Most parents think their kid is a genius — but Maye Musk might actually be right. Her son, Elon Musk, isn’t just a CEO or Mars-obsessed inventor — he’s the richest person in history, with a net worth surpassing $500 billion. Maye, a 77-year-old model and dietitian, has been calling Elon a genius long before the world agreed. In a 2012 Esquire profile, she said, “I have two brilliant children, but Elon’s a genius. I can explain Tosca and Kimbal pretty well. I can’t explain Elon.” At the time, SpaceX was just beginning to silence skeptics after successfully sending a rocket to orbit and linking with the ISS. Even then, Elon was consumed by his Mars ambitions. Her other children — Kimbal, a restaurateur and sustainability advocate, and Tosca, a filmmaker who founded Passionflix — have also built successful careers. Yet Maye has always said Elon’s mind stood apart. In a 2024 Fox Business interview, she doubled down: “It’s degrading to call him wealthy. I prefer he be called the genius ...