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Wed, 06 May 2026

Wed, 06 May 2026 Former OpenAI board member says Elon Musk offered her sperm donations

Shivon Zilis is the mother of four of Musk's children. That relationship began as she advised OpenAI.
Shivon Zilis, a former OpenAI board member, testified in court that her unconventional personal relationship with Elon Musk evolved into having four children together. Zilis met Musk through her work as an advisor at OpenAI in 2016 and later became a director from 2020 to 2023. She stated that Musk offered to donate sperm in 2020 after she expressed a desire to have children, citing his encouragement for others around him to have kids. Zilis clarified that she was not romantically involved with Musk at the time of their child's conception and initially planned to keep his paternity confidential. However, as Musk became more involved in the lives of their first two children, he eventually became an active participant. Today, Zilis said they spend quality time together as a family. Zilis's testimony was part of Musk's lawsuit trying to reverse OpenAI's decision to become a for-profit company. She also discussed her role in early talks with Musk about changing the corporate structure of OpenAI and how she worked for and advised both OpenAI and Musk's other companies, including Tesla and Neuralink. Emails and text messages presented in court showed that Zilis had been discussing changes to OpenAI's corporate structure with Musk as early as 2017. However, a disagreement over control and direction ultimately led to the company's decision to remain non-profit.