The Tesla CEO claims everyone at the top of the leaderboards uses account boosting

Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images (Getty Images)

They say money can’t buy you happiness, but it can buy you endgame characters in Diablo IV, Path of Exile 2, and other games. It’s known as account boosting and is technically considered cheating in most games, and it’s something Elon Musk has finally admitted to after being called out by various YouTubers, including Zach “Asmongold” Hoyt.

That revelation came in DMs he seemingly exchanged with YouTuber NikoWrex and which were subsequently shared in a video published on January 18 titled “Addressing All the Elon Musk Drama in PoE2 with Elon Musk!” (via Forbes). In it, NikoWrex shared screenshots of DMs exchanged with Musk which the tech billionaire apparently said were okay to publish. During the conversation, the Tesla CEO admitted to using account boosting to compete in Path of Exile 2 and Diablo IV’s end game, but said there was nothing to apologize for because everyone is doing it.

“Have you level boosted (had someone else play your accounts) and/or purchased gear/resources for PoE2 and Diablo 4?” asked NikoWrex. Musk responded with a “100 percent” emoji before adding that “It’s impossible to beat the players in Asia if you dont, as they do!” The richest man in the world noted that he’s appeared on multiple streams where it’s really him playing the games, but defended using account sharing to boost his characters despite never being transparent with people that this is what he was doing.

Account boosting is common in online multiplayer games, but also frowned upon by many, including game makers themselves who explicitly ban such activities in their terms of service. While it can be hard to prove that a player paid someone else to level up their character, or grind for powerful and hard-to-get gear, account sharing for any reason is technically banned in both Diablo IV and Path of Exile 2.

“Regarding PoE2, was it your intention to take full credit for leveling your HC characters?” asked NikoWrex in one screenshot. “No,” responded Musk. “Never claimed that. The top accounts in Diablo or PoE require multiple people playing the account to win a leveling race.” Asked if he would apologize to the Path of Exile 2 community for misleading them he replied, “What would I be apologizing for?”

The downplayed confession comes in the context of Musk promoting himself as a hardcore gamer for years, from sharing clips of playing Elden Ring (which were mocked for bad builds) to community leaderboard placements for certain Diablo IV dungeons runs. He even spoke at length in a recent Joe Rogan podcast episode about his lifelong love of gaming and its virtues for testing and focusing the mind. Of course, that appearance also included a lowkey claim that Musk was quietly one of the best Quake players around back in the day (a genuine all-star of the classic PC shooter claimed that Musk, “wasn’t very good” but “still an OG).”

Musk might have continued his apparent charade of promoting himself as a top-tier, obsessive gamer, able to play for dozens of hours a week between high-profile meetings with newly inaugurated President Trump and running three major tech companies—including one that launches expensive rockets into space that occasionally blow-up—if not for a particularly bad streaming performance earlier this month. YouTubers, including Zach “Asmongold” Hoyt, immediately called Musk out as phony.

Even his ex, musician Grimes, came to his defense over the weekend, though it didn’t seem to help. His ability to quiet his gaming critics has so far proven much less successful than his ability to influence U.S. national politics.