Inset: Ethan Early (Cheatham County Jail). Left: President Donald Trump listens during a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2025 (Pool via AP). Right: Elon Musk speaks as President Donald Trump holds his first Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025 (Pool via AP).
A Tennessee man is behind bars after he allegedly began assembling materials to burn down one of Elon Musk‘s AI data centers because he was mad at the billionaire and President Donald Trump.
Ethan Paul Early, 25, stands accused of the commission of an act of terrorism, court records show. The investigation began on Feb. 19 when a friend of Early’s contacted the Ashland City Police Department with concerns after the defendant said he was upset with Musk and Trump and wanted to destroy the xAI facility in Memphis, an arrest affidavit obtained by Law&Crime.
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Early allegedly told his friend that he began to obtain materials to make thermite, a mix of aluminum powder and iron oxide that produces intense heat and is typically used by welders. But the friend was able to talk Early out of carrying out the threat and encouraged him to dispose of the materials, the affidavit said. Cops went to Early’s home and interviewed him. He admitted to making comments to a few buddies about wanting to burn down the facility, officers wrote.
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The defendant also said he did buy some materials to make thermite, the affidavit said. He said he felt like he “had to do something” after becoming “very upset” with Trump and Musk. He then allegedly researched how to make thermite. But Early told cops he came to realize that he overreacted and went “too far down the deep end.” Early also allegedly said he was “ashamed of himself” that he had gotten so “carried away” over politics. He said he threw away the materials he collected on Feb. 17.
Cops took him to the Cheatham County Jail where he’s being held on a $500,000 bond. His attorney did not immediately return a message requesting comment.
Musk, owner of Tesla and SpaceX and head of the Department of Government Efficiency, founded xAI and selected Memphis to house its data center. Some have been critical of the amount of power it needs to generate to operate. The affidavit did not say why Early was so upset with Trump and Musk.
As Musk’s public profile has risen, so have threats against him. An Indiana man was arrested earlier this month for allegedly posting a series of threatening posts on X, including one that said he was going to “gut” Musk and “parade” his “corpse through the streets.”
