Will Donald Trump forgive Elon Musk after 'regrets' post?

Tesla stock recovers after Musk said he 'went too far'

Elon Musk now says he regrets some, but not all of his criticism of US President Donald Trump. AP

Mercurial tech tycoon Elon Musk retracted some of his criticism of President Donald Trump early Wednesday morning, after the Tesla chief and the US leader had a public falling out last week.

"I regret some of my posts about President Trump last week," he posted to X, the social media platform he owns. "They went too far."

Given the range of posts directed at Mr Trump last week, it is not entirely clear which ones he is sorry for.

In a post shared on X, the social media platform he owns, Elon Musk tried to mend fences with US President Donald Trump

Several days ago, however, Mr Musk did delete one of the more controversial posts in which he claimed Mr Trump was named in the Epstein files and that was why he had not released them.

The documents, which have not been made fully public, concern the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and have long been the subject of speculation by Trump supporters, who have demanded their full release in the belief that they contain the names of high-ranking Democrats.

Inclusion in the files does not necessarily imply any wrongdoing.

Last week, shortly after Mr Musk announced his plans to step away from his role in the Trump administration, he used his social media platform to blast Mr Trump's much touted “big, beautiful” tax bill, describing it as a “disgusting abomination” that would blow up the national debt.

President Donald Trump posted this on Truth Social on June 5

The abrupt turn against Mr Trump's signature legislation came after the disintegration of the partnership between the two men that lasted more than a year and saw Mr Musk donate hundreds of millions of dollars to Mr Trump's presidential campaign.

Many argue that crucial funding was the difference between victory and defeat for Mr Trump, who faced off against Democratic candidate Kamala Harris, who was then vice president.

After Mr Trump's win, Mr Musk's remit was to cut federal waste through the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency. But within the first few months of the Trump administration, reports indicated Mr Musk's presence had begun to grate with the President.

Some have argued that the partnership began to fracture when Mr Trump's advocacy for tariffs put a strain on the various entrepreneurial endeavours of Mr Musk. Mr Trump also sought to cease electric vehicle subsidies that had previously boosted Tesla's bottom line.

Regardless, as of last week, there appeared to be no love lost between the two men, both of whom have a large social media presence.

After the series of posts to X by Mr Musk, Mr Trump alleged that the Tesla chief had "lost his mind".

So while it's unclear what caused the sudden, quasi-apology from Mr Musk, it probably all comes down to money.

Mr Trump had posted to his own social media platform, Truth Social, that as a result of Mr Musk betraying him, he would try to halt all federal contracts with his various companies, such as Starlink, SpaceX and others. If that comes to fruition, Mr Musk could lose billions.

Last week's posts also hurt the already wounded Tesla, whose stock dropped after Mr Musk began his tirade.

Tesla has since recovered most of the value lost. On Wednesday morning, it was up more than 2 per cent shortly after the opening bell.

What many are still wondering, however, is whether Mr Trump will forgive Mr Musk.

He has yet to post anything in response, and it should be pointed out that Mr Musk has not exactly changed his mind and endorsed Mr Trump's tax and spending bill, seen as the culmination of many of the President's campaign promises.

Mr Musk's criticism, even with some of his comments now reversed, might not be enough to shift the chip from Mr Trump's shoulder.