Elon Musk noticed a misplaced 5-year-old lady on a metropolis bus, reunited her together with her mom and purchased their household a home.
A rumor that billionaire and tech entrepreneur Elon Musk noticed a misplaced lady on a metropolis bus, reunited her together with her mom after which purchased their household a home circulated on-line in fall 2024. We obtained reader mail asking whether or not this story was true.
For instance, on Nov. 1, 2024, a Fb web page named Elon Video posted an almost 16-minute video (archived) titled “Elon Musk SPOTS 5-12 months-Previous Lady Alone In The Bus, What Occurs Subsequent Will Soften Your Coronary heart.” As of this writing, the clip had greater than 40,000 constructive reactions and 1.1 million views.
Two days earlier, on Oct. 30, a YouTube channel named The Crow posted the doubtless authentic add of the identical video (archived). That clip, which had had greater than 53,000 likes and 1.3 million views, featured YouTube promoting indicating the channel’s homeowners earned income from their movies.
The video tells the story of Musk discovering a 5-year-old lady named Maddie alone on a bus in Los Angeles. With the assistance of a policeman recognized as Officer Parker, Musk reunites Maddie together with her mom, Might, and later buys them a home. The story supplied no final names for Maddie or Might, nor did it present a primary identify for Officer Parker or a date of the supposed incident.
The video’s textual content description learn:
In an sudden accident, Elon Musk, the world-renowned tech visionary, finds himself on a metropolis bus when he spots a 5-year-old lady sitting on their lonesome. What occurs subsequent will soften your coronary heart. As Elon uncovers the heartbreaking actuality of the lady’s life, he is moved to take motion in a manner that goes far past easy kindness. This touching story of compassion and generosity will depart you in awe of the facility of human connection. Watch how an opportunity encounter became a life-changing second for a grieving household – and for Elon himself. This can be a story you do not need to miss.
Nevertheless this story was false. We regarded for tactics to contact the homeowners of the YouTube channel The Crow however didn’t discover an e-mail tackle or hyperlinks to social media accounts. The channel displayed no disclaimers about its content material not being true.
Why the Story Is False
In our analysis, we situated no information articles or proof that may verify the video about Musk and the lady on the bus — one which claimed the billionaire rode on an ordinary metropolis bus — reported a real story. The clip featured all of the appearances of a story made up for the purpose of incomes YouTube promoting income.
The YouTube channel The Crow posted different evidence-free tales about Musk performing acts of kindness, reminiscent of helping a bullied teen and assisting elderly people into their automobile.
Additional, subsequent to the publishing of the video about Musk and the lady on the bus, different YouTube customers posted comparable tales claiming totally different celebrities additionally stumbled upon a 5-year-old lady on a bus. As an alternative of Musk within the position of the protagonist, these movies featured actor Keanu Reeves, WNBA star Caitlin Clark, podcaster Joe Rogan and rapper Eminem.
A number of the visible parts for all of those movies — particularly the thumbnail pictures — bore similarities to a real November 2016 clip that “Inside Version” revealed on YouTube. That video obtained over 8 million views and advised the true story, “5-12 months-Previous Lady Left Deserted At Bus Station Leads Police To Murdered Mother.”
The Video Featured Components of AI
The video claiming Musk discovered a woman on a bus confirmed a mix of real photos and pictures generated by artificial-intelligence, as did the movies that includes different celebrities. The clip additionally featured an AI-voiced narrator.
Additional, the video displayed indicators of an AI device dealing with most or all of its modifying — indications that the one that made the video merely entered a textual content immediate into an AI device that robotically pieced collectively the complete clip.
Musk appeared in a number of the video’s AI-generated pictures as different characters, together with the bus driver.
‘We Are Doomed’
Customers shared their opinions in regards to the video on social media. For instance, one individual on Fb wrote (archived), “God please assist us. We’re doomed!! 40,000 folks believed this!! THIS IS AI!!!! Elon Musk would NEVER take a public bus.”
One other Fb consumer skeptical of the story joked (archived), “In case you purchase this, put in your order for beachfront property in Arizona.”
The tip of the AI-generated video confirmed the home Musk supposedly purchased Maddie and Might.
In the meantime, a consumer on X who apaprently believed the story to be true remarked (archived), “I want extra folks would see the opposite facet of Elon Musk! His compassion and instinct has by no means failed him. Blessings to you Elon for staying actual.”
A distinct consumer additionally shared (archived), “This story of Elon Musk would soften your coronary heart. It is not about politics nor about his cutting-edge excessive tech tasks. There aren’t any coincidences. God positioned this big-hearted multibillionaire on a bus to save lots of this lady & her future. Pay attention till the tip.”
Musk within the Information
The movies revealed on the YouTube channel The Crow appeared at a time when Musk was within the American information cycle, throughout the weeks round President-elect Donald Trump’s reelection victory.
Main as much as the election, Musk appeared at rallies with the previous president and financially supported his marketing campaign. Following the election, Trump named Musk and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy — a Republican candidate for president within the 2024 primaries — to steer a newly-established Division of Authorities Effectivity, or DOGE — a reference to Musk’s assist of a cryptocurrency named dogecoin.
