1
00:00:01,920 --> 00:00:05,320
Hey everybody, welcome back to 
the Elon Musk Podcast. 

2
00:00:05,360 --> 00:00:08,680
This is a show where we discuss 
the critical crossroads that 

3
00:00:08,680 --> 00:00:13,520
shape SpaceX, Tesla X, The 
Boring Company, and Neuralink. 

4
00:00:13,680 --> 00:00:18,280
And I'm your host, Will Walden. 
Controversy surrounds Elon Musk,

5
00:00:18,320 --> 00:00:22,720
the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla over
allegations of drug use, 

6
00:00:22,720 --> 00:00:26,920
including incidents involving 
cocaine, LSD and ketamine. 

7
00:00:27,320 --> 00:00:30,280
Now these claims have raised 
concerns about Musk's well-being

8
00:00:30,280 --> 00:00:33,520
and the potential impact on his 
companies and their 

9
00:00:33,520 --> 00:00:35,920
stakeholders. 
Musk, however, refutes these 

10
00:00:35,920 --> 00:00:39,200
allegations, sitting that three 
years of random drug testing by 

11
00:00:39,200 --> 00:00:41,960
NASA found no evidence of drug 
or alcohol use. 

12
00:00:42,640 --> 00:00:45,680
The situation gained traction 
after Musk smoked marijuana on 

13
00:00:45,680 --> 00:00:49,600
the Joe Rogan Podcast in 2018, 
and following this, NASA 

14
00:00:49,600 --> 00:00:53,200
requested that Musk undergo 
random drug testing for three 

15
00:00:53,200 --> 00:00:56,880
years, to which he agreed. 
According to Musk, these tests 

16
00:00:56,880 --> 00:00:59,440
showed no traces of drugs or 
alcohol. 

17
00:00:59,960 --> 00:01:03,440
Now this response comes amidst a
Wall Street Journal report 

18
00:01:03,440 --> 00:01:08,040
suggesting ongoing drug use and 
abuse by Musk, a claim he 

19
00:01:08,040 --> 00:01:11,480
denies. 
A Musk's reaction to the WSG 

20
00:01:11,480 --> 00:01:14,920
report was dismissive and 
critical, labeling the report as

21
00:01:14,920 --> 00:01:18,880
unworthy and using a poop emoji 
to express his disdain. 

22
00:01:19,120 --> 00:01:22,160
Despite his rebuttals, stories 
and speculations about his drug 

23
00:01:22,160 --> 00:01:25,720
use continue to surface. 
These include concerns expressed

24
00:01:25,720 --> 00:01:29,400
by Tesla board members and 
reports of erratic behavior 

25
00:01:29,400 --> 00:01:33,640
attributed to drug influence, 
such as his tweet about taking 

26
00:01:33,640 --> 00:01:37,320
Tesla private. 
Now NASA's involvement escalated

27
00:01:37,320 --> 00:01:40,400
after Musk's appearance on 
Rogan's podcast, leading to a 

28
00:01:40,640 --> 00:01:44,240
$5,000,000 probe into his drug 
use. 

29
00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:48,000
This investigation aimed to 
ensure compliance with the Drug 

30
00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:52,640
Free Workplace requirements of 
Spacex's $14 billion government 

31
00:01:52,640 --> 00:01:54,760
contracts. 
The results of this 

32
00:01:54,760 --> 00:01:57,600
investigation, however, remain 
undisclosed. 

33
00:01:58,240 --> 00:02:01,200
Representatives for Musk and his
companies, including SpaceX, 

34
00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:04,880
Tesla, and X, formerly Twitter, 
have not provided immediate 

35
00:02:04,880 --> 00:02:07,360
responses to inquiries about 
these allegations. 

36
00:02:07,640 --> 00:02:10,919
Musk himself has been relatively
quiet on the issue, aside from 

37
00:02:10,919 --> 00:02:13,760
his dismissive tweet following 
the WSG article. 

