Tech

Elon Musk's 76-year-old dad says he's had another child with his 35-year-old stepdaughter: 'The only thing we are on Earth for is to reproduce'

South African Errol Musk who was visiting his son Kimbal Musk in Boulder, CO on Friday, March 28, 2014. Musk is the father of billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk
Errol Musk. Denver Post Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon
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Elon Musk's dad has fathered a second child with his stepdaughter, who is 41 years his junior, he said in a new interview. 

Errol Musk, 76, told The Sun Wednesday that he had a daughter with Jana Bezuidenhout, 35, in 2019.

The elder Musk and Bezuidenhout previously welcomed a son, Elliot Rush, who is now 5 years old.

Bezuidenhout's mother, Heide, and Musk were married for 18 years and share two children. Bezuidenhout was 4 years old when Musk became her stepfather.

Errol and Maye Musk were married from 1970 to 1979 and share three children: Elon, Kimbal, and Tosca.

Errol Musk told The Sun the child "wasn't planned," adding that he and Bezuidenhout lived together for roughly 18 months after the birth of their first child. They no longer live together but "have a lot of affection for each other," he said.

The elder Musk said his daughters were "shocked" by his relationship with Bezuidenhout. The New York Post reported that he had fathered a total of seven children.

"To them it was their sister," he told The Sun. "They still feel a bit creepy about it, because she's their sister. Their half-sister."

Speaking with the tabloid, Musk echoed his son's views on population growth.

"The only thing we are on Earth for is to reproduce," he said. "If I could have another child I would. I can't see any reason not to."

Today, Errol and Elon Musk are estranged.

Insider reported earlier this month that Elon Musk quietly had twins in November with one of his top Neuralink executives, Shivon Zilis. That means he has nine known children.

A day later, he tweeted, "Doing my best to help the underpopulation crisis. A collapsing birth rate is the biggest danger civilization faces by far."

The tech billionaire has repeatedly expressed concern about falling birth rates over the years. Last year, he tweeted that "civilization is going to crumble" if people don't have more children.

Experts say declining birth rates don't have to spell disaster if governments and corporate leaders take the right steps to adjust to a world with fewer people.

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Sarah Jackson
Sarah Jackson was a senior reporter at Business Insider who covers tech and trending business news, with a focus on the workplace. She has covered The Great Resignation, workplace trends, remote work and RTO, tech layoffs, the job search, and more. Before joining Business Insider in 2021, Sarah also wrote for places like Inc., NBC News, and The Today Show. She received her B.A. in journalism from NYU.Some of Sarah's top stories include:Workers are 'epiphany-quitting' their jobs after the pandemic forced them to rethink everything about their livesJob postings can reveal signs of trouble ahead with a potential employer or role. Here are the red flags that candidates should look for.The 'hushed hybrid' work schedule is the latest way employees are getting around a return to the officeNew York City employers are now required to list salary ranges in their job posts. Here's how that will affect candidates and companies.as-told-to: I do 'Bare Minimum Mondays' at work to help beat the 'Sunday scaries' and avoid burnout. It's completely changed my life and how I approach my job.