Maye Musk, mother of the world’s richest billionaire Elon Musk, is a typical face of the “silver influencer” trend with her success in overcoming adversity and creating strong empathy in China. Could she be billionaire Elon Musk’s secret weapon in the country of a billion people?

Maye Musk is a busy woman. In addition to being Elon Musk’s mother, she is constantly attending glamorous events in many places, including many in China. In December alone, Maye Musk attended a gala in Hangzhou, walked the red carpet for a cosmetics company in Wuhan, and attended a book signing for the Chinese version of her book “A Woman Makes a Plan: Advice for a Lifetime of Adventure, Beauty, and Success.”

Billionaire Elon Musk is quite famous in China. He is considered to have the potential to influence Beijing-related policies in the new administration of US President-elect Donald Trump. Not to be outdone, Ms. Maye Musk is also very popular in China. She even announced that she will visit China “almost every month”.

The Guardian (UK) reported that many people believe that Ms. Maye is billionaire Elon Musk’s “secret weapon” in China.

She has also made no secret of her affection for the country. “China has developed so much in terms of roads, tunnels, buildings, infrastructure and ports. I am always impressed every time I visit,” she wrote on social media platform X in October. A month later, she posted photos of Teslas in Shanghai, accompanied by an admiring heart emoji.

The 76-year-old has had a successful career as a model and nutritionist. But Musk’s extensive business operations in China – with Tesla’s largest factory in Shanghai and his frequent visits to the country – have opened the door to a new market where she has been warmly welcomed.

Her story is becoming increasingly well-known in China. Born in Canada and raised in South Africa, Maye Musk has traveled the world for her career and family. Many Chinese social media users have commented praising her independence.

A reader of “A Woman Makes a Plan: Advice for a Lifetime of Adventure, Beauty, and Success” also commented: “As a model of an independent, self-reliant woman who takes control of her life, Maye Musk has had a rich experience under the influence of her family since childhood. Thanks to her experience living in many countries, she is more tolerant of culture and life, choosing to leave her comfort zone again and again.”

Many Chinese companies have also taken notice. Last year, Maye Musk became a global ambassador for Chinese electronics company Oppo. This year, she added mattress company AISE Baobao to the list of Chinese companies she represents. She also attended the opening of the brand’s Shanghai store in November.

Maye Musk also walked the runway in Hangzhou for Chinese fashion label JNBY and attended an event for sportswear brand Fila. In October, she attended a party for Italian luxury brand Moncler in Shanghai. She also shared photos with Rihanna and A$AP Rocky on her Chinese social media accounts.

Commercial endorsements have helped Maye Musk build a sizable following on Chinese social media. She has 577,000 followers on Xiaohongshu, an Instagram-like platform that is particularly popular with young women, and 356,000 on Douyin. She also has 46,200 followers on Weibo.

She owes her fame in part to her son, whose Teslas are a top competitor to Chinese electric car company BYD. But she is also part of a growing trend of older influencers—the so-called silver influencer. That’s a term used to describe older people, especially women, who are admired for their ability to “age gracefully.”

“Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996) and Gen-Z (born between 1997 and 2012) admire people in their 60s to 90s who age gracefully,” said Yaling Jiang, founder of Following the Yuan, a Chinese consumer newsletter.

But there are certain elements of Maye Musk’s life story that make her particularly appealing in China. Beyond her striking looks, she has overcome adversity. She has been open about being a survivor of domestic violence. In an interview, she described returning from her honeymoon with Elon Musk’s father, Errol Musk, bruised and pregnant. She said that billionaire Elon Musk “grew up in a very violent family.” Errol has denied allegations of domestic violence.

“This amazing woman, in her life journey, transformed from an abused housewife to a world-famous supermodel and successfully raised three billionaire children. This scenario is even more exciting than a Hollywood blockbuster!”, one fan wrote on Weibo.

“Her story is so inspiring. If you want to wear the crown, you have to bear its weight,” wrote another.

Ms. Jiang predicts that Maye Musk will soon launch her own brand in China, possibly one related to health or fitness.