Elon Musk's father Errol looks to monetize his famous name with ‘Musk It' memecoin: ‘I'm the head of the family'
Everyone from Donald Trump to 'Hawk Tuah girl' has launched their own crypto memecoin, but so far the world's most famous entrepreneur has yet to get in on the action. Despite pro-crypto leanings and a massive social media following, Elon Musk has resisted hawking a digital token bearing his name. Musk's father, however, has other ideas.
Errol Musk, who reportedly has a fraught relationship with his son, and his business partner, Nathan Browne, told Fortune they hope to raise between $150 million and $200 million from a token project called 'Musk It.' Errol Musk explained that he plans to use the proceeds to support a new, for-profit think tank called the Musk Institute that he is founding.
Memecoins, because they are cryptocurrencies without underlying value, typically tied to online jokes or personalities, are prone to sudden wipeouts that leave investors holding the bag—getting 'rugged' in crypto parlance. The senior Musk, though, says he has no qualms about monetizing his name on a memecoin that many would-be buyers will inevitably associate with his famous son.
'I'm the head of the family,' Errol told Fortune over a video call from his home in Cape Town. 'It really started with me in our family—I've been 'Musking It' for years.'
Errol Musk and Browne are not the designers of the Musk It coin, which a Middle Eastern–based crypto company launched in December to little fanfare. Instead, Errol Musk explained, they approved the name and decided to partner on the token after coming up with the idea for the Musk Institute late last year. He is now ready to publicly endorse the Musk It coin.
While cryptocurrency projects typically release detailed 'tokenomics' to explain their funding and how the tokens will be distributed, there is little public information about Musk It. Errol and Browne have offered few additional details.
While the plans surrounding the project remain vague, Errol Musk's decision to launch a 'Musk' token could further fray his relationship with his celebrity son. Elon Musk's biographer Walter Isaacson described Errol in late 2023 as sometimes 'possessed by fantasies and conspiracies' during Elon's childhood and described his relationship with his son as estranged.
When asked about this characterization, Errol Musk told Fortune the book was 'absolute rubbish' and claimed he has recently spent time with both Elon and his other son, Kimbal. Errol emphasized that neither is involved with the cryptocurrency or think tank.
Representatives for Elon and Kimbal Musk did not respond to a request for comment.
Like his son—who runs a staggering array of companies, including Tesla, SpaceX, and X—Errol Musk has long been an entrepreneur.
The son of a cryptographer and military intelligence officer, Errol Musk studied engineering before working on building hotels and factories. He also pursued careers in politics and emerald importing, according to Walter Isaacson's biography of Elon Musk. Isaacson also describes the emotional 'scars' that Errol imparted on Elon during his childhood, including alleged verbal abuse of his sons and physical abuse of his ex-wife and Elon's mother, Maye. Maye has spoken publicly about the abuse but did not respond to a request from Fortune for comment. Errol has denied the claims.
According to Isaacson, Errol's relationship with his sons became estranged after Errol impregnated his stepdaughter, Jana. 'I was actually slowly making amends with my father,' Kimbal told Isaacson, 'but then he had a child with Jana, and I said, 'You're done, you're out. I never want to speak to you again.' And I haven't spoken to him since.'
Isaacson writes that Errol Musk is a 'charismatic fantasist who to this day bedevils Elon.' Their often tumultuous relationship has been referenced by Elon himself, who told Rolling Stone in 2017 that Errol was 'such a terrible human being' who 'will have a carefully thought-out plan of evil.' In the biography, which was published in September 2023, Isaacson wrote that they are estranged, with Elon taking active steps to cut off contact.
Errol denied the claims, telling Fortune that his decision to launch Musk It coin was in part inspired by his son inviting him to a SpaceX launch in late 2023, where Elon told the assembled staff that his father 'taught me everything I know about engineering.' (This anecdote has not been confirmed by Elon, but the reunion was reported by The Sun.)
After Errol's interview with Fortune, his business partner on the Musk Institute and memecoin, Nathan Browne, forwarded a lengthy email written by Errol disputing allegations from the Isaacson biography and other media reports, including that he is estranged from his children and that he physically abused Maye.
Errol claims he and his son had a call earlier this month where Elon inquired about the project after seeing previous media reports, but Errol assured him that he was carrying out the plans on his own.
Errol told Fortune his goal for Musk It is to advance his own scientific interests, including flying vehicles, by using the cryptocurrency's proceeds to fund the Musk Institute. ('We need to go beyond rockets,' Errol argued.) Elon Musk did not respond to an inquiry about whether he had knowledge of the memecoin launch.
Errol said that he came up with the idea for the Musk Institute in December while visiting with organizations in the United Arab Emirates, including 'men and women of nobility across several of the emirates,' according to Errol's spokesperson.
He and his partner Browne, a tech consultant, say the planned institute will assemble researchers for different engineering projects, but declined to provide a timeline for its launch.
In their interview with Fortune, Errol Musk and Browne did not have a clear outline for the project's 'tokenomics,' or underlying structure. According to CoinMarketCap, the token currently has a market cap of nearly $11 million, though the website includes a disclaimer that the figure is self-reported. An associated website also does not have additional information. Browne said that one of their conditions for joining forces with the Musk It token was that 'this cannot be a pump and dump.'
Errol Musk bristled at the idea that he should not be allowed to work on a 'Musk' token, even though investors will likely associate the cryptocurrency with his son, who is uninvolved in the project. 'Anybody that follows after [Elon] is not allowed to be successful because Elon is successful?' he argued.
'If anyone is relying on Elon to endorse or contribute, then I think they're missing the point,' Browne added.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
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