Fact Check: Did Elon Musk sob to Donald Trump about Tesla 'going down' in leaked audio clip?

AUSTIN, TEXAS: Elon Musk's Tesla company recently faced vandalism across the US following the Space X CEO-led Department of Government Efficiency's (DOGE) mass federal government layoffs that led to several employees getting fired. 

Amid this, a rumor circulated online claiming that Musk sobbingly told President Donald Trump about Tesla "going down" in a leaked audio clip. But is there any truth to this? Let us find out below.

Claim: Elon Musk sobbed to Trump about Tesla 'going down' in leaked audio clip

In March 2025, an audio clip claiming to feature the voices of Elon Musk and Donald Trump went viral across social media.

The alleged clip had Musk expressing concern over Tesla's future, saying, "Tesla is going down," with Trump allegedly offering reassurance, saying, "Soon everybody will be buying again", according to Snopes.

On March 31, 2025, X user @YourAnonCentral posted the audio clip, which has so far reached more than 1.4 million views.

Moreover, the user shared the clip as a quote tweet of an earlier post from March 12, which read, "So it turns out Musk was audibly sobbing at the Oval Office which may have triggered the bizarre Tesla Whitehouse promo."

The March 12 post supposedly referred to an event held on March 11, where Trump and Musk showcased Tesla vehicles in front of the White House, per the fact-checking outlet.

The viral clip spread across other social media platforms such as  Instagram, YouTube, Threads, and TikTok.

False: No credible evidence to back the viral claim

However, the claim made in the viral clip is false as there is no credible evidence that such a conversation ever took place, or that Musk sobbed to Donald Trump, per Snopes.

Moreover, no credible news outlets reported on any such news, and the audio also lacked verifiable context or evidence to back its authenticity, according to the fact-checking outlet.

Furthermore, AI-detection tools suggested that the clip was generated using artificial intelligence.

The viral clip had a TikTok watermark with the handle @elonmuskarmy3, which suggested that it was originally posted by that user, per Snopes.

Meanwhile, the DeepFake-o-meter tool assessed the audio as highly likely AI-generated, and placed the probability between 98.8 percent and 100 percent, the fact-checking outlet reported.

Elon Musk says Trump will go after perpetrators

In March, Elon Musk said that the POTUS would "go after" the perpetrators who are "pushing the lies" about Tesla.

While appearing on Fox News last month, Musk was asked by host Bret Baier, "There’s now been in these many cases, violence and vandalism at Tesla dealerships – how does that affect your employees, your customers?"

The host added, "What does it mean to you?"

Replying to the question, Musk claimed that the main culprits are the ones who propagate "lies" about Tesla and will be thoroughly punished.

"Well, I think a great wrong is being done to the people at Tesla and to our customers," Musk said.

He continued, "And yet people are committing violence. They are firebombing Tesla dealerships."

The tech-billionaire noted, "They are shooting guns into stores. They’re threatening people. You know, they’re issuing death threats against me and other Tesla personnel."

He added that the vandalisms are fueled by the propaganda of the extreme left and that these people are the main culprits, per Mediaite.