The New York Times has reported allegations that Nicole Shanahan, the ex-wife of Google co-founder Sergey Brin and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s former vice presidential pick, had an affair with Elon Musk in 2021, leading to her separation and subsequent divorce from Brin. Shanahan reportedly received a $1 billion settlement in her divorce last year.
In an article titled “A Running Mate’s History: $1 Billion, Cocaine, a Fling With Elon Musk,” The New York Times disclosed new details of the alleged affair between Shanahan and Musk, which both parties deny.
Shanahan, a 38-year-old lawyer, married Brin in 2018. During their five-year marriage, she socialized with the elite circles of Silicon Valley and used various recreational drugs, including ketamine, cocaine, and psychedelic mushrooms, according to eight individuals and documents reviewed by The New York Times. Three of these sources also claimed that Shanahan consumed ketamine with Tesla founder Elon Musk at a party.
The report mentioned that the coronavirus pandemic was a challenging period for both Shanahan and Brin, who were also grappling with their daughter’s autism diagnosis. During this time, Shanahan reportedly began attending social events more frequently without her husband.
In the fall of 2021, she hosted a birthday celebration for herself, which Elon Musk—known to be a friend of Brin’s—attended. The alleged sexual encounter between Musk and Shanahan occurred later that same year.
The gathering in question occurred in December 2021 and was organized by Elon Musk’s brother, Kimbal Musk, in Miami. According to four individuals, Elon Musk and Shanahan consumed ketamine together during the event and “disappeared together for several hours.”
Subsequently, Shanahan reportedly informed her then-husband Sergey Brin about a sexual encounter with Musk, as recounted by three sources to The New York Times. She also conveyed the same information to friends and family.
Approximately two weeks following the party, Brin and Shanahan parted ways. In 2022, Brin filed for divorce, citing “irreconcilable differences.”