Anti-Elon Musk posters have been appearing in the streets of London over the past few weeks, making waves among his detractors. The guerrilla advertisements, plastered across various public transport points such as Tube stations and bus stops, feature scathing personal attacks on the Tesla CEO, laced with British humor.
The ads, with crisp images and clever captions, are an explicit attack on Musk’s leadership and perceived inclinations. One of the posters states: “X marks the rot. Delete your account,” calling on users to leave Musk’s social network. Another ad targets Tesla with the line: “Tesla: The Swasticar. Goes from 0 to 1939 in 3 seconds,” and a photo of Musk making a gesture frequently likened to a Nazi salute.
These billboards have been up for the past month and have attracted notice online, particularly on Reddit, where people have uploaded pictures. The campaign coincides with a time when Musk is under heavy fire in the US and abroad for being associated with the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
The identities of the culprits responsible for the posters are not known, but the first was in Clerkenwell in February and was created by a UK group called Everyone Hates Elon.The mission of the group is to criticize Musk publicly using satire. Other groups have since followed, posting similar posters in London.
Discontent with Musk originates from various fronts. Everyone Hates Elon writes that the tycoon is enabling the far right in the US and Europe. The group goes on to say, “We can’t let the wealthiest man in the world poison our politics.” Their now-deleted GoFundMe page said all the money donated would be given towards paying for the group’s campaigns.
In America, the outrage against Musk is primarily focused on his policies, such as federal cuts that have led to thousands of Americans losing their employment. His support for Trump tariffs has also attracted criticism, with some accusing him of doing damage to the US economy. In Europe, the anti-Musk feeling is evident in the targeting of Tesla showrooms and his controversial support of the far-right German party AfD in recent elections.