Plenty of people have said that Elon Musk is full of hot air. This version of him actually is. On Thursday, a 40-foot-tall inflatable version of the billionaire popped up in Times Square in New York City, the same day the company’s initial public offering is expected to take off. You’ll be shocked to know the inflatable is not exactly celebratory.
The balloon depicts Elon Musk shirtless (a thing we’ve all seen, so we can say that the inflatable is shockingly close to being an accurate representation of his physique) with tattoos on his body. On both his stomach and his back was the message, “SpaceX’s Grok Makes AI Child Porn.” That text was repeated on banners that surrounded the display.
That particular messaging would seem to have two goals: First, to remind everyone of Grok’s use to generate non-consensual nude images, including those of children. While Grok is not the only AI model capable of generating inappropriate images, it is the one with the least effective guardrails, as reportedly requested by the company’s CEO.
The second purpose of the message is to associate Grok with SpaceX, now that xAI has been rolled into the rocket company. Despite Musk’s ownership of the company and his own personal tarnished reputation, SpaceX itself remains quite popular. When Musk merged his AI lab with SpaceX, it allowed him to launder the negative impression people have of Grok through a company with a high approval rating. Linking Grok to SpaceX serves as a reminder that they are, in fact, one and the same now.
The inflatable also features a heart-shaped tattoo with the word “Ketamine,” the supposed drug of choice for Musk that he was reportedly using so frequently as a recreational hallucinogen that he was starting to suffer from bladder problems.
A giant inflatable Elon Musk popped up in Times Square and its origins are so far unknown. @JaredOchacher went there to try and get answers. #newyork pic.twitter.com/yBFHY6f7Z5
— CBS News (@CBSNews) June 11, 2026
Per Wired, the inflatable was the work of Safe AI Now (SAIN), which issued a press release related to the inflatable. “SpaceX shareholders are on the hook for every Grok lawsuit, criminal investigation, and regulatory fine that is coming. All while Musk becomes a ‘paper trillionaire’ and his investors pick up the tab,” the group said.
The inflatable seems unlikely to have much of an effect on the SpaceX IPO. According to NBC, the company will go public with a price of $135 per share, making it the largest IPO on record.
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