A photograph from the Epstein files shows a chummy 2015 dinner attended by some of Silicon Valley’s most powerful figures, with Jeffrey Epstein later boasting the gathering was ‘wild’.
The image, released by the US Department of Justice, shows Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg seated at a dinner table alongside SpaceX boss Elon Musk, and Joi Ito, the former director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab.
PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel was also in attendance, but he was not pictured.
The photograph was emailed by Epstein to himself on Monday, August 3, 2015 – just one day after he bragged about joining the tech titans for a swanky meal.
Epstein also had a framed copy of the image on display in his house in his Manhattan apartment. Thiel was not pictured, but he was in attendance at the dinner.
The dinner took place on August 2, 2015, according to emails included in the files. That evening, Epstein wrote to author and physician Peter Attia, asking: ‘Where are you?’ before adding, ‘I might be in LA Monday, burbank to look at the interior of the other bbj, tonite dinner with Musk, [Pataltr boss Peter] Thiel, Zuckerburg.’
Attia replied enthusiastically: ‘Sounds like an awesome dinner.’
Epstein, who died in a high-security Manhattan prison in 2019, later described the gathering in an August 20, 2015 email to billionaire Tom Pritzker as ‘wild’, a description that has resurfaced as scrutiny intensifies around the financier’s relationships with powerful figures.
The image, released by the US Department of Justice, shows Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg (far left) seated at a dinner table alongside SpaceX boss Elon Musk (third from right),and Joi Ito (second from right), the former director of the MIT Media Lab. PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel was also in attendance but he was not pictured
Epstein also had a framed copy of the image on display in his house in his Manhattan apartment (white frame, second from back)
Those named have since moved to downplay any connection to Epstein, whose social circle has been laid bare through the Justice Department’s release of more than three million documents relating to the disgraced financier. Appearing in the photographs released in the Epstein documents is not evidence of any wrongdoing.
Musk, now the world’s richest man, features repeatedly in the files, including in earlier email exchanges that suggest a friendly rapport between the two years before the 2015 dinner.
On November 25, 2012, Musk emailed Epstein asking: ‘What day/night will be the wildest party on =our (sic) island?’ He added: ‘Probably just Talulah and me,’ referencing British actress Talulah Riley, his ex-wife.
The message came in response to an email Epstein had sent the previous day asking: ‘How many people will you be for the heli to island?’ At the time, Epstein had already been convicted of sex crimes against minors in Florida.
Then in December 2013, Musk again contacted Epstein to coordinate a possible visit to the financier’s Caribbean island.
‘Will be in the BVI/St Bart’s area over the holidays,’ Musk wrote. ‘Is there a good time to visit?’
Epstein replied that the start of the new year would be ideal, telling Musk there was ‘always space for you.’ The pair exchanged further messages on Christmas Day, with Epstein writing: ‘the 2 or 3 would be perfect. I will come and get you.’
Musk responded that he would need to return to Los Angeles on January 2, 2013, before suggesting flexibility and concluding: ‘When should we head to your island on the 2nd?’
It remains unclear whether Musk ever made the trip, but the emails indicate a cordial relationship between the two men.
Musk is pictured with his ex-wife, British actress Talulah Riley, in 2013. Despite the revelations, he has repeatedly denied being close to Epstein
Despite the revelations, Musk has repeatedly denied being close to Epstein. In a Vanity Fair interview, he said: ‘I don’t recall introducing Epstein to anyone, as I don’t know the guy well enough to do so, Epstein is obviously a creep and Zuckerberg is not a friend of mine.’
He also took to X on January 31 to reject claims he attended Epstein’s gatherings, writing: ‘I have never been to any Epstein parties ever and have many times call [sic] for the prosecution of those who have committed crimes with Epstein.’
Other emails released by the DOJ showed that Ito attended a dinner with Epstein on November 30, 2014.
Another correspondence revealed a discussion that Ito, 59, had about a trip with the pedophile.
‘Great! so all 3 will travel with Jeffrey on Sunday? I can make reservations for a car pick up for them on Sunday… I will get back to you,’ Ito wrote.
The venture capitalist and Japanese entrepreneur stepped down from his role at MIT in 2019 after it was revealed that Epstein donated $850,000 between 2002 and 2017 to the private research university.
Epstein is seen in Cambridge, Massachusetts on September 8, 2004. Japanese entrepreneur Joi Ito worked at city’s prestigious private school, MIT, but resigned in 2019 after it was revealed that he tried to conceal the large donations the financer made to the school
It was revealed that Ito tried to conceal the hefty donation that were directed toward the lab and Ito’s personal investment funds, NPR reported.
The news of his ties to Epstein came after The New Yorker published a revealing article outing Ito’s involvement with him.
‘The effort to conceal the lab’s contact with Epstein was so widely known that some staff in the office of the lab’s director, Joi Ito, referred to Epstein as Voldemort or “he who must not be named”,’ the outlet wrote.
Ito is currently the president of Chiba Institute of Technology, a private university in Narashino, Chiba, Japan.
