Elon Musk accompanied Donald Trump to a high stakes summit in China earlier this month, and while much of the media attention fell on President Trump and Xi Jinping, many social media users fixated on one particular viral moment between Elon Musk and one of his rivals, Lei Jun. Keep reading for more information.
Elon completely stole the banquet
He was already posing for someone else when Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun walked up to his idol asking for a selfie
Elon instantly poses with the funniest face
does the same funny expression with Apple CEO Tim Cook too
Now Elon became the MAIN… pic.twitter.com/WqlgKTgk5b
— X Freeze (@XFreeze) May 14, 2026
Elon Musk’s Awkward Selfie Moment
Seated at a banquet at the Great Hall of the People, Elon Musk looked a bit bored as different figures from the tech world stopped in for a seat at his table. In a brief moment captured on camera, Lei Jun, a Chinese entrepreneur and one of Musk’s rivals, dropped into a seat next to Musk. At this, Musk visibly grimaced before agreeing to a selfie with Lei Jun, but made quite the awkward face for the photo.
Without ever looking Lei Jun in the eyes, he pulled another grimace, closed one eye, and raised an eyebrow, an interesting choice for a selfie pose. Quickly after the photo was taken, he turned to his phone, seemingly pretending to be busy, with a look of indifference on his face.
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Social Media Reactions
The clip of the two tech CEOs went viral on X, the platform Musk bought as Twitter and rebranded, with many users calling him out for being "awkward" and "disrespectful.
"A perfect example of how body language speaks for itself," one person wrote. "Those who get it, get it."
"He is so disrespectful it's insane," another user posted.
"He couldn't smile for a picture?" the next asked. "Or just say no instead of being rude."
"Can't tell if he's being rude or is just plain awkward," added another.
"He's a despicable man," a final user posted. "Embarrassing he's there representing America."
