logo
episode-header-image
Oct 2024
40m 11s

Elon's Spies

The Observer
About this episode

This is episode one of three. You can binge the entire series today by subscribing to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or by downloading the Tortoise app.


Elon Musk is one of the most powerful men in the world. He's a billionaire, the founder of SpaceX, Tesla and more. To his followers, he's a hero; to his critics, a far-right rabble rouser. 


But for someone so public, there’s one part of his life that’s less well known.


Elon’s Spies investigates how this free-speech champion uses private investigators and surveillance to target everyone from whistleblowers at his companies, to online critics and people in his own life. 





Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Apr 30
A mother's loss: The case of Tarryn Baird
Alexi is joined by the Observer's national news editor, Claudia Williams to discuss the case of Tarryn Baird. Last week, her husband, Christopher Trybus was cleared of driving her to kill herself. Where does a grieving mother who spent 10 years searching for answers go from here? ... Show More
23m 8s
Apr 28
Freud’s missing Bacon
In 1988, a painting by Lucian Freud of his one-time friend Francis Bacon was stolen from a Berlin art gallery. It’s now worth £20 million. This week, Steve Smith goes in search of the lost art.Reporter: Steve SmithProducer: Ada BaruméArtwork: Blythe Walker SibthorpSound design: D ... Show More
37m 18s
Apr 22
Can Starmer survive the Mandelson fallout?
This week, there’s one story dominating the headlines: the Peter Mandelson scandal and whether it spells the end for Keir Starmer’s troubled premiership. What does this episode tell us about Starmer himself and why has the Epstein scandal had so much political impact in the UK? H ... Show More
21m 40s
Recommended Episodes
Oct 2024
Introducing ...Elon's Spies
Introducing...Elon's SpiesElon Musk is one of the most powerful men in the world. He's a billionaire, the founder of SpaceX, Tesla and more. To his followers, he's a hero; to his critics, a far-right rabble rouser. But for someone so public, there’s one part of his life that’s le ... Show More
40m 45s
Oct 2024
Introducing...Elon's Spies
Introducing...Elon's SpiesElon Musk is one of the most powerful men in the world. He's a billionaire, the founder of SpaceX, Tesla and more. To his followers, he's a hero; to his critics, a far-right rabble rouser. But for someone so public, there’s one part of his life that’s le ... Show More
40m 45s
Oct 2024
Introducing...Elon's Spies
Introducing...Elon's SpiesElon Musk is one of the most powerful men in the world. He's a billionaire, the founder of SpaceX, Tesla and more. To his followers, he's a hero; to his critics, a far-right rabble rouser. But for someone so public, there’s one part of his life that’s le ... Show More
40m 45s
Oct 2024
Introducing...Elon's Spies
Introducing...Elon's Spies Elon Musk is one of the most powerful men in the world. He's a billionaire, the founder of SpaceX, Tesla and more. To his followers, he's a hero; to his critics, a far-right rabble rouser.  But for someone so public, there’s one part of his life that’s ... Show More
40m 45s
Nov 2024
A star is born | Elon's Spies Ep4
When Donald Trump declared victory in the US presidential election, he told an adoring crowd that "a star is born". He was referring to Elon Musk.After months of reporting on the billionaire's use of private investigators, Alexi asks whether the insights he gained from that inves ... Show More
29m 38s
Sep 2024
Elon Musk: Too Big to Scam | 124
<p>When Elon Musk bid to buy Twitter for $44 billion, he made headlines for the mess that followed — including flip flopping on the deal and immediately firing most of the site’s employees. In this special episode of <em>Scamfluencers</em>, Scaachi Koul talks with New York Times ... Show More
40m 31s
Jul 2025
Guo Wengui: The Temu Trump | 169
<p>Guo Wengui was a billionaire real estate mogul in China, but when the government cracks down on his empire, he flees to the U.S. From a Manhattan apartment and a luxury superyacht, Guo publicly decries corruption in the CCP, which earns him devoted friends in the MAGA movement ... Show More
50m 6s
Jul 2025
Flipping the Bird: Elon vs Twitter | I Am Supposed to Believe This Man is a Genius? | 2
<p>Elon Musk makes the Twitter board an offer they can’t refuse — a $44 billion offer, to be exact. But this won’t be an easy marriage. No sooner does Twitter accept than Elon starts raising doubts. Publicly, Elon can’t help taking shots at Twitter and its leaders, sending their ... Show More
33m 9s
Oct 2024
Horrible human being | Elon's Spies Ep2
When Martin Tripp worked at Tesla, he took the advice of his boss Elon Musk - if you discover a problem, tell me about it. But when Martin shares his concerns, his world begins to spiral out of control. You can find out more about Tortoise:Download the Tortoise app - for a listen ... Show More
37m 16s
Feb 2025
How Elon Musk Is Infiltrating Washington
<p>Elon Musk and his team have taken a hacksaw to the federal bureaucracy one agency at a time, and the question has become whether he’s on a crusade that will leave the government paralyzed or deliver a shake-up it has needed for years.</p><p>Jonathan Swan, a White House reporte ... Show More
32m 30s