Elon Musk Reveals Plans To File ‘for Full Custody’ of His Son With Conservative Influencer Ashley St. Clair

Billionaire Elon Musk appears to have publicly confirmed his paternity of conservative influencer Ashley St. Clair's son, while vowing to file "for full custody" of the 1-year-old boy.

Musk, 54, who has fathered at least 14 children with four different women, announced his plans to pursue legal action against St. Clair, 27, in a post shared on his social media platform, X, on Jan. 12.

He stated that his decision to pursue custody of the child, who is named Romulus, came after his son's mother publicly apologized for past transphobic remarks, while expressing the "immense guilt" she feels for having caused "pain" to the transgender community, specifically Musk's daughter, Vivian.

"I feel immense guilt for my role," St. Clair wrote in a post on X, while responding to a user questioning how she feels about having displayed "blatant transphobia."

"And [I feel] even more guilt that things I have said in the past may have caused my son's sister more pain. [I don't really know] how to make amends to many of these things but I have been trying incredibly hard, privately, to learn and advocate for those within the trans community that I've hurt."

Musk responded to St. Clair's post after it was shared by another user who urged the billionaire to pursue full custody.

"I will be filing for full custody today, given her statements implying she might transition a one-year-old boy," he wrote—despite St. Clair making no mention of any plans for her son to transition.

It marked the first time that the Tesla founder had publicly acknowledged his relationship with the child after St. Clair revealed in February 2025 that she had welcomed a baby with Musk.

"Five months ago, I welcomed a new baby into the world," she wrote in her Valentine's Day post. "Elon Musk is the father. I have not previously disclosed this to protect our child's privacy and safety, but in recent days it has become clear that tabloid media intends to do so, regardless of the harm it will cause.

"I intend to allow our child to grow in a normal and safe environment," she added, while calling for the media to "honor our child's privacy."

She later opened up about what she claimed became a bitter battle between herself and Musk, who, at the time, refused to publicly confirm his paternity of Romulus.

Speaking to The Wall Street Journal in April, St. Clair alleged that her decision to go public with her claims that Musk fathered her son led to a breakdown in their previously amicable relationship.

Before she posted on X, the conservative firebrand said the billionaire had offered her $15 million as well as $100,000 a month in support payments if she agreed to remain silent about the identity of Romulus' father.

She told the outlet that she refused the offer, largely out of concern that the arrangement would make her son feel illegitimate, while also leaving her with little financial security in the event that something happened to Musk before her child turned 21.

When St. Clair revealed the news about her child's birth, she was residing in a $15,000-a-month New York City apartment with Romulus and her firstborn child from another relationship.

In February, the Republican influencer claimed to the New York Post that Musk had "provided her" with the unit, which is located in Manhattan's Financial District, just a stone's throw from city hall.

The property, which boasts three bedrooms and two bathrooms, features large windows, wood flooring, and sweeping views of the Manhattan skyline.

According to records, the apartment was last leased in April 2024 for $15,350 a month. St. Clair's social media images indicate that she has been living there since at least May of that year—a few months before she claims she gave birth to Musk's child.

However, the mother of two claimed to the Wall Street Journal that her financial situation had taken a serious turn for the worse in the time since she had been living in the apartment—and she accused Musk of repeatedly slashing her support payments, just as her legal fees were skyrocketing.

After she chose to speak out about the circumstances of her son's conception and birth, she claimed Musk withdrew his offer to pay her $15 million, while the alleged $100,000-a-month support payments were cut to $40,000.

St. Clair told the outlet that she didn't receive her "scheduled child support payment" on April 11—one day after the Journal contacted Musk for a comment about her story. On April 15, hours before the report was published, she says a reduced payment of $20,000 was sent to her.

Then, in August, the mother of two claimed that her financial situation had reached a desperate level, claiming on her podcast, "Bad Advice with Ashley St. Clair," that she was on the verge of being evicted from her apartment—noting that she had launched the show in a bid to earn some money to prevent that from happening.

While she has not shared any other information about her financial situation, St. Clair has not released any further episodes of her podcast, and the apartment where she is known to have been living has not returned to the rental market.

Musk's pursuit of custody comes just one month after he confessed that he struggles to find time to spend with each of his children, telling the "WTF Is" podcast hosted by Nikhil Kamath that it is near "impossible" for him to carve out gaps in his schedule to dedicate to his kids.

"I definitely have my hands full right now," he said, prompting laughter from the host. "I do want to be able to spend some time with my kids. Right before coming here, I was with my kids, seeing them before bedtime, that kind of thing.

"Beyond a certain number, it's like, kind of impossible to spend time with them."

Musk—who is estranged from one of his eldest children, transgender daughter Vivian—noted that his older kids are all "very independent," particularly his sons, who he said he only sees "once in a while."

"I can only have enough kids on the young side where it's humanly possible to spend time with them," he admitted.

Musk conceded that the more traditional family archetype of "one child, one mother, one father" is what "works for most people," but said this kind of setup simply isn't in his nature.

Other than St. Clair's son, Musk has welcomed 13 known children since 2002; however, his firstborn died of sudden infant death syndrome at just 10 weeks old.

He went on to father five more children with his first wife, Justine Wilson: daughter Vivian, from whom he is estranged, and her twin, Griffin, both now 20; and triplets Saxon, Damian, and Kai.

The entrepreneur then welcomed three children with singer Grimes between 2020 and 2022, X Æ A-Xii, 5, who is known as “X”; Exa Dark Sideræl, 4, who is known as “Y”; and Techno Mechanicus, who was born in June 2022 and goes by “Tau.”

He shares his other four kids—twins Strider and Azure, 4, Arcadia, 1, and Seldon Lycurgus—with Shivon Zilis, an executive at his Neuralink company.

Although Musk has previously claimed that he resides primarily in a rented property worth around $50,000 that he leases from his space technology company SpaceX, he has since been revealed to own at least two other properties, including an enormous mansion in Austin, TX, which he reportedly had earmarked as the start of a compound where he'd be able to house several of his children.

His ownership of the property, which is located in the upscale neighborhood of West Lake Hills and was last purchased for $6 million in 2022, was only revealed in 2025—after neighbors began complaining about the chaos that was being caused by his presence in the community.

According to the New York Times, multiple complaints were filed by locals over an unauthorized 16-foot chain-link fence that had been erected around the home, for which Musk and his team had failed to obtain permits.

The outlet reported that the erection of the fence and gate violated six city ordinances.

Another complaint, lodged via a letter sent to the Zoning and Planning Commission by local resident Paul Hemmer, stated that the comings and goings at the Musk property were wreaking havoc on their otherwise "quiet streets."

"Transporting service employees to other houses, leaving their cars on our quiet streets, hauling laundry to and fro to other houses has to stop," he wrote.

The Times also reported that Musk had since purchased two other properties in the same area to create a "compound" in which to house many of his children and their mothers.