Elon Musk ignited speculation and chatter online when he made a hand gesture twice during a speech celebrating President Trump on Monday.
Speaking at a celebratory rally at the Capital One Arena in Washington hours after Mr. Trump was sworn in as president, Mr. Musk thanked the crowd for choosing Mr. Trump during “a fork in the road of human civilization.”
Mr. Musk, who leads Tesla, SpaceX and the social media platform X, and who backed Mr. Trump last year during his presidential campaign, added, “I just want to say thank you for making it happen — thank you.”
The billionaire then grunted and placed his hand to his heart before extending his arm out above his head with his palm facing down. After he turned around, he repeated the motion to those behind him.
On CNN, commentators pointed out Mr. Musk’s gesture. Erin Burnett, an anchor, noted how striking the action was. The motion soon drew comparisons online to the salute popularized by Adolf Hitler, and others interpreted it as a Roman salute, which is also known as the “Fascist salute” and was later adopted by the Nazis. The Nazi variation of the gesture is illegal in some European countries, including Germany.
“Did elon musk just hit the roman salute at his inauguration speech?” Hasan Piker, a popular streamer, asked on X.
The Anti-Defamation League, which has tangled with Mr. Musk in the past, later said on X that Mr. Musk had “made an awkward gesture in a moment of enthusiasm” and that it was “not a Nazi salute.” The organization added that “all sides should give one another a bit of grace.”
Masha Pearl, the executive director of the Blue Card, a foundation that supports Holocaust survivors, said she was “deeply troubled” by Mr. Musk’s action, which she called “a Nazi salute.”
She added: “Elon Musk has been engaged with antisemitic incidents in the past. Because of that, it was an unmistakable symbol of hate, of violence, of genocide.”
Others appeared to celebrate Mr. Musk’s motion. Andrew Torba, the founder of the far-right social network Gab, shared a photograph on his platform of the billionaire making the gesture, adding the caption, “Incredible things are happening already.”
Mr. Musk, 53, did not respond to an email requesting comment. Late Monday, he shared a user’s post on X that said the “salute hoax” was part of a Democratic “dirty tricks campaign” against Mr. Musk.
“Frankly, they need better dirty tricks,” Mr. Musk added. “The ‘everyone is Hitler’ attack is sooo tired.”
After making the gestures, Mr. Musk continued his speech. He spoke with enthusiasm about “safe cities, secure borders, sensible spending” and the promise of bringing humanity to Mars.
“My heart goes out to you,” Mr. Musk said, placing his hand over his heart. “It is thanks to you that the future of civilization is assured.”
Kimbal Musk, Mr. Musk’s younger brother, later posted on X that it was “the best speech” of Mr. Musk’s life.
“Well done!” Kimbal Musk wrote, sharing a video of the speech. “This is what success feels like.”
