Musk’s ‘Kekius Maximus’ persona deepens his alignment with Trump’s far-right base

The billionaire’s profile update triggers a 700% surge in cryptocurrency value—along with pointed criticism.

Elon Musk has raised eyebrows with a change to his handle on X (formerly Twitter), adopting the name “Kekius Maximus.” Along with this name change, Musk also updated his profile image to feature Pepe the Frog, a meme that has been associated with various far-right movements. The move has prompted discussions about Musk’s ties to digital currencies and the controversial symbolism tied to the meme.