'X Æ A-12 Musk': Story behind name of Musk's baby
What's the story
On Monday, Elon Musk welcomed his first child with singer Grimes. The billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX announced the birth to 33 million of his followers with a tweet saying "Mom & baby all good" and then went on to add a rather unexpected surprise - the baby boy would go by the name of "X Æ A-12 Musk." Here's what it means.
Response
Mysterious name triggered a wave on social media
When Musk announced the gender-neutral name, X Æ A-12 started trending on Twitter, with many questioning how the name would be pronounced and what does it really mean. Some people even thought that Musk, who has a knack for cracking jokes on Twitter (occasionally costing him millions), might not be actually serious about keeping this name.
Clarification
However, Grimes offered up clarification
As people tried to solve the puzzle, Grimes took to Twitter to confirm the name and offer its meaning. The Canadian singer said while "X" is an unknown variable, "Æ" is her "elven spelling of Ai (love &/or Artificial intelligence)" and "A-12" is the precursor to SR-17, their favorite aircraft. "No weapons, no defenses, just speed. Great in battle, but non-violent," she added.
Information
A-12 was internally known as 'Archangel'
Notably, A-12, which was developed for the Central Intelligence Agency by Lockheed Martin, went by the internal name of 'Archangel,' which Grimes added was also her favorite song.
Twitter Post
Here is Grimes's clarification
•X, the unknown variable ⚔️
— ꧁ ༒ Gℜiꪔ⃕es ༒꧂ 🍓🐉🎀 小仙女 (@Grimezsz) May 6, 2020
•Æ, my elven spelling of Ai (love /or Artificial intelligence)
•A-12 = precursor to SR-17 (our favorite aircraft). No weapons, no defenses, just speed. Great in battle, but non-violent 🤍
+
(A=Archangel, my favorite song)
(⚔️🐁 metal rat)
Pronunciation
Still, no word on how the name would be pronounced
Now that Grimes has confirmed "X Æ A-12" as the name, questions remain over how it might be pronounced. The confusion is mainly because the name includes Æ, a ligature of a and e known as ash; it was used in Old English and Latin but has become a rarity now. It is hardly classified as a letter, even in other languages.
Information
X Ash Archangel might be a possibility
A user tweeted out to Musk asking if the baby's name would be pronounced as 'X Ash Archangel'. Musk liked that post, seemingly indicating what his son's name might actually sound like.