Fact Check: No proof Musk solved 'unsolvable' math problem at Harvard
Claim:
Elon Musk solved an 'unsolvable' math problem after a Harvard professor called him 'rich but dumb.'
Rating:
In May 2025, a claim (archived) circulated online that the tech entrepreneur and former Trump adviser Elon Musk solved an "unsolvable" math problem after a Harvard professor called him "rich but dumb."
A Harvard Professor Mocked Elon Musk as 'Rich But Dumb'—Then Musk Solved an 'Unsolveable' Math Problem in 2 MINUTES! 😱 The Crowd Went SILENT!
Dr. Edward Kline, a 62-year-old calculus professor at Stanford with a reputation for his rigorous teaching style, was among the skeptics. "Mr. Musk, you may have billions, but intelligence isn't something you can buy. I doubt you could solve a basic Harvard problem that my students struggle with." Kline handed Musk a whiteboard marker with a smirk, saying, "Let's see if you can handle this in under 10 minutes. I'll be impressed if you even get halfway." What happened next left the room in stunned silence....
The claim circulated mostly on (archived) Facebook (archived) and X (archived), accompanied by two images that claimed to show the moment Musk triumphantly solved the math problem. Some self-described fictional YouTube (archived) videos (archived) presented a similar narrative around May 2025.
However, we found no proof that the alleged encounter at Harvard University actually happened. Searches on online search engines brought up no credible reports about the event (archived) (archived) (archived). One of the images that accompanied the claim featured a logo for Grok, an artificial intelligence chatbot developed by the Musk-owned company xAI. Online detectors rated the other image highly likely to have been generated by AI. Furthermore, we found no trace of "Dr. Edward Kline," allegedly a Stanford University mathematics professor. Therefore, we rate this claim false.
The claim circulated since at least May 23, 2025, alongside two images. These images carried several clues that the claim was false. Firstly, one of the images was generated by AI, as evidenced by the Grok logo in the bottom-right corner. Additionally, the Grok image poorly resembled Musk, as evidenced by recent authentic photos.
(Grok/Snopes Illustration)
The other image featured alongside the story did not carry a visible sign it was generated by AI. However, online detectors SightEngine and Hive Moderation said the image was highly likely to be AI-generated. Hive Moderation said Grok likely created the image.
(Sightengine/Hive Moderation/Snopes Illustration)
In addition to the AI-generated images, aspects of the claim text also contained inconsistencies.
For example, the text said "A Harvard Professor Mocked Elon Musk" but then identified the professor as "Dr. Edward Kline, a 62-year-old calculus professor at Stanford."
There was also no trace of a Dr. Edward Kline at either Stanford or Harvard universities. A broader online search found multiple Dr. Edward Klines but none who taught mathematics at either Stanford or Harvard.
Despite the above, the claim might include one grain of truth: A Harvard professor did warn Elon Musk about a problem he "will never solve" in 2024. However, the problem wasn't (entirely) mathematical. Jason Furman, an economist and Harvard economics professor, said Musk could not cut $2 trillion from the U.S. budget "on his own" — the original goal set for Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.
The "professor mocked Elon Musk" story is also reminiscent of an urban legend long told about Albert Einstein in which, as a college student, the future theoretical physicist humiliated an atheist professor by demonstrating that God can co-exist with evil.
An "unsolvable math problem" tale that turned out to be true involves a college student mistaking examples of unsolved statistics problems for a homework assignment, took them home and solved them.
Snopes has investigated a plethora of rumors about Elon Musk including whether he remotely shut down Tesla cars owned by Democrats or whether Starlink, his satellite internet service provider, can't operate in South Africa because Musk isn't Black.
6,091 Elon Musk Photos & High Res Pictures - Getty Images. https://www.gettyimages.com/search/2/image?family=editorial&phrase=elon%20musk&sort=newest&specificpeople=4448862. Accessed 30 May 2025.
"AI Image Detector. Detect AI-Generated Media at Scale." Sightengine, https://sightengine.com/detect-ai-generated-images. Accessed 30 May 2025.
"Dr. Edward Kline, 81, Retired Official of G.E." New York Times, 2 Apr. 1990, https://www.nytimes.com/1990/08/02/obituaries/dr-edward-kline-81-retired-official-of-ge.html.
Economist Warns Elon Musk Will Never Solve This One Problem on His Own. 22 May 2025, https://www.hks.harvard.edu/centers/mrcbg/publications/economist-warns-elon-musk-will-never-solve-one-problem-his-own.
"Elon Musk Harvard Professor Unsolvable Problem." Bing, https://www.bing.com/search?q=elon+musk+harvard+professor+unsolvable+problem&form=QBLH&sp=-1&lq=0&pq=elon+musk+harvard+professor+unsolvable+problem≻=0-46&qs=n&sk=&cvid=A5178A3AAE314C8DB6630874AFC75683. Accessed 30 May 2025.
Elon Musk Harvard Professor Unsolvable Problem - Yahoo Search Results. https://uk.news.search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=AwrLA4VXrTloFAIAH6RLBQx.;_ylu=Y29sbwNpcjIEcG9zAzEEdnRpZAMEc2VjA3BpdnM-?p=elon+musk+harvard+professor+unsolvable+problem&fr2=piv-web&fr=yfp-t. Accessed 30 May 2025.
Elon Musk Harvard Professor Unsolvable Problem at DuckDuckGo. https://duckduckgo.com/?t=h_&q=elon+musk+harvard+professor+unsolvable+problem&ia=news&iar=news. Accessed 30 May 2025.
