Reports over the weekend that Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk have a history of drug use have worried the leaders of both companies. A former Tesla director was so concerned about Musk's drug use and unpredictable behavior that she chose not to run for re-election to the electric car company's board, according to people familiar with the matter.
Linda Johnson Rice, who served on Tesla's board for two years, confided her concerns about Musk's drug use to board members on more than one occasion. She stepped down in 2019.
Rice also informally asked the board whether it should investigate Musk's drug use — including ketamine, LSD, cocaine and ecstasy — but her concerns were ignored, according to people familiar with the matter.
The report details how executives at Musk's companies have dealt with his drug use and erratic public appearances and statements.
At Tesla, some current directors have sought help from Musk's brother, Kimbal Musk, about his behavior, but they have been careful to avoid using the word "drugs" when expressing their concerns.
The report also said there was speculation that Musk was under the influence of drugs when he tweeted in 2018 that he had "secured funding" to take Tesla private at $420 a share. The tweet caused Tesla's stock price to rise 6% the next day, triggering an investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Musk being fined $40 million, although he did not admit wrongdoing.
Musk has told his biographer Walter Isaacson that he "really" doesn't like taking illegal drugs. He has also told people that he microdoses ketamine, has been seen using the drug recreationally, and has publicly said that taking ketamine occasionally "is a better choice" than using SSRIs to treat depression.
Musk also smoked marijuana in public during a live webcast, prompting NASA to conduct a safety review of SpaceX. Musk later revealed that this resulted in the entire company being subject to drug testing for a year.
In response to this report, Musk's lawyer Alex Spiro said that Musk "regularly undergoes drug testing at SpaceX and has never failed a test." Responding to detailed questions, Spiro added that there were "other false narratives" in the report, without elaborating.
Musk personally refuted the rumors in a post, stating that he had conducted random drug tests for three years in accordance with NASA's requirements and had never found any trace amounts of drugs or alcohol. On January 7, Musk posted that after taking a puff on Rogan’s show, he began conducting random drug tests for three years in accordance with NASA’s requirements, and no trace amounts of drugs or alcohol were ever found. At the same time, Musk also said that the Wall Street Journal (the media that published Musk’s drug abuse report) did not ration birds as toilet paper.
Reports over the weekend that Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk have a history of drug use have worried the leaders of both companies.