Latest news with #Zilis
Yahoo
19-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Elon Musk Using Eugenics Startup to Inspect DNA of Potential Babies for Intelligence
An Austin eugenics startup apparently counts billionaire Elon Musk and his girlfriend, Neuralink director Shivon Zilis, among its clients. That company, Orchid Health, provides tony clients the opportunity to screen their embryos for genetic illnesses starting at around $22,500. While there are a handful of similar genetic prediction firms, Orchid stands out by claiming that it can sequence embryos' entire genome using as few as five cells and predict far more than its competitors. And according to two sources close to the company who spoke to the Washington Post, its services have been used for at least one of Zilis and Musk's four children. While it's not at all news that Musk, the father of at least 14 children by multiple women, is obsessed with reproduction, this claim — which expands on reporting from The Information last year — casts the billionaire's pronatalism in a new and even more unsettling light. One of WaPo's Orchid insiders, who was not named to protect their privacy, told the newspaper that 30-year-old company founder Noor Siddiqi had provided Musk and Zilis with special screenings, which supposedly use bespoke algorithms to determine the embryo's potential for being intelligent. (While the company insists it's not involved in "eugenics," a word meaning "good genes," it is very literally helping parents select good genes, and the alleged intelligence selection does sound a lot like the dictionary definition of the practice.) That claim appears to fall in line with a telling tidbit Zilis divulged to Musk biographer Walter Isaacson: that the billionaire "really wants smart people to have kids," and that she chose to procreate with him after he encouraged her to have her own. When WaPo reached out to Orchid to ask about Musk and Zilis, as well as those intelligence screening allegations, the company declined to comment and claimed that although it does screen for intellectual disabilities, it does not offer any predictions about a future child's intelligence. Be that as it may, services like Orchid's are mired in both ethical and practical issues. Along with the perception that such services are tantamount to playing God, genetics experts who spoke with WaPo were very skeptical about Orchid's claim that it can sequence an embryo's entire genome from just five cells. According to Svetlana Yatsenko, a Stanford research genetics specialist, the company's use of a process called amplification, which copies DNA strands from small samples for analysis, is problematic because it's essentially using photocopies that could introduce inaccuracies to either rule out or declare genetic disorders. "You're making many, many mistakes in the amplification," Yatsenko told WaPo. "It's basically Russian roulette." Beyond the broad strokes, Orchid's own accountability problems appear much darker when considering how often Musk has cast bigoted aspersions on other races for their purported intellectual inferiority. More on genetic services: Genetics Startup Advertises App-Based Eugenics Service for Parents to Select "Smartest" Embryos Solve the daily Crossword
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Express Tribune
17-04-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
Elon Musk grants special status to one mother of his children
Shivon Zilis, a top executive at Neuralink and mother to four of Elon Musk's children, is said to enjoy 'special status' among his partners, according to a report by The Daily Beast, citing The Wall Street Journal. Zilis is reportedly treated preferentially by Musk, who has fathered at least 14 children with four women. Sources claim Musk regularly spends time at Zilis' home in Austin and includes her in high-profile public appearances. Zilis, a Yale graduate and senior figure at Musk's brain-implant startup, told Musk biographer Walter Isaacson that he encouraged her to have children, believing 'smart people' should reproduce. She has publicly praised Musk, calling him someone who endures personal hardship to fight for a better future for humanity. In February, Zilis announced the birth of her fourth child with Musk. She was later seen with Musk at a pre-inauguration event in Washington, D.C., alongside Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez, and joined him with two of their children during a meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In contrast, other mothers of Musk's children, including musician Grimes and influencer Ashley St. Clair, are said to have received different treatment. St. Clair was reportedly offered financial compensation to remain silent about her son with Musk. Grimes, who shares three children with him, allegedly declined to move into a gated compound Musk envisioned for his growing family. According to the report, Zilis lives in the gated Austin compound with her children, and Musk visits regularly. His first wife, Justine Wilson, shares five children with him and has previously spoken about financial support arrangements dating back to their divorce in 2008.
