By Andrea Hargraves 
Musk’s brief love affair with the wife of one of his close friends, Nicole Shanahan, hastened his divorce filing. Now, given the fortune of Google co-founder Sergey Brin, there could be a long-running dispute at stake. Musk apologized, but the friendship doesn’t seem to have survived.
It seems that the friendship between two of the richest men in the world is over. Elon Musk had a short romantic relationship with the wife of Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google. The couple is now in the process of divorce, writes The Wall Street Journalciting sources related to the case.
Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, with an estimated fortune of $240 billion (about 235 billion euros), will be engaged with Nicole Shanahan in early December 2021, on a visit to the Art Basel art fair in Miami.
At the time of their association with Musk, Shanahan and Brin – the eighth richest man in the world, with a fortune of $95 billion (nearly €93 billion) – were already having relationship problems, although they continued to live together. Sources linked to the family have explained that the COVID-19 pandemic and the care of their three-year-old daughter will affect the relationship between the couple. In the divorce application, Brin refers to December 15 as the date of the separation.
Musk and Brin were good friends, with regular visits to each other’s home in Silicon Valley. Brian Musk gave about half a million dollars to Tesla during the 2008 financial crisis, as the company struggled to increase production. Musk responded to the gesture in 2015 by presenting his friend one of the first all-electric Tesla cars.
Sergey Brin with Nicole Shanahan (Getty Images)
Sorry on your knees
After his romance with Shanahan, according to the Wall Street Journal, Musk begged the Google co-founder for forgiveness, even getting to his knees at a party. Brin admitted to apologizing, but the managers have not spoken since. According to the Wall Street Journal, tension between the two has increased in recent months. Brin is said to have even ordered his teams to divest their investments in Musk’s companies.
Brin filed for divorce from Nicole Shanahan in early January, claiming “irreconcilable differences.” A protracted legal dispute is now expected, with the woman expecting to receive more than $1 billion, an amount her ex-partner considers too high, above a prenuptial agreement. The couple met at a yoga retreat about seven years ago and have been married for nearly four years.
Brin’s lawyer declined to comment on the case. Musk did not respond to a Wall Street Journal request for comment. So did the spokesperson for Shannan, who leads a foundation focused on reproductive justice.
The dispute between Musk and Brin adds to a long list of personal problems facing the Tesla founder, to which so do work challenges, including interruptions in the manufacture of the car brand and a legal dispute over his will. Withdrawal of $44 billion view via Twitter.