Elon Musk's Interview with Donald Trump on X Crashes: A Breakdown

Elon Musk's Interview with Donald Trump: A Technical Disaster

The highly anticipated conversation between Elon Musk and former President Donald Trump faced significant hiccups right from the start.

Delayed Start and Sound Issues

The interview was set to take place on X Spaces at 8 PM ET on Monday night. However, it was delayed for a staggering 42 minutes. During the wait, attendees reported that the event kicked off with just lo-fi techno music from Trump’s account, which played for approximately thirty minutes.

Claims of a DDOS Attack

As the delay continued, Musk took to X to explain the situation, attributing the postponement to a “massive DDOS attack” targeting the platform. He stated that this attack severely impacted the ability to host the Space as planned. However, observations from various Verge staffers indicated that the rest of the platform was functioning normally, casting doubt on Musk's claims.

Internal Confirmation

A source from X confirmed to The Verge that there was no actual DDOS attack taking place, and another staff member estimated a “99 percent” chance that Musk was not being truthful about the situation.

Testing and Resumption

In follow-up posts on X, Musk outlined that the platform had tested their system with a remarkable 8 million concurrent listeners on the same day and indicated that the Space would be held with a reduced number of listeners. At one point during the event, X stated there were approximately 915,000 people tuned into the Space.

Historical Context of Technical Glitches

The rocky start to this interview drew parallels to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s announcement about his 2023 presidential run, which also suffered from various technical difficulties. Musk had attributed that mishap to overloaded servers at the time.

The Fallout and Reactions

This incident has led to widespread discussion and critique regarding X's reliability under high-stakes situations. As more attention turns toward the platform's ability to handle significant events, Musk’s credibility has also come under scrutiny.

Conclusion

Ultimately, Musk's interview with Trump has highlighted both the challenges of live-streaming modern political discourse and the critical need for robust technological infrastructure in accommodating such high-profile events.

For those interested in deeper insights into the relationship between technology and politics, visit our related articles section for more information.