38
00:02:14,680 --> 00:02:18,680
Now, in defense of Musk, a post 
on X highlighted his compliance 

39
00:02:18,680 --> 00:02:21,960
with NASA's drug testing 
request, and Musk emphasized 

40
00:02:21,960 --> 00:02:25,240
that the test over three years 
found no trace of drugs or 

41
00:02:25,240 --> 00:02:27,680
alcohol. 
His attorney, Alex Bureau, did 

42
00:02:27,680 --> 00:02:30,720
not immediately respond to any 
requests from the Wall Street 

43
00:02:30,720 --> 00:02:33,280
Journal report either. 
Now, the Wall Street Journal's 

44
00:02:33,280 --> 00:02:35,640
reporting has stirred 
significant discussion, though, 

45
00:02:35,680 --> 00:02:39,200
with claims of Musk's use of 
various drugs, including cocaine

46
00:02:39,200 --> 00:02:41,640
and ketamine. 
Now, despite these allegations, 

47
00:02:41,640 --> 00:02:43,320
the Journal stands by its 
reporting. 

48
00:02:43,640 --> 00:02:46,960
The situation has reportedly 
caused unease among senior 

49
00:02:46,960 --> 00:02:50,760
figures at Musk's companies, 
with a Tesla board director even

50
00:02:50,760 --> 00:02:54,240
opting not to run for re 
election due to concern over 

51
00:02:54,240 --> 00:02:58,280
Musk's alleged drug use. 
The Wall Street Journal report 

52
00:02:58,320 --> 00:03:02,280
also suggested that SpaceX 
executives worried about Musk's 

53
00:03:02,280 --> 00:03:05,320
state during a company meeting, 
hinting at possible drug 

54
00:03:05,320 --> 00:03:07,880
influence. 
This incident, coupled with Musk

55
00:03:07,880 --> 00:03:11,520
controversial tweet about Tesla 
going private, has escalated 

56
00:03:11,520 --> 00:03:14,960
concerns about his behavior and 
its potential impact on his 

57
00:03:14,960 --> 00:03:17,800
companies. 
Musk's admission of using small 

58
00:03:17,800 --> 00:03:20,880
doses of ketamine for depression
and his infamous smoking 

59
00:03:20,880 --> 00:03:25,200
incident on Rogan's podcast 
prompted NASA to investigate his

60
00:03:25,200 --> 00:03:31,320
drug use, and so far the results
are unknown, and it was part of 

61
00:03:31,320 --> 00:03:34,560
NASA's commitment to ensuring 
that the place was drug free. 

62
00:03:34,720 --> 00:03:37,560
SpaceX was drug free. 
They're building rockets for the

63
00:03:37,560 --> 00:03:40,160
Artemis program. 
They have to be drug free and 

64
00:03:40,160 --> 00:03:42,760
also they're sending people to 
the International Space Station 

65
00:03:42,760 --> 00:03:45,040
and satellites with their Falcon
9 rockets. 

66
00:03:45,840 --> 00:03:49,280
Now Musk has acknowledged SpaceX
employees compliance with drug 

67
00:03:49,280 --> 00:03:52,120
testing requirements following 
the Rogan incident. 

68
00:03:52,480 --> 00:03:54,640
This adherence was crucial to 
SpaceX. 

69
00:03:54,640 --> 00:03:59,080
Being a NASA contractor had to 
uphold laws pertaining to drug 

70
00:03:59,080 --> 00:04:02,080
free workplaces. 
Musk's comments suggest his 

71
00:04:02,080 --> 00:04:05,640
awareness of legal and 
contractual obligations related 

72
00:04:05,640 --> 00:04:08,960
to drug use and NASA's 
investigation into Spacex's 

73
00:04:08,960 --> 00:04:12,000
workplace safety, including drug
use, was extensive. 

74
00:04:12,000 --> 00:04:14,040
It covered multiple SpaceX 
facilities. 

75
00:04:14,480 --> 00:04:17,640
It involved interviews with a 
significant number of employees,

76
00:04:17,640 --> 00:04:20,600
hundreds of employees, and 
despite the thorough nature of 

77
00:04:20,600 --> 00:04:24,720
this probe, the results have 
been heavily redacted, with NASA

78
00:04:24,720 --> 00:04:27,880
citing confidentiality and 
competitive concerns. 

