Elon Musk Reportedly Apologized To Google Co-Founder Sergey Brin Over Alleged Affair

Billionaire Elon Musk reportedly apologized to Google co-founder Sergey Brin over an alleged affair that he had with his wife last December.

On Sunday, the Wall Street Journal released a bombshell report, revealing that the Tesla CEO had a brief affair with Brin's wife, Nicole Shanahan, last December. In January, Brin filed for divorce, citing "irreconcilable differences."

The two tech giants had been friends for a long time, and Brin had even helped support Musk's electric car company during the economic crisis in 2008 with $500,000 dollars.

A source close to the incident told the Wall Street Journal that Elon Musk actually flagged Brin down at an art festival in Miami Beach after the alleged affair occurred. The source said that the world's richest man, at least according to Forbes, literally got down on one knee as he begged his former friend for forgiveness.

Sergey Brin, whose net worth is estimated to be around $95 billion dollars, has acknowledged Musk's apology but sources told the Wall Street Journal that the two are still not on speaking terms.

In September, the SpaceX founder and his girlfriend, Canadian pop star Grimes, reportedly called it quits. The alleged affair reportedly took place a few months later, in December, at the Art Basel event. The multiday annual art festival features works of art by renowned international creators and discussions from affluent art collectors.

Sources familiar with the relationship between Sergey Brin and Nicole Shanahan told the Wall Street Journal that the couple's relationship had been strained due to problems related to the COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns. The couple reportedly also disagreed about how to parent their daughter. Although some reports say they have a son, Business Insider reported that the couple married on November 7, 2018, and welcomed a daughter in late 2018.

One insider close to Shanahan told the WSJ that the couple was separated at the time of the alleged affair, but was still living together.

According to legal documents, Shanahan is requesting more than $1 billion dollars from Brin. Divorce proceedings are currently ongoing, as sources for Brin claim that Shanahan wants more than their prenuptial agreement calls for.

Attorneys for Shanahan are saying that she signed the prenup under duress while she was pregnant, according to the Wall Street Journal.

This is not the first time that the Google co-founder has gone through a messy divorce. In May 2007, Brin married biotech analyst and entrepreneur Anne Wojcicki in the Bahamas. In late 2008, they had a son and welcomed a daughter a few years later in late 2011.

In August 2013, several sources revealed that Brin and his wife were living separately after Brin had an affair of his own with Amanda Rosenberg, who was working as Google Glass's marketing director at the time. In June 2015, Brin and Wojcicki finalized their divorce.

Although the former couple has gone their separate ways, Brin and Wojcicki still jointly run The Brin Wojcicki Foundation.

The Foundation is noted for its philanthropic efforts and has contributed large sums to The Michael J. Fox Foundation. In 2009, they donated one million dollars to support the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, according to the New York Times.

Elon Musk has also been the subject of many different scandals lately. He recently fathered twins with one of his top Neuralink executives, which had many questioning the timeline of his split with Grimes.

His father, the South African engineer Errol Musk, 76, recently revealed that he had welcomed a second love child with his stepdaughter, age 35, several years ago. He now said that a company has asked him to donate his sperm to "high-class women," to which he replied, "Why not?"

And, of course, there is still the legal battle between Elon Musk and Twitter. In April, Musk agreed to buy the social media company for $44 billion dollars. Earlier this month, he announced that he wants to "terminate" the deal, but Twitter is taking him to court, hoping that a judge will rule that Musk has to make good on his word to buy the company. More information on the lawsuit can be found here.