Elon Musk’s black eye has innocuous explanation, despite drug use reports

Elon Musk explains his black eye

Elon Musk was asked about his black eye at a White House event Friday.

Elon Musk appeared alongside President Donald Trump at the White House Friday with a black eye, and his explanation is something most dads can relate to.

Musk was at the White House to mark his official departure as a special government employee, but he and Trump both said Musk will continue to serve as an adviser to the president.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk listens as U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters in the Oval Office of the White House on May 30, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

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Why does Elon Musk have a black eye?

What we know:

Asked about the black eye, Musk said it happened while he was playing around with his son, X Æ A-Xii, who he calls X. He also had an eye injury in the video Thursday announcing SpaceX’s "tentative" game plan to bring humans to Mars.

WATCH full Trump-Musk Oval Office news conference

In a long meeting in the Oval Office, President Trump and Elon Musk make comments on their DOGE progress and Musk's new role in the administration. They also took reporter questions.

What they're saying:

"I was just horsing around with little X and I said, go ahead, punch me in the face, and he did," Musk said. "And turns out even a 5-year-old punching you in the face actually does this."

Trump said he hadn't noticed Musk's eye injury and seemed surprised that X was the culprit.

"I didn't really feel much at the time," Musk said. "And then I get some bruises."

Elon Musk’s drug use questioned in NYT

Dig deeper:

Before Musk explained his eye, the internet was speculating after a New York Times report published Friday detailed concerns over Musk's drug use.

According to The New York Times, Musk, who has admitted to using ketamine prescribed for depression, was reportedly using drugs more often than previously known as he and Trump grew close.

What they're saying:

"Mr. Musk’s drug consumption went well beyond occasional use," The Times reported. "He told people he was taking so much ketamine, a powerful anesthetic, that it was affecting his bladder, a known effect of chronic use. He took Ecstasy and psychedelic mushrooms. And he traveled with a daily medication box that held about 20 pills, including ones with the markings of the stimulant Adderall, according to a photo of the box and people who have seen it."

The report also recalled Musk’s appearance at the Conservative Political Action Conference in February, when he used a chain saw to symbolize his cuts to government bureaucracy. The Times noted that Musk’s speech was disjointed, and included bouts of stuttering and laughing while he kept his sunglasses on.