79
00:04:28,440 --> 00:04:33,160
Now, a report for the Business 
Insider and their efforts to 

80
00:04:33,160 --> 00:04:37,040
obtain details of the NASA probe
face challenges, with initial 

81
00:04:37,040 --> 00:04:39,920
responses from the agency 
indicating no records of the 

82
00:04:39,920 --> 00:04:43,320
assessments Results. 
However, further insistence led 

83
00:04:43,320 --> 00:04:45,080
to the release of some 
documents. 

84
00:04:45,360 --> 00:04:49,080
Although heavily redacted, this 
has sparked further curiosity 

85
00:04:49,080 --> 00:04:50,800
about the investigation's 
findings. 

86
00:04:51,360 --> 00:04:54,840
Now, the probe scope included 
Spacex's commitment to safety 

87
00:04:54,840 --> 00:04:57,760
and health practices, 
particularly in the context of 

88
00:04:57,760 --> 00:05:01,400
transporting astronauts. 
The NASA letter initiated the 

89
00:05:01,400 --> 00:05:04,400
review highlighted the 
importance of safety in the US 

90
00:05:04,400 --> 00:05:07,080
space program and the need for 
compliance with industry 

91
00:05:07,080 --> 00:05:08,880
standards and legal 
requirements. 

92
00:05:09,320 --> 00:05:12,520
Despite the extensive nature and
cost of the investigation, NASA 

93
00:05:12,520 --> 00:05:16,320
has opted not to publicly 
release all the results, citing 

94
00:05:16,320 --> 00:05:19,120
the proprietary nature of the 
information. 

95
00:05:19,480 --> 00:05:23,040
This decision has left many 
questions unanswered regarding 

96
00:05:23,040 --> 00:05:27,000
the findings of the probe in its
implications for SpaceX and Elon

97
00:05:27,000 --> 00:05:31,440
Musk. 
Now, William Gerstenmeyer, the 

98
00:05:31,440 --> 00:05:35,160
NASA administrator who requested
the review, left the agency 

99
00:05:35,160 --> 00:05:36,680
after the conclusion of the 
probe. 

100
00:05:37,240 --> 00:05:41,040
He later joined SpaceX as the 
vice president of Build and 

101
00:05:41,040 --> 00:05:44,440
flight reliability, a move that 
adds an interesting twist to the

102
00:05:44,440 --> 00:05:47,760
narrative surrounding this 
investigation And there's an 

103
00:05:47,760 --> 00:05:51,320
ongoing controversy surrounding 
Elon Musk's drug use. 

104
00:05:51,680 --> 00:05:55,200
And while Musk denies any 
wrongdoing, the context of the 

105
00:05:55,200 --> 00:05:59,080
allegations and the involvement 
of organizations like NASA show 

106
00:05:59,080 --> 00:06:03,160
that this issue remains an 
important and unresolved aspect 

107
00:06:03,200 --> 00:06:05,520
of his public and professional 
life. 

108
00:06:06,600 --> 00:06:08,240
Hey, thank you so much for 
listening today. 

109
00:06:08,240 --> 00:06:10,320
I really do appreciate your 
support. 

110
00:06:10,320 --> 00:06:13,080
If you could take a second and 
hit the subscribe or the follow 

111
00:06:13,080 --> 00:06:15,280
button on whatever podcast 
platform that you're listening 

112
00:06:15,280 --> 00:06:17,960
on right now, I greatly 
appreciate it. 

113
00:06:17,960 --> 00:06:20,600
It helps out the show 
tremendously and you'll never 

114
00:06:20,600 --> 00:06:24,080
miss an episode, and each 
episode is about 10 minutes or 

115
00:06:24,080 --> 00:06:26,120
less to get you caught up 
quickly. 

116
00:06:26,120 --> 00:06:29,360
And please, if you want to 
support the show even more, go 

117
00:06:29,360 --> 00:06:35,040
to patreon.com/stage Zero and 
please take care of yourselves 

118
00:06:35,040 --> 00:06:36,920
and each other. 
I'll see you tomorrow.

