strikes. Ukrainian officials denied the allegation and said restrictions were imposed without warning. Starlink and Starshield went offline earlier this month, leaving Ukraine vulnerable to Russian drone strikes.
G
Global News
Zelensky said Starlink and its militarized Starshield service had returned to full speed. Musk accused Ukraine’s military of violating Starlink’s terms of service and said a loophole had been closed; Ukrainian figures denied the claim. Separately, local authorities said Russian attacks killed eight and injured 51 across Ukraine over the past day, including a drone strike on a residential building in Vinnytsia.
TThe Kyiv Independent
Elon Musk said SpaceX restricted use of its Starlink satellite system in Ukraine last week, after the curbs disrupted Ukrainian military operations.
N
NBC News
Elon Musk said SpaceX had restricted Ukraine’s Starlink service, after Ukrainian officials reported connectivity had stabilized. He accused Ukraine of breaching the terms by using the civilian network for military activity, while denying responsibility for a simultaneous issue with the US-run Starshield system. Ukraine’s presidential adviser called Musk’s claim “very strange.”
B
BBC News
Elon Musk said Saturday that SpaceX had throttled Starlink satellite internet in Ukraine, disrupting a service the country relies on to defend itself against Russia.
CCBC News
The program examines the intersection of politics and global business. Evelyn Farkas, executive director of the McCain Institute and a former deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia, says the slowdown in Starlink speeds was a moral problem for the US.
B
Bloomberg Television
Reports that mention this person, by story.
Musk said the US government controls Starshield and that the US military ultimately decides speed or usage limits. Ukraine said Starlink access had improved, but speed restrictions were still disrupting battlefield missions; some weapons lost connectivity when travelling faster than 100mph.
BBBC NewsOriginal★★★★☆2026-10-14 20:55
SpaceX restored service for Ukrainian Starlink terminals moving at high speeds, former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said. Elon Musk said Starshield is owned and controlled by the U.S. government, with speed and usage limits set by the U.S. military and ultimately the president. Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said the 161-kilometer-per-hour limit remains, though connection quality has improved.
MMeduzaOriginal★★★★☆2026-10-14 20:34
Elon Musk said Wednesday that the US government made any decisions to restrict Ukraine’s use of Starshield. Ukrainian officials and US lawmakers had raised concerns about interrupted satellite communications and the consequences for Kyiv’s defence against Moscow.
FFrance 24Original★★★☆☆2026-10-14 20:19
SpaceX chief Elon Musk said Starlink is restricted to civilian or defensive use and cannot be used for offensive military action, which he called inappropriate for a commercial company. Ukrainian officials had said SpaceX limited the speed of terminals used by the military, disrupting some operations.
T
TASSOriginal★★★☆☆2026-10-14 20:13
Analysts and observers say reported limits on Ukraine’s use of Starlink have exposed Kyiv’s dependence on the US satellite internet system for both offensive and defensive operations against Russia’s invasion. University of Bath professor David Galbreath said giving a private company such influence over combat operations was bound to be challenging. He said throttling Starlink was no surprise after SpaceX chief Elon Musk called Ukrainian drone targeting of Russian data services “a step too far.”
FFrance 24Original★★★☆☆2026-10-14 19:49
Analysts and observers say reported restrictions on Ukraine’s use of the US satellite internet system Starlink have highlighted Kyiv’s reliance on the technology for both offensive and defensive operations against Russia’s invasion. David Galbreath, a war and technology professor at the University of Bath, told France 24 that Starlink’s significant impact on combat operations had long been foreseeable.
FFrance 24 EnglishOriginal★★★☆☆2026-10-14 19:49
Ukrainian officials say SpaceX restricted Starlink services, disrupting military operations and limiting Ukraine’s ability to counter Russian drones. The accusation followed a second consecutive night of Russian ballistic missile attacks on Kyiv, which killed at least nine people and damaged electricity and heating infrastructure. Poland’s foreign minister also criticized Musk over the alleged slowdown.
AAl JazeeraOriginal★★★★☆2026-10-14 17:02
Poland’s foreign minister took Musk to task as Ukrainian military units described overnight curbs on SpaceX’s Starlink internet service in Ukraine.
BBloomberg NewsOriginal★★★☆☆2026-10-14 14:30
Ukraine says its military has lost full access to SpaceX’s Starlink system after the company imposed speed limits on terminals in motion. A presidential adviser said the restrictions disrupted some missions, while officials said outages complicated drone control, logistics and operations as Russian attacks continued.
DDWOriginal★★★★☆2026-10-14 11:07
Kirill Dmitriev, a special representative of the Russian president and CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, called Elon Musk’s criticism of Vladimir Zelensky a “tipping point.” Musk had earlier said Zelensky had gone too far.
TTASSOriginal★★★☆☆2026-10-11 01:01