Elon Musk, the tech titan and CEO of SpaceX, has unleashed a fiery attack on NASA's lunar ambitions, specifically targeting Acting Chief Sean Duffy. The sensational accusation: 'Trying to Kill NASA.'
Sean Duffy, the acting head of NASA, appears to have angered Elon Musk. The SpaceX founder and CEO targeted Duffy on Tuesday in a series of social media posts, questioning his competence and recent actions leading the space agency.
'Sean Dummy' and '2 Digit IQ': Musk's Scathing Response
On Tuesday, the SpaceX founder and CEO publicly challenged Duffy through a series of social media posts.
'Sean Dummy is trying to kill NASA!', Musk posted on X, the social media platform he owns, using a derogatory nickname for the acting administrator. In a follow-up message, he declared, 'The person responsible for America's space program can't have a 2-digit IQ.'
Sean Dummy is trying to kill NASA! https://t.co/cP0RxP09rt
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 21, 2025
On Monday, Duffy declared that NASA, determined to land astronauts on the moon and beat China in the process, is now prepared to consider lunar landers from rivals of SpaceX. The space agency's initial strategy involved deploying the Starship rocket system, SpaceX's next-generation vehicle currently under development, to carry the landing crew.
On Tuesday, Musk went so far as to launch a poll on X, inviting his followers to share their opinion by asking: 'Should someone whose biggest claim to fame is climbing trees be running America's space program?'
The person responsible for America’s space program can’t have a 2 digit IQ https://t.co/U4O2GERiTg
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 21, 2025
The two provided response options were: 'Yezz, chimps skillz rūl!' and 'Noo, he need moar brainz!' By Tuesday afternoon, the survey had already received almost 110,000 votes.
Starship Delays Meet China's 2030 Lunar Goal
In 2021, SpaceX secured a $2.9 billion (£2.17 billion) contract to utilise its Starship system to deliver two astronauts to the lunar surface during NASA's Artemis III mission, currently scheduled for a 2027 launch.
Yet, Musk's aerospace firm has experienced delays in the testing and development of the Starship, with the launch vehicle suffering multiple explosive failures at the beginning of this year.
Simultaneously, political pressure has intensified as the lunar race against China accelerates. That nation intends to put its own astronauts on the moon by 2030, having already deployed two automated rovers to the surface and carried out crucial tests of a new rocket intended for human missions there.
NASA Reopens Artemis III Contract
Speaking on Fox News and CNBC on Monday, Duffy confirmed that NASA intends to reopen the Artemis III contract, seeking alternative lunar lander proposals from rival space firms, a move designed to keep the US competitive with China.
We are in a race against China so we need the best companies to operate at a speed that gets us to the Moon FIRST.
— NASA Acting Administrator Sean Duffy (@SecDuffyNASA) October 20, 2025
SpaceX has the contract to build the HLS which will get U.S. astronauts there on Artemis III.
But, competition and innovation are the keys to our dominance in… pic.twitter.com/dAo0so5qqZ
On Monday's appearance on CNBC's Squawk Box, Duffy stated, 'We're not going to wait for one company. We're going to push this forward and win the second space race against the Chinese.'
Duffy further stressed that both he and US President Donald Trump are keen to see astronauts return to the moon before the end of the President's second term. He specifically cited Blue Origin — the aerospace venture founded by Amazon chief Jeff Bezos — as a potential SpaceX competitor capable of providing alternative technology.
