Elon Musk Faces Backlash Over Instagram Gender Comments on X

Elon Musk reignited an online controversy after he posted remarks on X describing Instagram as “for girls” and suggesting that men who send him their Instagram profiles might be “transitioning.” The comments appeared Sunday in response to a viral discussion about how people’s social media habits can change over time, and they spread rapidly across the platform as users debated whether the statements promoted gender stereotypes.

In the original post, users were discussing perceived patterns in online behavior, including frequent Instagram Stories updates, highly curated selfies, and food and lifestyle photos. Musk responded with a brief comment, stating: “Instagram is for girls.” He later added that he often receives Instagram profile links from adult men and said he then wonders, “are you transitioning or what?”

The reaction on X was immediate and split. Some users treated the exchange as humor, arguing that Instagram and X have different formats and cultural styles. Others criticized Musk’s characterization of Instagram users, saying it reduced a widely used photo and video platform to a stereotype. Several users also pointed to Instagram’s broad user base across genders, while...