--- title: "SpaceX President Defends Elon Musk Against Sexual Misconduct Claims" description: "The president of SpaceX is claiming she's never seen or heard anything like the sexual misconduct allegations against CEO Elon Musk." date: "2022-05-24" modified: "2022-05-24" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/spacex-president-defends-elon" categories: - "Elon Musk" - "Future Society" - "Space" - "SpaceX" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "elon musk" - "sexual harassment" - "sexual misconduct" - "SpaceX" --- # SpaceX President Defends Elon Musk Against Sexual Misconduct Claims ![The president of SpaceX is claiming she's never seen or heard anything like the sexual misconduct allegations against CEO Elon Musk.]() *\Image: Getty Images/Futurism\* The president of SpaceX is claiming she's never seen or heard anything like the sexual misconduct allegations against CEO Elon Musk in the 20 years they've worked together. In an email to employees at the rocket manufacturer [obtained by *C**NBC*](), SpaceX President and COO Gwynne Shotwell said she believes the recently-reported accusations against Musk — that he paid for a flight attendant's silence after allegedly [harassing and retaliating against her]() when she rebuffed his advances — aren't true. "Personally, I believe the allegations to be false," Shotwell wrote in a company-wide email, "not because I work for Elon, but because I have worked closely with him for 20 years and never seen nor heard anything resembling these allegations." In [an *Insider* exposé]() last week, an unnamed woman who was friends with the flight attendant shared documents with the website about the harassment that allegedly took place in 2016. Though the flight attendant allegedly signed a nondisclosure agreement in 2018 in exchange for the purported $250,000 payout from SpaceX, the friend did not. Shotwell, notably, [neither confirmed nor denied]() the $250,000 payment in the email. According to *Insider*, the flight attendant was giving Musk a massage on a private SpaceX jet in 2016 when he exposed his erect penis to her, touched her without her consent, and told her he'd "buy her a horse" — an apparent reference to the woman's equestrian hobby — if she "did more." She refused, the friend said, and later had her shifts cut back in what she believed was retaliation for rebuffing the CEO's advances. In 2018, the woman brought a sexual misconduct suit against Musk and SpaceX, which was, per *Insider*'s reporting, settled out of court for $250,000 and an NDA. The flight attendant's friend signed a sworn declaration about the incident that the website also obtained. In her email to SpaceX employees, Shotwell said that she "will never comment on any legal matters involving employment issues" and noted that Musk has also denied the allegations from the flight attendant, whose name has also not been released to the public. In response to *Insider*, Musk said the flight attendant's allegations are part of a "politically motivated hit piece," and on Twitter [called the woman's friend]() a "liar." "If I were inclined to engage in sexual harassment," Musk told the website, "this is unlikely to be the first time in my entire 30-year career that it comes to light." It should be noted, however, that although this is the first accusation leveled against the SpaceX CEO himself, his companies have been [known for their own sexual misconduct scandals](). Following the allegations last week, [Musk flew to Brazil]() to meet with its fascist president and [declared on Twitter that he had become a Republican](). This whole saga, of course, ensued just after news broke that [Musk was putting his bid to purchase Twitter on hold](). **READ MORE:** [SpaceX president defends Elon Musk over sexual misconduct claims: ‘I believe the allegations to be false’]() \[*CNBC*\] **More on Elon:** *[Elon Musk Has Officially Lost $69 Billion Billion This Year]()* ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()