Elon Musk Has A Secret Instagram: Why The Tesla CEO Remains Anonymous On 'Thirst Trap' Social Media Platform

Zinger Key Points
  • Elon Musk is the fifth most followed account on social media platform Twitter.
  • Musk chose to stop using his public Instagram account and instead has a secret account on the platform.

The world’s richest person may have a large following on social media platform Twitter Inc TWTR, but don’t expect Elon Musk to join Instagram publicly anytime soon.

What Happened: Earlier this year, Tesla Inc TSLA CEO Musk passed the 100-million follower milestone on Twitter. Musk is the fifth most followed person on the social media platform, with 103.2 million followers and recently passing football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo. 

Musk has expressed his love for Twitter many times and made a buyout offer for the social media platform that is now tied up in court. Musk has also expressed his distaste for Facebook, a social media platform owned by Meta Platforms META.

Musk took down company pages for both Tesla and SpaceX on Facebook. The Tesla CEO kept pages for Tesla and SpaceX up on Instagram, the photo sharing social media platform also owned by Meta Platforms. Tesla has over 9 million followers on Instagram.

“It’s not a political statement and I didn’t do this because someone dared me to do it. Just don’t like Facebook. Gives me the willies. Sorry,” Musk has said.

Musk, on the other hand, has a very small following on Instagram.

That’s because Musk is one of the many celebrities who have a secret Instagram account, or “Finsta,” that they can use to click on links and check out others without worrying about posting themselves.

“I do have a secret Instagram account,” Musk said on the Full Send Podcast. “I can click on links.”

Related Link: Does Elon Musk Consult Legal Team Before Tweeting? Does Someone Else Ever Post From His Account?

Twitter Over Instagram: During the interview, Musk pledged his allegiance to Twitter.

“I only need one means of communicating,” Musk said.

Musk said he hasn’t used his secret Instagram to troll anyone yet.

The Tesla CEO admitted he previously had his own personal public Instagram account, but found himself taking a lot of selfies as a result.

“Instagram, man — it’s a thirst trap, you know.”

Musk said he questioned why he found himself taking so many selfies and trying to get likes on Instagram.

“Whatever message I’m trying to get across I can put on Twitter.”

Musk said sometimes users on Instagram share his tweets.

The Tesla CEO said he has never had additional Twitter accounts other than his own, answering a question of secret Twitter accounts or “burner accounts.”

Musk said he doesn’t use Snapchat, the video messaging app owned by Snap Inc SNAP.

During the interview, Musk said his secret Instagram account has zero followers. Since the interview aired, Musk said his follower account grew, potentially showing that people have found him on IG. 

“Somehow I have 54 followers,” Musk tweeted.

Since the episode aired and Musk's tweet about 54 followers, internet sleuths have been tasked with finding his secret Instagram account. 

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Photo via Shutterstock. 

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