Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently apologized to Indian-American billionaire Vinod Khosla after previously criticizing him over a ‘no plebs allowed’ sign on a beach. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Musk shared an image with a sign reading “No plebs allowed. Property of Vinod Khosla” and commented, “Wow, so crazy that @vkhosla put this sign on a public beach.”
Khosla quickly denied the claim, responding that the sign was fake and asking Musk for an apology. He said, “You owe me an apology for spreading falsehoods,” and suggested the image may have been AI-generated, stating, “I have never put up this sign or anything remotely like this.”
You owe me an apology for spreading falsehoods. I think this post of yours needs a community comment for being a fraudulent photo. I have never put up this sign or anything even remotely like this. I presume it is AI generated but you can verify that. It will help X if we can… https://t.co/5PVE8uxDpH
— Vinod Khosla (@vkhosla) September 22, 2024
Khosla also emphasized the need for rational debate, pointing out areas of agreement and disagreement with Musk, while addressing a long-standing legal dispute regarding public access to Martins Beach, which he claims is private property. He clarified, “Every court ruling on ‘is there right of public access’ thru the property has supported my claim this is private property.”
Sorry I made a sign about you restricting access to a public beach.
That was so extremely terrible.
Please forgive me 🙏
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 22, 2024
In response, Musk apologized, stating, “Sorry I made a sign about you restricting access to a public beach. That was so extremely terrible. Please forgive me 🙏.”
The Martins Beach controversy dates back to 2008 when Khosla purchased property near the beach for $32.5 million. He erected a gate on the access road, preventing public entry, which sparked legal challenges. Despite Khosla’s legal defense, a Superior Court Judge recently rejected his attempt to dismiss a lawsuit, allowing the dispute to continue.