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TechElon Musk

Elon Musk’s ex-girlfriend is auctioning mementos from their college romance, including a handwritten birthday card for over $10,000

By
Betty Hou
Betty Hou
and
Bloomberg
Bloomberg
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By
Betty Hou
Betty Hou
and
Bloomberg
Bloomberg
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September 12, 2022, 4:58 AM ET
Tesla CEO Elon Musk smiles as he addresses guests at the Offshore Northern Seas 2022 (ONS) meeting in Stavanger, Norway on Aug. 29, 2022
Tesla CEO Elon Musk smiles as he addresses guests at the Offshore Northern Seas 2022 (ONS) meeting in Stavanger, Norway on Aug. 29, 2022CARINA JOHANSEN—NTB/AFP/Getty Images

Elon Musk’s ex-girlfriend is selling off some mementos of their college relationship — and they’re proving pretty popular.

Jennifer Gwynne, who dated the world’s richest man when they were both studying at the University of Pennsylvania, is auctioning a cache of photos and other memorabilia on Boston-based platform RR Auction. Up for grabs are 18 candid photos capturing the billionaire’s youthful moments as a college student, a handwritten birthday card and a gold necklace Musk gave to his then-girlfriend.

As of Sunday night, the birthday card—signed ‘Love, Elon’—was edging north of $10,000 with an impressive 23 bids.

Attracting the next most interest was the necklace, which comes with an emerald from the Zambian mine owned by Musk’s father Errol, a South African property developer. The photos include previously unseen snaps of a young Musk hanging out with friends, fooling around in the dormitory, and cuddling with Gwynne.

Elon Musk's College Girlfriend is Auctioning Off Old Photos and Mementos. pic.twitter.com/GLNyOk1NNL

— Inside Edition (@InsideEdition) August 30, 2022

According to The Independent, Gwynne, who dated Musk for a period in 1994, has decided to sell the items to raise money for her stepson’s college tuition fees.

It isn’t the first time items linked to famous entrepreneurs have been sold on RR Auction’s site. The company auctioned Steve Jobs’s first Apple-1 prototype in August for nearly $680,000.

In an interview with Insider Edition, Gwynne said the future Tesla Inc. boss was already envisioning electric cars while they were dating almost 30 years ago. “He would talk about electric cars, he would talk about alternative fuel sources,” she said in an Insider Edition’s video Tweet. 

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