A new book by Walter Isaacson reveals some details about the relationship between Elon Musk, the billionaire founder of Tesla and SpaceX, and Grimes, the Canadian singer and producer. The book, which is based on interviews with Musk and his associates, describes how the couple met, dated, and eventually parted ways.
A shared pun on Twitter
The book says that Musk and Grimes connected on Twitter in 2018, after they both made a pun on the concept of Roko’s basilisk, a thought experiment that imagines a future where a powerful artificial intelligence will punish those who did not help create it. Musk had tweeted “Rococo basilisk”, referring to the ornate style of art and architecture in the 18th century. Grimes had posted a video of her song “Flesh Without Blood”, in which she dressed as a character named Rococo Basilisk.
Musk noticed Grimes’ tweet and messaged her, asking her out for dinner. She agreed, and flew to California to meet him.
A tour of the Tesla factory
The book says that their first date was at the Tesla factory in Fremont, where Musk showed Grimes around his electric car production facility. Grimes told Isaacson that she was impressed by Musk’s passion and vision for his company.
“We just walked the floor all night, and I watched him try to fix things,” she said.
The next day, Musk picked her up for dinner in his Tesla Model S.
A trivia test on ‘Lord of the Rings’
The book says that on their way to the restaurant, Grimes compared Musk to Gandalf, the wise and powerful wizard from J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy series The Lord of the Rings. She said that Musk reminded her of Gandalf because he was “trying to save humanity from itself”.
Musk, who is a fan of Tolkien’s books, responded by giving Grimes a “rapid-fire trivia test” on The Lord of the Rings. He wanted to see if she was really familiar with the story and the characters. Grimes passed the test, which pleased Musk.
“That mattered to me,” he told Isaacson.
A wild ride with Autopilot
The book says that during their drive, Musk also demonstrated his Tesla’s Autopilot feature, which allows the car to steer, accelerate, and brake automatically. He showed Grimes how fast the car could go, then took his hands off the wheel and covered his eyes with them.
“I was like, oh shit, this guy is fucking crazy,” Grimes said. “The car was signaling and changing lanes by itself. It felt like a scene out of a Marvel movie.”
The book says that Grimes found Musk’s stunt thrilling and exciting, even though Tesla does not advise drivers to operate its vehicles in this way.
A box of animal bones
The book says that after their second date, Grimes gave Musk a gift: a box of animal bones that she had collected. She said that she thought he would appreciate the gesture, since he was interested in science and nature.
Musk accepted the gift and thanked her. He told Isaacson that he liked Grimes because she was “creative” and “different”.
The book says that Musk and Grimes dated for three years and had two children together: X Æ A-12 in 2020 and Exa Dark Sideræl in 2021. They announced their separation in 2021, but said they remained friends and co-parents.
