--- title: "Kara Swisher Says Elon Musk Is Addicted to a Bizarre “Drug”: Sycophancy" description: "Silicon Valley chronicler Kara Swisher says Elon Musk's need for adoration and lack of real support has led the SpaceX CEO down a dark road." date: "2024-03-05" modified: "2024-03-05" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/swisher-musk-drug-sycophants" categories: - "Elon Musk" - "Future Society" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "elon musk" - "silicon valley" - "the digest" --- # Kara Swisher Says Elon Musk Is Addicted to a Bizarre “Drug”: Sycophancy ![Silicon Valley chronicler Kara Swisher says Elon Musk's need for adoration and lack of real support has led the SpaceX CEO down a dark road.]() *\Image: Harry How via Getty / Futurism\* ## Dark Road Elon Musk is allegedly a [fan of several psychoactive drugs](). But according to the venerable Silicon Valley chronicler Kara Swisher, the vice proving most destructive to the SpaceX and Tesla CEO is a little less tangible than the others. "The drug that's hurting Elon Musk is all his enablers, who suck up to him. And needing to be adored," Swisher recently [told *The Guardian*]() when asked about the mercurial CEO's very public slide — mostly documented via X-formerly-Twitter, the platform he [purchased for $44 billion in 2022]() — into red-pilled conspiracyville. "That'll kill you." "You could see him getting more and more radicalized," Swisher continued. "He suddenly got obsessed with the woke mind virus, whatever the hell that is, and angry all the time." In other words, according to Swisher, a lack of accountability from those in his inner circle combined with a [very obvious need for others to like him]() have led Musk — the world's richest man and arguably its most powerful unelected official — down a deeply destructive and [conspiracy-laden]() [road](). And given Musk's immense real-world power, it's led to serious consequences [for himself]() and [his companies]() in turn. (Or, at least, as real as consequences might get for the richest person in history.) ## Sycophant Symphony Swisher certainly wouldn't be the first to call out Musk's penchant for surrounding himself with sycophants. In late 2022, shortly after Musk took over Twitter, the venture capitalist and longtime Musk pal Chris Sacca [noted that]() he'd "recently watched those around him become increasingly sycophantic and opportunistic." "Simply put, agreeing with him is easier," the investor added, "and there is more financial and social upside." ## Not Angry, Just Disappointed Swisher's comments to the *Guardian* were prompted by some statements she reportedly made about Musk in her newly-released book, titled "Burn Book." In the book, per the *Guardian*, Swisher says that Facebook founder and [sword guy]() Mark Zuckerberg has been the "most damaging man in tech," while Musk has, to her, been the "most disappointing." "Here's someone who actually was doing serious things," the journalist told the *Guardian*. "There's a lot of people in Silicon Valley who are always doing a dry cleaning app. He was thinking of everything from cars to space to solar." Indeed, Swisher's sentiment seems to capture why Musk's descent into red-pilled conspiracy-mongering has been so jarring. Musk has never been without his faults, but for a long time, his public image was one of a true visionary. But now, between his [rampant antisemitism]() and [racism](), [erratic antics](), and [otherwise disappointing behavior](), his once-inspiring vision has never looked so clouded. **More on Musk:** [*Elon Musk Sues OpenAI for Doing For-Profit AI, Which He's Also Doing*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()