Elon Musk survives as fellow of UK’s Royal Society despite calls to oust tech billionaire

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Elon Musk will remain a fellow of the Royal Society following an open letter that alleged the billionaire had broken the code of conduct by promoting “unfounded conspiracy theories”.

Fellows at the society met on Monday night after 2,400 members signed an open letter suggesting the X owner had broken the Royal Society’s code of conduct by spreading misinformation.

The billionaire is a fellow of the oldest scientific academy that counts many of the “world’s most eminent scientists” in its ranks. He was elected in 2018 for his work in the space and electric vehicle industries.

A statement released by the Royal Society on Monday said fellows will meet to discuss “the principles around public pronouncements and behaviours of fellows”.

Emeritus Professor Stephen Curry, professor of structural biology at Imperial College London, wrote the open letter and said that Mr Musk is “widely reported to be one of the most active disseminators of misinformation on Twitter (X)”.

Nobel prize winners were among more than 2,400 people who signed the letter, which stressed that scientific integrity, as well as adherence and respect for evidence and truth, are central to the code of conduct.

In the open letter published a fortnight ago, Professor Curry said he is writing to “express my dismay at the continued silence and apparent inaction from the Royal Society over the fellowship awarded in 2018 to Elon Musk”.

He wrote that concerns regarding Mr Musk potentially breaching the code were raised more than six months ago.

Professor Curry also mentioned the tech entrepreneur’s X post in which he attacked safeguarding minister Jess Phillips over the issue of historical grooming gangs in the UK.

open image in gallery

The letter was sent to Sir Adrian Smith, president of the Royal Society.

Two eminent scientists have resigned their fellowships in protest against the lack of action by the Royal Society, and Nobel laureate and AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton – a fellow at the society – posted on X that he supported Mr Musk’s removal.

Mr Musk responded to the post, saying: “Only craven, insecure fools care about awards and memberships. History is the actual judge, always and forever. Your comments above are carelessly ignorant, cruel and false. That said, what specific actions require correction? I will make mistakes, but endeavour to fix them.”

Scientists have also raised concerns over Mr Musk’s role within Donald Trump’s administration, where he heads the US Department of Government Efficiency or DOGE. The cost-cutting operation has threatened the funding of scientific and medical communities, among other areas.

In a statement, the Royal Society said: “At a meeting this evening [Monday] of the Royal Society, Fellows agreed on the need to stand up for science and for scientists around the world in the face of the growing challenges science faces.

“Concern was expressed, in particular, about the fate of colleagues in the US who are reportedly facing the prospect of losing their jobs amid threats of radical cutbacks in research funding.

“Fellows, over 150 of whom attended tonight’s meeting, were united in the need for the Society to step up its efforts to advocate for science and scientists at a time when these are under threat as never before and yet at the same time have never been more necessary for humanity at large.

“The Society agreed to look at potential further actions that might help make the case for science and scientific research and counter the misinformation and ideologically motivated attacks on both science and scientists.”

Mr Musk’s specific fellowship was not mentioned. A spokesperson for the Royal Society said all fellows are listed on its website. The Tesla owner remains listed as a fellow on the website.