Jack Sweeney, a 19-year-old from Florida, rejected a US$5,000 supply from Elon Musk to delete his Twitter account that tracks the billionaire's non-public jet.
ElonJet has over 150,000 followers, and makes use of a bot that Sweeney developed to observe Musk's flights. The feed then tweets out when and the place the airplane takes off or lands and the period of every journey.
The faculty freshman has developed a few dozen different flight bot accounts that monitor the travels of high-profile tech titans, together with Invoice Gates and Jeff Bezos.
The preliminary direct message from Musk got here November 30, Protocol first reported.
"Can you are taking this down?," Musk requested Sweeney. "It is a safety threat."
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO ultimately supplied the teenager $5,000 to assist forestall "loopy folks" from monitoring his flights. Sweeney countered asking for $50,000, saying he may use the cash for faculty and perhaps a Tesla Mannequin 3.
"I do not love the thought of being shot by a nutcase," Musk stated.
The final message trade was Wednesday, Jan. 19, when Musk stated it did not really feel proper "to pay to close this down." CNN Enterprise has seen the messages.
"Choices apart from remuneration like an internship would make taking it down so much simpler," Sweeney replied. Musk has not but responded.
CNN has reached out to SpaceX for remark.
Sweeney stated he is been a fan of SpaceX because the first Falcon Heavy launch in 2018. His father works for an airline, fueling his curiosity in aviation.
"5,000 will not be sufficient for a way a lot I get out of it," Sweeney stated. "It would not change something, just like the enjoyment issue."
Sweeney did supply Musk some technical recommendation, telling the billionaire a few blocking program he may use to counter flight monitoring packages.
"It appears to be like like he took that recommendation," Sweeney stated, saying it seems Musk is at the moment utilizing the blocking program.
So Sweeney continues to be in a position to monitor Musk's flights regardless of the blocking program? "I'm," Sweeney stated. "It is only a bit extra sophisticated."
Elon Musk, Tesla CEO, attends a media occasion alongside the go to of Germany's centre-right candidate to exchange Angela Merkel as chancellor within the upcoming elections and Christian Democratic Union chairman, Armin Laschet, on the building aspect of the Tesla Gigafactory in Gruenheide close to Berlin, Germany, Friday, Aug. 13, 2021. ( Patrick Pleul/dpa by way of AP)
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