Most parents like to think their kid is a genius — but Maye Musk might actually have the bragging rights. Her son, Elon Musk, isn’t just a high-profile CEO or an inventor obsessed with Mars. He is, without question, the richest man in the world — and the first person in history to surpass a $500 billion net worth.

The 77-year-old mother of three — a model, dietitian, and relentless champion of her children — has been praising Elon’s mind long before the world caught on. In a 2012 Esquire magazine profile, published years before he became synonymous with Tesla, she didn’t hold back: “I have two brilliant children, but Elon’s a genius,” she said. “I can explain Tosca and Kimbal pretty well. I can’t explain Elon.”

The piece, titled “Elon Musk: Triumph of His Will,” was when SpaceX was just beginning to prove its doubters wrong. That year, the company launched its own rocket into orbit and successfully linked a capsule with the International Space Station — not once, but twice. Musk was still operating in a world of skepticism, and yet the article portrayed a man already consumed with Mars, eating black beans and turkey legs at his desk while rattling off timelines for colonizing another planet.

Maye’s quote wasn’t just a passing comment — it was the most telling line in a profile meant to unpack what made Elon so different. And her other two children are no footnotes. Kimbal Musk co-founded Zip2 with Elon in the 1990s and went on to build a portfolio of food-focused ventures and nonprofits, many of them centered on sustainability and education. Tosca Musk is a filmmaker and entrepreneur who launched Passionflix, a streaming platform dedicated to romantic films and book adaptations. Both have carved out impressive lanes in their industries.

Still, even among a high-achieving family, Maye has never been shy about the unique force that drives her eldest. In interviews over the years, she’s described how Elon devoured books as a child, not for fun but for knowledge — and how he tried to open a video arcade near his high school when he was barely old enough to drive. His ambition didn’t just outpace his peers. It routinely startled the adults around him.

More than a decade after that Esquire profile, Maye hasn’t changed her stance. In a 2024 Fox Business interview, she pushed back against the idea that Elon should be defined by his money. “It’s degrading to call him wealthy,” she said. “I prefer he be called the genius of the world.”

It’s not the first time she’s redirected the conversation. She’s openly joked that Elon doesn’t give anyone — not even her — a discount on Teslas. She’s also said she knew he was different from a young age, recalling how he taught himself programming and was already dreaming about space while other kids were figuring out multiplication tables.

What’s remained consistent through all of it is her role — not as a manager or strategist, but as a believer. She’s built her own legacy in fashion and nutrition, appearing on magazine covers and runways well into her seventies, but when it comes to Elon, she’s always been clear: the success didn’t surprise her.

The quote that made headlines in 2012 still holds. Maye Musk has two brilliant children — and one she still can’t quite explain.