Clip of Elon Musk leaving his son behind at a rally is misleading
While the video is authentic, the clipped version is misleading
CLAIM
Elon Musk walked off stage during a pre-inauguration victory rally last month, leaving his son X Æ A-Xii behind.
BACKGROUND
A video widely shared online appeared to show Elon Musk leaving his 4-year-old son, known as X, behind while walking down a set of stairs during a victory rally with Donald Trump in January 2025.
The clip was widely shared across various social media platforms drawing criticism from many.
“The so-called genius forgot his human shield son. What a loving father,” one user posted alongside the video which had gained 26.1 million views at the time of publishing.
“Elon Musk walks off and leaves his 4 year old son wandering off stage by himself. This clip legitimately disturbs—and saddens—me,” another wrote.
The same clip was shared multiple times on Facebook and Bluesky and TikTok drawing similar scorn from social media users.
“Treats the country like he treats his kid. Once he’s done using him, he discards him and moves on caring nothing for his safety,” one said.
“That is what happens when you use your kids as props…” another wrote.
“Abandons a 5 month old. Won’t pay child support for another 3. And leaves the shield behind at a major event… yikes,” another posted.
METHOD
At first glance, the clip appears to have been filmed by an audience member at a rally and does show Musk leaving his son behind. The posts containing the clip do not reference when or where it was filmed.
In the background, Donald Trump can be heard saying: “Cause we don’t have too many, but that one is a good one. Now I watched his rocket come down about three months ago…”
A Google search for that sentence leads to an ABC News clip in which Trump and Musk appear on stage together. ABC News confirms that the event was the “Make America Great Again Victory Rally” on the eve of Trump’s inauguration in Washington, D.C.
Numerous livestreams of the inauguration can be found on YouTube, including one from local news outlet WUSA9 and another from LiveNOW from Fox.
The videos show that Musk and his son are wearing the same clothes and the Trump audio matches the clip.
The size of the crowd suggests that other angles of the incident may exist, and a search confirms that there are indeed other videos capturing the event from different perspectives.
One video, filmed from a slightly closer position near centre stage, reveals the same incident, showing Musk walking away from his son. However, this version shows Musk stopping and turning around as he reaches the exit, before walking back toward the 4-year-old and raising his arms in triumph. Musk then walks back toward the exit, with his son running to keep up.
“Here’s the full video of Elon Musk taking care of his kid. The liar who posted and earlier clip claiming that Elon left his son behind you’ve been exposed,” the caption to the video read.
RATING
While the video is authentic, the clipped version is misleading. A longer version, from a different angle, shows the while Musk did walk ahead of his son, leaving him to navigate the steps alone, he quickly turned back towards his son.
SOURCES
X (formerly Twitter). (2025). Available at: The so-called genius forgot his human shield son. [Accessed 25 Feb. 2025].
X (formerly Twitter). (2025). Available at: Elon Musk walks off and leaves his 4 year old son wandering off stage by himself. [Accessed 25 Feb. 2025].
X (formerly Twitter). (2025). Available at: Here’s the full video of Elon Musk taking care of his kid. [Accessed 25 Feb. 2025].
Facebook (2025). Available at: Elon Musk abandoned his 4-year-old son [Accessed 25 Feb. 2025].
Instagram (2025). Available at: Elon Musk Shamed for Forgetting 4-Year-Old Son.[Accessed 25 Feb. 2025].
TikTok (2025). Available at: How this man is allowed to procreate is beyond me. Accessed 25 Feb. 2025]
X (formerly Twitter). (2025). Available at: Treats the country like he treats his kid. [Accessed 25 Feb. 2025].
X (formerly Twitter). (2025). Available at: That is what happens when you use your kids as props. [Accessed 25 Feb. 2025].
X (formerly Twitter). (2025). Available at: Abandons a 5 month old [Accessed 25 Feb. 2025].
Facebook (2025). Available at: ABC News [Accessed 25 Feb. 2025].
YouTube (2025). Available at: LiveNOW from Fox. [Accessed 25 Feb. 2025].
YouTube (2025). Available at: WUSA9 [Accessed 25 Feb. 2025].