In the wake of an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and X (formerly Twitter), has revealed his consideration of building an Iron Man-style suit for protection. Musk disclosed that he has survived two assassination attempts in the past eight months.
On Saturday, during a campaign rally, Trump narrowly escaped with a bullet grazing his ear. However, the incident left one person dead and two others critically injured after 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire. Musk endorsed Trump for president following the shooting.
Musk’s interest in an Iron Man-style suit isn’t new
Musk’s interest in an Iron Man-style suit isn’t new. He has previously met with engineer Dylan Lange Edminston, who built a prototype suit. Marvel’s Iron Man writer Mark Fergus has also cited Musk as an inspiration for the character Tony Stark. Musk even made a cameo appearance in Iron Man 2.
In response to a post on X suggesting he beef up his security, Musk wrote: “Maybe it’s time to build that flying metal suit of armor.” This comment came shortly after Musk revealed the attempts on his life, mentioning that two armed individuals were arrested near Tesla HQ in Texas.
Following the assassination attempt on Trump, social media quickly became a hotbed for conspiracy theories. Controversial commentator Ian Miles Cheong and Republican congressman Mike Collins suggested, without evidence, that President Joe Biden might be involved. Georgia congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene also insinuated that Democrats were behind the attempt.
Impact on X
Since acquiring X for $44 billion in October 2022, Musk has made significant changes, including laying off around 6,000 employees, which left only 1,500 staff at the company. These changes have also affected teams responsible for content moderation and misinformation policy.