Inside the Shivon Zilis-Elon Musk unusual relationship. What she told court

For years, the complicated personal life of the world's richest man, Elon Musk, has piqued interest. The Tesla CEO has fathered 14 kids with four different women over two decades. Among them is Shivon Zilis, an adviser to Musk and the mother of four of his children. On Wednesday, Zilis, while testifying in the Musk vs OpenAI lawsuit trial, offered a rare glimpse into one of Silicon Valley's secretive and complicated relationships.

Zilis said it started with a romantic one-off sometime in 2016 before Musk offered to father her children in 2020. However, their personal relationship wasn't known publicly until 2022. By that time, she already had twins with Musk.

WHY DID SHIVON ZILIS TESTIFY IN OPENAI CASE?

Now, before we get into the mouthwatering bit, let us understand why Zilis took the witness stand in the first place. I will make it brief. While Sam Altman may now be the face of OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, the company was founded as a non-profit in 2015 by him and Musk. Musk left OpenAI after three years, after a fallout with Altman. Musk has now sued Altman and another co-founder, Greg Brockman, for attempting to illegally restructure the company from a non-profit to a for-profit enterprise.

Where does Zilis fit in? Zilis worked with OpenAI from 2016 to 2023 and was also part of its board of directors for several years. During this time, she was also involved in a secret relationship with Musk. OpenAI lawyers suspect that she acted as an informant for the Tesla CEO.

It is why Zilis has now become a key figure in this case. During the trial, Zilis provided gripping details of her relationship with Musk as well as their private conversation.

SHIVON ZILIS ON RELATIONSHIP WITH MUSK

She described her relationship with Musk as complicated. Zilis said it began with a "one-off" at a corporate off-site event sometime after she joined OpenAI in 2016. It eventually turned into a friendship. Zilis revealed that it was in 2020 when Musk approached her as a "platonic" sperm donor. At that time, they were not romantically involved.

"I really wanted to be a mum, and Musk made the offer around that time, and I accepted," Zilis told the court, according to a BBC report.

She also gave the reason behind her unusual choice. Zilis, currently an executive at Musk's startup Neuralink, said she had been struggling with health issues, and it forced her to ditch plans of adopting a more traditional route. That is settling down with a partner and having children.

Nevertheless, after Musk's proposal, Zilis said she decided to have kids with him around early 2021. Zilis, who has worked at xAI and Tesla as well, was born to a Hindu mother and a Canadian father. Her Indian link is believed to be the reason why she accompanied Musk during his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February 2025 when he visited Washington.

In her testimony, Zilis said she was made to sign an agreement that included keeping Musk's paternity confidential. It was agreed that Musk would not be playing a major day-to-day role in the children's lives.

'MUSK NOW ACTIVELY INVOLVED'

It was in 2021 that she first had twins with Musk. However, this was not disclosed to OpenAI. Zilis, in her testimony, said the confidentiality agreement with Musk prevented her from doing so.

However, she eventually revealed her relationship with Musk to Altman when it was about to appear in the media in 2022. OpenAI let her continue on their board even though some members wanted her out.

She left OpenAI in 2023 - around the same time Musk launched ChatGPT rival xAI.

Today, Zilis said Musk was "actively" involved in the lives of their four children. She also revealed that they spend several hours together every week.

"We do live together when travelling, and we have been spending family time in Austin," Zilis said.

The testimony offered a rare glimpse into the secret life of Musk and his relationship with Zilis. Over the years, Zilis has kept a low profile and has rarely given media interviews or been seen with Musk in public.

Last year, they welcomed a fourth child together. It is only over the past year and a half that Zilis has started appearing alongside Musk in public. Earlier this year, in February, Zilis was seen holding Musk's hand as they arrived at US President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago golf estate.

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