Tue 10 Feb 2026 16.57 EST Last modified on Tue 10 Feb 2026 17.42 EST Share Jeffrey Epstein engineered an intimate relationship between a woman in his network and Kimbal Musk, who is the brother of Elon Musk and on the board of directors at Tesla, according to emails from the Department of Justice’s recent release of documents involving the convicted sex offender. The younger Musk and the woman were involved for around six months between 2012 and 2013, with Kimbal Musk describing them as “dating”. In the lead-up to Musk and the woman’s first meeting, Epstein and his longtime associate Boris Nikolic labored to set them up and bring her to a birthday party Musk was throwing – with Nikolic telling Epstein: “please prepare [the woman] —;)” “Jeffrey and Boris, many thanks for connecting me with [the woman],” Musk later emailed Epstein and Nikolic in October 2012 after a lunch at Epstein’s Manhattan apartment. “I believe you both played a role. :)” Throughout Musk and the woman’s time together, she forwarded Epstein several of the personal messages Musk sent to her and asked Epstein for guidance on the relationship. There is nothing in the emails to suggest that Musk was aware of her backchannel correspondence with Epstein. Who are the six men named in the unredacted Epstein files? Read more Through her lawyer, the woman has said in recent years that she was trapped, coerced and abused by Epstein while in his circle. The woman has not publicly told her story nor spoken about her relationship with Musk, and the Guardian has chosen not to publish her name. Her full name appears in the documents due to a faulty redaction, while other mentions in the emails match her first name and an itinerary of her travels with Musk that Epstein retained. Attempts to reach her and her lawyer did not receive any reply. A request for comment sent to Nikolic via his venture capital firm did not receive a reply. Nikolic, who was named as a backup executor of Epstein’s estate, has not been accused of any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein and previously said he did not consent to being named as an executor. Around an hour after the Guardian sent Kimbal Musk a request for comment on Monday for this article, he posted a statement on X about his relationship with Epstein and the woman. A spokesperson from his family office directed the Guardian to his post, but Musk did not respond to a detailed set of questions on his ties to Epstein. Musk has not been accused of any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein. “This post is related to the Epstein Files and why my name is in them. In 2012 I started dating a woman who was 30 years old. I met her through a friend. Epstein did not introduce us. My only meeting with that demon was in his New York office during the day. I never met with him again and I never went to his island,” Musk posted. “The reason he has so many emails from me is because he was subscribed to a newsletter I sent out to thousands of people every few weeks. My heart goes out to the many victims of Jeffrey Epstein, as it does for all who have suffered any kind of sexual abuse or harassment,” he wrote. The emails, part of the justice department’s release last month of 3m documents related to Epstein, depict a far friendlier and more intricate relationship between Kimbal Musk and Epstein than previously known to the public, one which goes beyond a periodic newsletter. They coincide with a period when Epstein appeared to be attempting to court both Kimbal and his older brother Elon, now the world’s richest man, through invitations to his island and the use of personal connections. In 2020, Business Insider reported a story which cited two anonymous sources who claimed Epstein set up Kimbal Musk with a woman. The story also reported Epstein had previously dated the woman and that she lived in an apartment owned by Epstein’s brother. The relationship between Musk and the woman appeared to be genuine, Business Insider reported, but the sources claimed Epstein saw it as a means of gaining connection to the Musk family. The emails cover a period of time following Kimbal Musk’s divorce from his first wife, which he references in a 2013 email to Nikolic saying that he is “now divorced! Free to live my life.” Until this week, Kimbal Musk had not spoken publicly about his ties with Epstein. The release of Elon Musk’s own communications with Epstein has conflicted with the tech mogul’s previous attempts to distance himself from Epstein as someone he avoided and deemed “obviously a creep”. Kimbal Musk exchanged numerous emails with Epstein and Nikolic in late 2012 and early 2013, inviting the financier to his birthday party and a SpaceX launch. Kimbal even joked about the trio coordinating Halloween costumes. US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick says he had lunch with Epstein on his private island Read more The younger Musk, although less successful and well-known than his Tesla and SpaceX CEO brother, holds several powerful positions. He has repeatedly profited off sales of his 1.4m shares of Tesla, including selling $108m worth of the stock in 2022. Kimbal also served on the board of SpaceX from its founding until 2022 and remains a prominent shareholder. SpaceX this month became the world’s most valuable private company and plans to go public later this year at a valuation of up to $1.5tn. Kimbal is additionally the CEO of a drone entertainment business and co-founder of the Kitchen restaurant group, as well as founder of the food education non-profit Big Green. Until last month, he was a board member of the annual Burning Man festival in the Nevada desert. Epstein, who pleaded guilty in 2008 in Florida to charges of procuring a minor for prostitution and soliciting a prostitute, had long used women and social events to make connections to some of the world’s most powerful people. He died in 2019 after facing federal charges of sex-trafficking minors and has since been the subject of relentless speculation, conspiracies and investigations into his operations. ‘Jeffrey and Boris, many thanks for connecting me’ It is unclear how Kimbal Musk first encountered Jeffrey Epstein, but in September of 2012, he extended the disgraced financier an invite to his birthday at the Four Seasons hotel in