WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Billionaire Elon Musk’s hand gesture as he spoke during President Donald Trump’s inauguration celebration drew online comparisons to a Nazi salute on Monday, but a leading anti-Semitism researcher said it appeared instead to be a moment of enthusiasm.
Musk took it Capital one (NYSE: ) stage at the Arena in Washington to wild cheers, pumping arms and yelling “Dassss.”
“This was no ordinary victory. This was a fork in the road of human civilization,” he said. “This was really important. Thank you for doing this! Thank you,” he said.
Biting his lower lip, he struck his heart with his right hand, fingers spread wide, then stretched out his right hand, emphatically, at an upward angle, palm down and fingers together. Then he turned and made the same hand motion to the crowd behind him.
“My heart is with you. Thanks to you, the future of civilization is secured,” he said after finishing the gesture.
The gestures were quickly scrutinized online.
“Is Elon Musk Sieg Heil at Trump’s Inauguration?” asked the Jerusalem Post.
The Anti-Defamation League, which monitors anti-Semitism, disagreed. “Looks like @elonmusk made an awkward gesture in a moment of enthusiasm, not a Nazi salute, but again, we appreciate that people are on edge,” it said on Monday.
Spokesmen for Musk and Trump did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Shortly after his speech, Musk posted a Fox video clip of parts of his speech on his social network X, which was cut from the podium when he made the first gesture while facing the cameras. “The future is so exciting,” he wrote above.
Some X users have come to Musk’s defense, claiming that Musk expressed “my heart is glad” and criticizing posts that suggested otherwise.
Musk has backed the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), an anti-immigration, anti-Islam party labeled as right-wing extremist by German security services, in the upcoming national election. Earlier this month, he hosted a show with the party leader on his social media platform.
