Elon Musk has revealed that his partner Shivon Zilis is of Indian origin and one of their sons was given a middle name derived from Nobel Prize-winning astrophysicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar. The chief of Tesla and SpaceX made this revelation on the podcast of Nikhil Kamath, co-founder of Zerodha, during which he spoke extensively about the background, family history, and children of Zilis.
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Middle name ‘Sekhar’ honours Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar
Musk explained during the discussion that one of his sons with Zilis had the middle name "Sekhar" and was named after Chandrasekhar. " I’m not sure if you know this, but my partner Shivon is half-Indian," adding, “one of my sons with her, his middle name is Sekhar after Chandrasekhar.”
Musk said that Zilis was born in Canada and was adopted as a child. He said, “She was given up for adoption when she was a baby. I think her father was an exchange student at a university or something like that,” although he admitted he did not know the full details of her early family history. Zilis grew up in Canada and later went on to build an academic and professional career that took her into Musk's orbit.
Zilis's role at Neuralink and her background
Shivon Zilis joined Neuralink in 2017 and is currently Director of Operations and Special Projects. A Yale University graduate, she studied Economics and Philosophy before moving into the technology and neuroscience space. Zilis and Musk have four children together: twins Strider and Azure, daughter Arcadia, and a son named Seldon Lycurgus.
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Musk on Indian talent in the US
During the same podcast, Musk also referred to Indian professionals contributing to the United States. “America has been an immense beneficiary of talent from India, but that seems to be changing now”, Musk said. He further mentioned that it has gained a lot from Indian talent over the years and felt this might get affected by uncertainties with regards to visas off late and stricter immigration pathways.