Manhattan. Musk was in town to celebrate turning 40 years old and had been talking with Boris Nikolic, a longtime associate of Epstein and tech investor, about his party plans. “Just talked to Kimbal. His actual bday is on Thursday night (although his party is on Saturday). Kimbal, Elon and few of their closest friends will go out that night,” Nikolic emailed Epstein on 19 Sept, a day before Musk’s birthday. “I told him that you will join us as well. Also I told him that you are coming with [the woman’s name] and that he might want to ditch his ex/or current to be. He said yes and is looking so much forward.” “So please prepare [the woman] —;) She might like Elon as well,” Nikolic added. On the Friday after his birthday, Kimbal Musk emailed Nikolic telling him that he had a fun night and to let Epstein and his friends know that they were invited to his formal birthday party the next night at the Four Seasons. Musk instructed Nikolic to send his executive assistant, Karla Shaw, the names of those whom Epstein and Nikolic would bring to the party. Nikolic almost immediately relayed Musk’s emails to Epstein, who replied asking whether he and Nikolic could set up a lunch with both Musk brothers at Epstein’s home. Later that day, Nikolic followed up with Epstein reminding him to send a list of names for Musk’s party. “Pls reply with whom you are going to that party. Kimbal really like [the woman],” Nikolic said. An email from Musk to Epstein the following week suggests that Epstein did not attend the party, but Musk then initiated plans for the two to spend time together. “Hey Jeffrey. Sorry you missed the party. It was a blast. Sorry to miss lunch on Sunday. Had to fly back and nurse myself back to health. ;) I’ll be in town next Friday (Oct 5th). I’d love to meet up if you’re in town. Imk,” Musk emailed Epstein on 26 September. Over the next two weeks, assistants for Epstein and Musk sorted out the details of the lunch – fretting over Musk being a “foodie” and arranging a potential driver for him to New York’s La Guardia airport afterwards. An email to Epstein from his assistant stated that Musk was confirmed to visit on 7 October at 11.30am. In a series of emails between Musk, Nikolic and Epstein following the lunch, Musk proposed seeing them again when he would return to New York later that month around Halloween – exchanging jokes with Nikolic about the three of them dressing up as the Holy Spirit, Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus. Musk also thanked Epstein and Nikolic for setting him up with the woman, resulting in an exchange in which Nikolic told Musk to “be nice” to the woman since she is one of Epstein’s “girls”. “Great to hang out today. Jeffrey and Boris, many thanks for connecting me with [the woman]. I believe you both played a role. :),” Musk wrote on 7 October. “Kimbal – just fyi – you better be nice to [the woman] ;) Jeffrey goes crazy when someone mistreats his girls/friends. So better be very nice to her,” Nikolic responded. “Jeffrey: Message received wide and clear. ;) Seriously, I am very happy with my time so far with [the woman]. She’s great,” Musk replied. Jeffrey Epstein plotted with lawyer to try to have woman deported, documents reveal Read more In the weeks that followed, Musk and the woman appear to have begun spending more time with one another. He sent her an affectionate email on 22 October saying that the universe had conspired to bring them together and invited her to fly with him to London the next month to attend a birthday party for Talulah Riley, who at the time was married to Elon Musk. “Talulah’s birthday party is on Nov 17th in London. I was not going to go, but now getting flack from my family that I’m a lame-oh. And I now have someone I’d like to take. ;) ,” Musk emailed, adding that they could stay with each other through Thanksgiving and keep traveling together. He signed off the email “xoxo”. The woman forwarded the invite to Epstein, adding: “All who thought to introduce us are GENIUS! ; )” Epstein responded with suggestions on what she should do with Musk. “stay thorugh thankisgiving. go somewhere romantic morocoo . . etc,” Epstein emailed, suggesting that she could also come to his private island beforehand. He also sent one of his associates an itinerary of the woman’s scheduled travels with Musk covering the period of October to January that included over a dozen days the woman and Musk would be together. Around the time that Epstein was giving advice to the woman about Kimbal Musk, he was also exchanging messages with Elon Musk. A series of emails from November included Epstein asking the tech mogul how many people he would take on Epstein’s helicopter to visit his private island. “how many people will you be for heli to island,” Epstein asked on 24 November. “Probably just Talulah and me. What day/night will be the wildest party on your island?” Elon Musk replied a day later. The trip appeared to never take place due to logistical issues. Elon Musk claimed last month that his communications with Epstein, which included other email exchanges and social invitations, were “misinterpreted” and has called the release of the files a “distraction” despite harping on them throughout 2025. Epstein also extended Kimbal Musk an invite to his island on 24 January, which the younger Musk said “would be nice” but declined because he was “still dealing with the nuclear explosion that is my life”. Musk thanked Epstein for the invitation and told him to “say hi to [the woman]”. ‘good news now i have you back again, full time’ The relationship between Kimbal Musk and the woman appears to have continued for months into 2013, up until he sent her an email asking to slow things down and revert to a more casual relationship. Musk’s lengthy email began with an apology to the woman for being “in such a bummed out mood last night” and said he wished he had more time for the woman but “at the end of each day I just want to pass out”. “We know how much we like each other. But I am just not able to do a real relationship right now. Would you be up for going back a step to just dating? We would see each other on weekends when we can and focus it on fun stuff,” Musk emailed on 26 April. Ex-Florida police chief claims Trump told him ‘everyone’ knew what Epstein was doing in 2006 Read more