Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, has renamed himself “Kekius Maximus” on his social media platform X.
The tech tycoon, an ally of the U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, did not immediately explain the meaning of the moniker or his new profile picture, which features the meme of Pepe the Frog, which has been controversially adopted by far-right groups.
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Elon Musk’s name change caused a stir in the cryptocurrency community
The name change has sparked an online frenz, particularly in the cryptocurrency community, causing the value of a memecoin—a digital currency that gets its name from online memes—to skyrocket.
Although Musk’s social media comments have previously influenced cryptocurrency pricing, it was unclear at first if he was directly involved in this memecoin.
Decoding Musk’s new identity
“Kekius” seems to be a Latinisation of “kek,” a term that became popular in online gaming communities as a variant of “LOL” (laugh out loud).
In recent years, “kek” has been closely associated with the alt-right.
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“Kek” is also the name of an ancient Egyptian god of darkness, sometimes depicted with a frog’s head.
Many might associate the name “Maximus” with Maximus Decimus Meridius, the valiant figure played by Russell Crowe in the Gladiator movie.
In Musk’s profile picture, Pepe the Frog is dressed in Roman military attire and holding what appears to be a gaming console, further adding to the mystery surrounding his name change.