A teenager has claimed that billionaire tech tycoon Elon Musk offered him $5,000 to remove a Twitter account that tracks his private jet.
Jack Sweeney, a 19-year-old college freshman at the University of Central Florida, is the man behind the Twitter account @ElonJet.
Per USA Today, the account has been tracking Elon Musk's private jet since June 2020, using a bot that pulls public data from the Federal Aviation Administration. For example, the tweet below informs followers that the jet landed in Austin, Texas, following a six-hour flight.
As of this writing, the account is live and boasts over 118,000 followers, with many posts receiving hundreds of 'likes' from Twitter users.
And although Sweeney has tweeted to clarify that his posts only track the plane and not who is on board, it would appear that Elon Musk isn't too please with the information being shared on social media.
Speaking to Protocol, the tech-savvy teen allegedly received a direct message from the Tesla CEO last fall, reading: "Can you take this down? It is a security risk."
The initial message was reportedly sent at 12:13AM, but Sweeney did not reply for seven hours - even then, it probably wasn't the reply Musk was hoping for.
Responding to the billionaire's request, Sweeney wrote: "Yes I can but it’ll cost you a Model 3 only joking unless?"
In another message, Musk allegedly tells the teenager: "I don’t love the idea of being shot by a nutcase."
According to screenshots shared with USA Today, Musk then offered the teenager $5,000 to remove the account - to which Sweeney cheekily asked: "Any chance to up that to $50k? It would be great support in college and would possibly allow me to get a car maybe even a Model 3."
(This kid really wants that Model 3.)
Despite Musk apparently telling Sweeney he'd consider the counter-offer, the teenager has not received a single cent from the billionaire and the account is still up and running, posting regular tweets on the jet's whereabouts.
'@ElonJet' is just one of 15 flight-tracking accounts Sweeney has created to track the planes of high-profile figures. Other accounts track fellow billionaires, Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates - but Musk's is undoubtedly the most popular.
Each account is run by Sweeney and utilized the bots he's programmed to pull public data and tweet for each take-off and landing.
In all honesty, I'd love to see Musk give the teen a job once he's finished studying - maybe then he'll finally get that Model 3.
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