Tesla chief Elon Musk has denied reports of an affair with Nicole Shanahan, the wife of Google co-founder Sergey Brin. The Wall Street Journal claimed the alleged relationship had ended the long friendship between the two tech billionaires.
Responding to a Twitter post linking to the story, Mr Musk called it 'total bs' and insisted he remains friends with Mr Brin, adding that they were 'at a party together last night!' In a separate tweet, he said he had only seen Ms Shanahan twice in three years, 'both times with many other people around. Nothing romantic'.
The Wall Street Journal, citing sources, reported that Mr Musk had a brief affair with Ms Shanahan late last year, prompting Mr Brin to file for divorce earlier this year. The paper said the couple were separated but living together at the time, and are now negotiating a divorce settlement that could reach $1bn.
Ms Shanahan is a California-based attorney and founder of ClearAccessIP and the Bia-Echo Foundation, which focuses on reproductive longevity, criminal justice reform, and environmental issues. Mr Musk, the world's richest person with a fortune over $240bn, is also facing legal action from Twitter over his abandoned $44bn takeover bid.