Google Search. https://www.google.com/search?q=elon+musk+harvard+professor+unsolvable+problem&sca_esv=3cef0c337813fef5&source=lnms&fbs=AIIjpHxU7SXXniUZfeShr2fp4giZrjP_Cx0LI1Ytb_FGcOviEiTm5uW1q0uNfK7KsnoL8hUg06K347Xr_kWFCjXpD3giPlOu6Ip_C2gm4sgfyGeJGwujJwEDuT0pjPMndqq7CSACzRYwCcd-Ru77rPsMRcR-opyh7qN7BLNitQ9Xx1aBLZW6_ssAAXIGRbPtzkxTgpMvVFXPnCcwNtBAG9YfIHyIUPIcnQ&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjF05mnocuNAxXN-AIHHab8IKQQ0pQJegQIBxAD&biw=1470&bih=712&dpr=2. Accessed 30 May 2025.
Hive Moderation. https://hivemoderation.com/ai-generated-content-detection. Accessed 30 May 2025.
Inc, Kaniewski Funeral Homes. "Obituary for Dr. Edward Alton (Ed) Kline." Obituary for Dr. Edward Alton (Ed) Kline, https://www.kaniewski.com/obituary/DrEdward-Kline. Accessed 30 May 2025.
People Directory: Stanford Who. https://stanfordwho.stanford.edu/ords/r/regapps/swho/public-people-directory?p24_redirect_search=Edward%20Kline&clear=RR,24&cs=3W_B_aqWwknP7lXWaT98EXvup-mhuifEUmF_nLY6nreGohDPd3jSxmHAY_1tnUqmm3O0rRtXoBvQ-j0LAnbi_VA. Accessed 30 May 2025.
Scholastic Volume 115, No.4 . 7 Nov. 1973, https://archives.nd.edu/Scholastic/VOL_0115/VOL_0115_ISSUE_0004.pdf.
University, Harvard. "Search." Harvard University, https://www.harvard.edu/search/. Accessed 30 May 2025.
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Decoding Elon Musk's Timeline Promises: The Key Phrase Investors Should Watch Elon Musk's tendency to set ambitious deadlines that often go unmet has become a well-known pattern in the business... This story originally appeared on Calendar Decoding Elon Musk's Timeline Promises: The Key Phrase Investors Should Watch Elon Musk's tendency to set ambitious deadlines that often go unmet has become a well-known pattern in the business world. While this habit can frustrate investors waiting for results, analysts have identified a specific linguistic marker that may help determine whether Musk's promises will actually materialize. The serial entrepreneur behind Tesla, SpaceX, and now X (formerly Twitter) has developed a reputation for announcing product launches, features, and business milestones with timelines that frequently prove too optimistic. This pattern has created a complex relationship with investors, who must balance Musk's visionary goals against his track record of missed deadlines. The Telltale Signal in Musk's Communications According to those who closely follow Musk's statements, there appears to be a particular phrase or verbal cue that signals when a promise is more likely to be fulfilled. While the specific wording hasn't been publicly identified, investors and analysts have begun paying closer attention to the language Musk uses when making timeline announcements. This linguistic pattern reportedly offers insight into which projects have concrete development paths versus those that remain aspirational. The distinction has proven valuable for investors trying to make informed decisions about Musk's companies. 'The difference between Musk's successful predictions and his missed deadlines often comes down to how he frames the announcement,' noted a market analyst who has tracked Musk's public statements for years. 'There's a subtle but important difference in his language when he's confident about delivery versus when he's expressing an ambitious goal.' The Business Impact of Missed Deadlines Musk's optimistic timelines have had mixed effects on his businesses. On one hand, they've created excitement and anticipation that drives media coverage and consumer interest. On the other, they've led to disappointment and skepticism when deadlines pass without delivery. For Tesla shareholders, this pattern has meant weathering significant stock volatility tied to production targets and feature rollouts. The company's Full Self-Driving capability, for instance, has seen multiple timeline revisions since its initial announcement. At SpaceX, similar patterns have emerged with the development of Starship and the timeline for Mars missions. Yet despite the delays, both companies have achieved remarkable technological breakthroughs, suggesting that Musk's ambitious targets, while not always met on time, do push his teams toward innovation. Investor Strategies for Musk's Companies Experienced investors in Musk's ventures have developed strategies to navigate his timeline promises: Focus on the technological progress rather than delivery dates Add buffer time to any announced deadline Watch for the specific linguistic markers that signal higher probability of on-time delivery Pay attention to concrete progress updates rather than initial announcements Some investors have found success by focusing less on when Musk says something will happen and more on whether it will happen at all. This approach acknowledges that while timelines may slip, the core innovations often do materialize eventually. The Psychology Behind the Pattern Business psychologists suggest that Musk's approach to deadlines may be tied to his management style. By setting nearly impossible targets, he creates urgency and pushes teams to achieve more than they might with conservative goals. 'This approach can be highly effective for driving innovation,' explained an organizational behavior expert. 'The downside is that it creates credibility issues with external stakeholders who take the deadlines at face value.' For Musk, the benefits of ambitious targets appear to outweigh the costs of missed deadlines. His companies continue to attract investment despite the pattern, suggesting that many investors value the eventual outcomes over punctuality. As Musk continues to lead multiple high-profile ventures, those watching his companies would be wise to listen carefully to his announcements, looking for the subtle signals that distinguish the truly imminent breakthroughs from the more distant aspirations. While frustrating for those seeking predictability, this approach to timelines has become an integral part of the risk-reward calculation for investing in Musk's vision of the future. The post Decoding Elon Musk's Timeline Promises: The Key Phrase Investors Should Watch appeared first on Calendar.
