A brief, wordless exchange between President Donald Trump and Elon Musk at the public memorial for conservative activist Charlie Kirk is drawing attention after a professional lip reader said she could make out fragments of their conversation, including what she interpreted as an opening greeting, an offer to “work out how to get back on track” and a parting “I’ve missed you.” The handshake and chat were captured on broadcast cameras at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, on Sunday, but without usable audio; neither Trump nor Musk has provided an on-record account of what was said. A video posted by The Washington Post shows the pair clasping hands and leaning in to speak as UFC executive Dana White hovered nearby, the first time the two men have been seen together publicly since a highly public rupture in June.
Nicola Hickling, a British professional who runs LipReader Limited, told MailOnline that Trump turned from White toward Musk with a casual “How are you doing?” before adding, “So Elon, I’ve heard you wanted to chat.” In Hickling’s reading, Trump then suggested, “Let’s try and work out how to get back on track,” and concluded by clasping Musk’s hand and saying, “I’ve missed you.” Several outlets that summarized Hickling’s account reproduced those lines and noted Musk’s nod in response; none could independently verify the exchange. UNILAD and the Hindustan Times cited Hickling’s remarks to MailOnline and described the visual sequence—handshake, brief conversation, and Musk stepping away a moment later—seen in the stadium feed. The Financial Express likewise quoted Hickling’s version and the same phrases.
A separate write-up from LADbible highlighted a shorter segment of the silent conversation and quoted Hickling as saying Trump patted Musk’s knee and said, “All good.” The Times of India’s recap, also drawing on Hickling’s account, repeated the lines, “How are you doing?” and “I’ve heard you wanted to chat,” followed by, “Let’s try and work out how to get back on track,” and “I’ve missed you.” Together, the interpretations suggest a cordial tone and a nod toward reconciliation after weeks of public rancor, though all are caveated as the judgment of a lip reader working from broadcast footage.
The encounter unfolded inside a football stadium filled with mourners for Kirk, the 31-year-old founder of Turning Point USA who was shot and killed at Utah Valley University on 10 September. News organizations placed the turnout between roughly 63,000 and more than 70,000, with overflow crowds outside; Reuters, ABC News (Australia) and The Guardian described the event as a blend of religious revival and political rally in which speakers cast Kirk as a martyr for conservative and Christian causes. The Independent streamed segments and posted video of the Trump–Musk handshake. The Washington Post’s video, which contains no audible dialogue, is the clearest widely distributed clip of the two men speaking.
Erika Kirk, the activist’s widow, provided the moment of the day with a declaration of forgiveness for the accused gunman, Tyler Robinson, who prosecutors in Utah have charged with aggravated murder. “That young man … I forgive him,” she said, explaining that she was acting out of Christian conviction and “because it was what Christ did, and it’s what Charlie would do.” Fox News carried the lines in full, and The Guardian reported that the crowd rose in a standing ovation. Trump, who spoke later, praised Kirk in superlatives and used the occasion to attack political adversaries, part of a set of speeches that drew both reverence and criticism.
Hickling’s reconstruction of the interchange between Trump and Musk remained the only detailed account of the exchange as of Monday, and outlets quoting her emphasized the limits of the method. According to the summaries, Hickling said Musk appeared to shrug when Trump mentioned hearing that he “wanted to chat.” White, who has served as a visible ally to the administration, leaned in at one point, the recaps said, with Hickling interpreting Trump’s follow-up as “Let’s try and work out how to get back on track.” Each retelling noted that lip reading can be imprecise, particularly in arena conditions and at oblique camera angles.
The Washington Post framed the handshake as the pair’s first public appearance together since an acrimonious split in June; Hindustan Times and other outlets tied the estrangement to policy and personal barbs that spilled across social media and interviews earlier this year. Against that backdrop, Hickling’s claim that Trump closed with “I’ve missed you” became the most-quoted fragment of the supposed conversation. Neither man addressed the content of their remarks to each other in their separate public statements about the memorial. The Guardian’s live blog noted that Musk posted on X that he was in attendance, but his feed did not include a transcript of the exchange with Trump.
Multiple organizations documented the atmosphere in Glendale. Reuters reported a crowd of more than 63,000 inside State Farm Stadium, with religious music, scripture readings and presentations from senior political figures including Vice-President JD Vance. ABC News (Australia) and The Guardian said speakers referred to Kirk as a “martyr,” and that Trump pledged honors and invoked themes that have defined his political rallies. The Independent’s live coverage described people lining up before dawn and heavy security around the venue; a day earlier, the Secret Service said an armed man had been detained outside the stadium after entering with a false claim of law-enforcement affiliation.
In Utah, prosecutors have said they will seek the death penalty against Robinson. The Guardian and other outlets referenced filings that include messages the suspect allegedly wrote before and after the shooting; CBS News and the Associated Press have reported that Robinson is being held without bail pending further hearings. Those developments formed the legal context for Erika Kirk’s remarks and for the political and security dimensions of Sunday’s event, which drew administration officials, conservative influencers and skeptical protesters outside.
Within that tableau, the Trump–Musk moment became a focal point in part because of the pair’s outsized profiles and a well-documented falling out, and in part because televised images conveyed their reunion while leaving their words to inference. The Independent’s clip shows Musk taking a seat beside Trump, Trump leaning toward him as White looks on, and the men shaking hands; The Washington Post’s video, recorded from a different angle, shows a second handshake and a few more seconds of conversation before Musk rises and moves away. Without sound, lip reading provides a plausible but unconfirmed narrative—one that, in Hickling’s telling, centers on a greeting, a suggestion to “get back on track,” and an expression of familiarity.
LADbible’s shorter rendering—“All good,” attributed to Trump as he patted Musk’s knee—differs from the longer phrasing quoted by UNILAD, the Times of India, the Economic Times and the Financial Express, each of which credited Hickling and MailOnline for the more expansive interpretation. Those discrepancies are routine when multiple editors transcribe perceived speech from separate clips and angles. All versions depict an amicable tone and end with Musk’s nod before he departs the row. None of the reports quotes either man directly about the exchange.
The memorial’s scale and the prominence of attendees ensured that fleeting interactions—embraces on the stage, whispered asides at floor level, nods in the aisles—would be scrutinized. Reuters described the event as a merging of religion and politics; ABC News (Australia) highlighted the mix of elegy and campaign-style rhetoric; and The Guardian chronicled the contrast between Erika Kirk’s call for mercy and the confrontational posture of subsequent speakers. In that setting, a brief handshake and a few words between the sitting president and the world’s wealthiest technologist took on outsized significance, particularly for observers attuned to whether their relationship might be repaired. The available record, however, remains visual rather than verbal.
A handful of practical facts can be stated with certainty: Trump and Musk shook hands and spoke briefly at State Farm Stadium during the memorial; broadcast footage captured the interaction without audio; a professional lip reader offered a reconstruction of the exchange that multiple outlets relayed; and neither man has supplied a transcript or comment to corroborate or contradict that reading. Until they do, Hickling’s account—“How are you doing? … So Elon, I’ve heard you wanted to chat … Let’s try and work out how to get back on track … I’ve missed you”—stands as an unverified interpretation of a conversation that played out in view of tens of thousands but out of earshot of everyone beyond the two men themselves.