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Elon Musk announces birth of ‘14th' child – a son named Seldon Lycurgus
Elon Musk's ever-growing brood of children has expanded once again after he confirmed the arrival of a new son named Seldon Lycurgus. The baby is believed to be his 14th child and the fourth he has had with Shivon Zilis, a Canadian executive at Neuralink, his neurotechnology firm. The billionaire, now working with Donald Trump as the head of the department of government efficiency or Doge, has forged a reputation for giving his children highly unusual names, including Exa Dark Sideræl, Strider, Azure and X Æ A-12, known as X for short. Ms Zilis announced the birth on X, the social media platform owned by Mr Musk, and also disclosed the name of their third child, which had been unknown until now. 'Discussed with Elon and, in light of beautiful Arcadia's birthday, we felt it was better to also just share directly about our wonderful and incredible son Seldon Lycurgus,' 38-year-old Ms Zilis wrote. 'Built like a juggernaut, with a solid heart of gold. Love him so much,' she wrote. Mr Musk responded with a heart emoji. The founder of SpaceX and Tesla believes that humanity is at risk from declining birth rates and has signalled his intention to have a large number of children. 'Bravo to big families,' the 53-year-old billionaire said three years ago. He has described falling birth rates as 'the biggest danger civilisation faces by far.' His offspring have been born to at least three different women: Ms Zilis; the Canadian electropop musician Grimes, whose real name is Claire Boucher; his ex-wife, author Justine Wilson; and, allegedly, with a glamorous young Maga influencer called Ashley St Clair, 26. She has filed a lawsuit claiming that Musk is the father of her five-month-old son. Ms St Clair says there is no doubt about the paternity of the baby. In her lawsuit, she insisted that she 'did not have sexual intercourse with any other male during the time the child was conceived.' As part of her evidence, she included text messages allegedly sent to her by Mr Musk. In one exchange, he allegedly wrote: 'I look forward to seeing you and him this weekend.' On X, she wrote: 'Five months ago, I welcomed a new baby into the world. Elon Musk is the father.' Mr Musk has yet to respond publicly to her claim. At the time that she met Mr Musk, she was working for the conservative satirical website The Babylon Bee, a Christian, Right-wing version of The Onion. A regular guest on conservative news outlets, she has warned about declining birth rates in developed countries, a concern shared by many Republicans. Mr Musk has six children with his first wife, followed by three with Grimes and now four with Ms Zilis. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
01-03-2025
- Telegraph
Elon Musk announces birth of ‘14th' child - a son named Seldon Lycurgus
Elon Musk's ever-growing brood of children has expanded once again after he confirmed the arrival of a new son named Seldon Lycurgus. The baby is believed to be his 14th child and the fourth he has had with Shivon Zilis, a Canadian executive at Neuralink, his neurotechnology firm. The billionaire, now working with Donald Trump as the head of the Department of government efficiency or Doge, has forged a reputation for giving his children highly unusual names, including Exa Dark Sideræl, Strider, Azure and X Æ A-12, known as X for short. Ms Zilis announced on X, the social media platform owned by Mr Musk, and also disclosed the name of their third child, which had been unknown until now. 'Discussed with Elon and, in light of beautiful Arcadia's birthday, we felt it was better to also just share directly about our wonderful and incredible son Seldon Lycurgus,' 38-year-old Ms Zilis wrote. 'Built like a juggernaut, with a solid heart of gold. Love him so much,' she wrote. Mr Musk responded with a heart emoji. The founder of SpaceX and Tesla believes that humanity is at risk from declining birth rates and has signalled his intention to have a large number of children. 'Bravo to big families,' the 53-year-old billionaire said three years ago. He has described falling birth rates as 'the biggest danger civilisation faces by far.' His offspring have been born to at least three different women: Ms Zilis; the Canadian electropop musician Grimes, whose real name is Claire Boucher; his ex-wife, author Justine Wilson; and, allegedly, with a glamorous young Maga influencer called Ashley St Clair, 26. She has filed a lawsuit claiming that Musk is the father of her five-month-old son. Ms St. Clair says there is no doubt about the paternity of the baby. In her lawsuit, she insisted that she 'did not have sexual intercourse with any other male during the time the child was conceived.' As part of her evidence, she included text messages allegedly sent to her by Mr Musk. In one exchange, he allegedly wrote: 'I look forward to seeing you and him this weekend.' On X, she wrote: 'Five months ago, I welcomed a new baby into the world. Elon Musk is the father.' Mr Musk has yet to respond publicly to her claim. At the time that she met Mr Musk, she was working for the conservative satirical website The Babylon Bee - a Christian, Right-wing version of The Onion. A regular guest on conservative news outlets, she has warned about declining birth rates in developed countries - a concern shared by many Republicans. Mr Musk has six children with his first wife, followed by three with the musician Grimes and now four with Ms Zilis.
