Elon Musk's Ex Wife Initially Blew Him Off On Their First Date. Here's How They Met
Elon Musk's relationship with his first wife, Justine Musk, started on a somewhat strange, even embarrassing note. In a 2010 essay for Marie Claire, she recalled how her path initially crossed with Elon's while they were both students at Queen's University in Canada. The SpaceX founder actually first laid eyes on his future wife in the university's common room but was apparently unsure of how to approach her. For some reason, he decided the best course of action would be to tell Justine that they had met at a party that neither of them had attended. Although Elon's first wife knew he was lying, she still agreed to meet him for ice cream later on. However, Justine ultimately decided against going on the date, so she penned a note explaining her absence and left it on her dorm room door.
"Several hours later, my head bent over my Spanish text in an overheated room in the student center, I heard a polite cough behind me," she recalled. "Elon was smiling awkwardly, two chocolate-chip ice cream cones dripping down his hand. He's not a man who takes no for an answer." Although they were in and out of each other's lives in the following years, Elon and Justine eventually ended up dating before tying the knot in 2000. Justine and Elon went on to welcome six children, including their firstborn, Nevada Musk, who sadly passed away due to sudden infant death syndrome in 2002. The controversial billionaire and his first wife ultimately went their separate ways in 2008, and Justine didn't hesitate to publicly share her thoughts about their messy marriage afterwards.
Justine Musk doesn't look back on her marriage to Elon Musk very fondly
During a chat with author Walter Isaacson for his 2023 "Elon Musk" biography, Justine Musk succinctly described her long-standing union with the divisive entrepreneur by admitting, "It was basically a massive cluster f*** of disruptive things." Elon's ex-wife disclosed that they grew accustomed to causing a scene in public because they were unable to stop arguing. In fact, the couple's fights got so explosive that Elon resorted to berating his then-wife while she made it clear that she resented him. As Justine reasoned, "I don't think you can be in a relationship with Elon and not argue."
Further, the former PayPal owner's eye-watering net worth had turned him into somebody she didn't recognize and irrevocably damaged their connection in the process. While most of these jarring personality changes apparently happened after his personal wealth increased substantially, there was a clear sign that Elon's marriage to Justine was doomed from their wedding night. In her 2010 Marie Claire piece, she detailed how her new husband made a bizarre remark during their wedding reception which set the tone for their future together: "I am the alpha in this relationship."
Although Justine didn't think much of the comment at the time, she later realized that it may not have been a joke after all. The red flags started flying high when the billionaire wouldn't stop pointing out all her flaws and making Justine feel as if she was his employee rather than his wife. However, when she expressed her feelings, Elon quipped in response, "If you were my employee, I would fire you."