Fact Check: The Truth About Alleged Elon Musk Post on a Future Robotic 'Housewife Who Never Nags'
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Claim:
A screenshot from April 2024 shows a real Elon Musk tweet claiming that, within 20 years, robots would exist that were sexually compatible with humans and that would act like a "housewife who never nags."
Rating:
On April 27, 2024, a post on X containing a screenshot of an ALLEGED X post made by the company's owner, Elon Musk, appeared for the first time. The post in the screenshot read as follows:
Indistinguishable-from-human robot companions will be mainstream in 15-20 years,
and yes, you will be able to have sex with them. A housewife who never nags. Beautiful and customized to your taste. No one belittling ... the "disgusting" way you make love
(X user @schizarella)
The screenshotted post was timestamped to the prior afternoon — April 26, 2024, at 15:40 (3:40 p.m.).
Over the next few days, the image went viral, with users sharing the screenshot of Musk's supposed post and remarking about the billionaire's habit for saying rather eccentric things.
Either Xitter search is broken, or he deleted this post. pic.twitter.com/DodESEpTeX
— BertelSchmitt™ 🇺🇦💉💉💉💉💉💉💉#fella (@BertelSchmitt) April 28, 2024
Snopes was unable to definitively confirm that the image was fake, so we have rated this claim "Unfounded." However, we have strong reason to suspect that the post was not real.
We investigated Musk's posting history on X, but found no post on his timeline matching what the screenshot purported to show. If the post was deleted, as some users claimed, we could find no evidence of that, despite checking archived versions of Musk's feed using the Wayback Machine. Searching on X to see discussion around the post didn't reveal anything other than the screenshot — an unusual fact considering audience metrics suggested readers viewed the alleged post 46 million times and reposted it 22,000 times.
Next, we turned to the origin of the image. Conducting a reverse-image search, we found that the first version appeared on April 27, posted by the user @schizarella. The bio claims the user is an "investigative journalist" who worked at the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. But this isn't true — The New York Times released a statement explaining the X user had never worked at the newspaper back in January 2024.
Between the fact that the image originated with a user who falsely uses large media outlets for credibility, and that Snopes could find no evidence this post existed, we strongly believe the screenshot is fake. This is not the first time someone falsely has connected Musk with robotic women — Snopes fact-checked an AI-generated image of Musk with a "robot wife" back in May 2023.
Sources:
"Https://Twitter.Com/BertelSchmitt/Status/1784529767729094683." X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/BertelSchmitt/status/1784529767729094683. Accessed 1 May 2024.
"Https://Twitter.Com/Elonmusk." X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/elonmusk. Accessed 1 May 2024.
"Https://Twitter.Com/Schizarella." X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/schizarella. Accessed 1 May 2024.
"Https://Twitter.Com/Schizarella/Status/1784338613515464832/Photo/1." X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/schizarella/status/1784338613515464832/photo/1. Accessed 1 May 2024.
"Https://Twitter.Com/Search?q=Indistinguishable-from-Human&src=typed_query&f=top." X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/search?q=Indistinguishable-from-human&src=typed_query&f=top. Accessed 1 May 2024.
LaMagdeleine, Izz Scott. "Are Images of Elon Musk With a Robot Girlfriend or Wife Real?" Snopes, 23 May 2023, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/elon-musk-robot-wives/.
"Tracking Misinformation: Identifying New York Times Reporters and Impersonators." The New York Times Company, 29 Jan. 2024, https://www.nytco.com/press/tracking-misinformation-identifying-new-york-times-reporters-and-impersonators/.
