Elon Musk, Who Made Eye-Raising Diddy Comment, Previously Claimed They Were ‘Good’ Friends, According to New Book

Musk reportedly once boasted that he and Combs “text a lot,” according to “Character Limit: How Elon Musk Destroyed Twitter”

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Elon Musk, left, once claimed he was close to Sean “Diddy” Combs, right, according to a new book
Elon Musk, who has seemingly been critical of Sean “Diddy” Combs on social media, previously boasted about being “good” friends with the rapper, according to a new book.

The 53-year-old Tesla founder made the comments during a meeting that involved Detavio Samuels, CEO of Combs’ media company Revolt, after Musk took over Twitter, now known as X, in October 2022, New York Times journalists Kate Conger and Ryan Mac reported in their book Character Limit: How Elon Musk Destroyed Twitter.

Speaking with Samuels, Musk reportedly said, “I don’t know if you know this, but Puff is an investor in Twitter. You know, he’s a good friend of mine. We text a lot.”

Combs was listed as one of 95 investors in the platform in a list filed in federal court in late August 2024.

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Elon Musk took over Twitter, now known as X, in October 2022
About two years later, Musk shared a post on X that appeared to criticize Combs after the music mogul was arrested on Monday, Sept. 16, and charged with sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and transportation to engage in prostitution.

“How many people in music & entertainment knew about this?” Musk asked in the post on Tuesday, Oct. 1.

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Mac, whose book was released the day after Combs’ arrest, responded by quoting a post he shared on Thursday, Aug. 22, which included the excerpt from Character Limit that highlighted Musk’s purported claim about his friendship with Combs.

Maybe you could have asked him when he invested in your twitter deal,” Mac wrote in his post on Tuesday.

A rep for Musk did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

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Sean “Diddy” Combs, who was recently arrested and charged with sex crimes in New York
Combs was denied bail at his arraignment on Tuesday, Sept. 17, where he entered a plea of not guilty.

The mogul, who is considered one of the most powerful individuals in the music industry, is accused of forcing women to engage in long, orchestrated sex performances known as “freak offs,” some of which lasted several days.

In addition to the criminal charges against him, Combs also faces multiple civil suits in which he’s accused of sex abuse.

He is currently incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.