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TL;DR:
- Elon Musk reportedly worked illegally in the US during the 1990s while building Zip2, despite being on a student visa without proper work authorization.
- Musk arrived in California in 1995 on a student visa but never enrolled at Stanford University, instead focusing on his software company.
- The tech billionaire has become a vocal critic of immigration policies and recently endorsed Donald Trump, known for his strict stance on immigration.
- The revelation raises questions about the consistency of Musk’s current immigration stance and his support for Trump’s campaign, which emphasizes curbing migration.
The Washington Post has reported that tech billionaire Elon Musk, known for his vocal criticism of immigration policies, worked illegally in the United States during the early stages of his entrepreneurial career in the 1990s. The report sheds light on Musk’s immigration status while he was building Zip2, a software company that would later sell for approximately $300 million.
According to the Post’s investigation, Musk arrived in Palo Alto, California, in 1995 on a student visa to attend Stanford University’s graduate program. However, he never enrolled and instead focused on developing Zip2. Immigration law experts quoted by the Post stated that Musk would have needed to be enrolled in a full course of study to maintain valid work authorization as a student.
The report cites two former colleagues of Musk who recalled him receiving U.S. work authorization around 1997. In a 2020 podcast referenced by the Post, Musk himself acknowledged, “I was legally there, but I was meant to be doing student work. I was allowed to do work sort of supporting whatever.”
Despite these revelations, Musk, who has become one of the most prominent critics of immigration policies, has recently endorsed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump in the upcoming November 5th election. Trump, known for his stringent stance on immigration, has portrayed migrants as invaders and criminals and is promising the largest deportation effort in U.S. history if reelected.
Musk, along with his brother Kimbal, who worked alongside him at Zip2, have often described their immigrant journey in romantic terms, emphasizing personal austerity, undeterred ambition, and a willingness to challenge conventions. However, the Post’s report suggests that Musk’s early success in the U.S. tech industry may have been built on a foundation of working without proper legal authorization.
Requests for comment sent to Musk’s companies SpaceX, Tesla, X (formerly Twitter), and The Boring Company, as well as his lawyer Alex Spiro, went unanswered.
The revelations about Musk’s immigration status during his formative years as an entrepreneur raise questions about the consistency of his current stance on immigration policies and his support for Donald Trump’s campaign, which has made curbing both legal and illegal migration a central issue.
Source: Reuters
