Elon Musk announces free Starlink services ‘in support of the people of Venezuela’ after Maduro’s capture

Tesla and SpaceX chief Elon Musk announced Sunday that the Starlink satellite network will provide free broadband services to the people of Venezuela for a month to ensure constant connectivity.

Musk shared a post about Starlink’s announcement on X and said, “We support the people of Venezuela.”

Musk had previously celebrated the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a US military operation approved by President Donald Trump and said Venezuela would eventually prosper with Maduro gone.

“Venezuela ahora puede tener la prosperidad que merece,” Musk wrote in Spanish.

Musk’s social media campaign against Maduro

Considering the billionaire has been a vocal critic of Maduro, it was no surprise that Musk celebrated following the capture of the Venezuelan President.

Previously, when Venezuela sees its last elections in 2024, Musk targeted the Maduro government by calling for regime change in the South American country.

Giving all his weight to opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, Musk said that he would benefit from a government that develops Venezuela’s rich natural resources.

“Venezuela has great wealth of natural resources. The country would be very prosperous if Chavez had not destroyed their economy by elevating the role of the government to extreme socialism,” Musk wrote on X in April 2024.

A few months later, Musk reiterated his call for regime change, saying: “It’s time for the Venezuelan people to have a chance at a better future. Support Maria Corina!”

Musk continued to target Maduro, whom he described as a “clown” throughout 2024.

The billionaire then attacked the President of Venezuela and said, “Maduro is not a good man. Venezuela deserves much better.”

“The US has plenty of domestic oil and gas production, and nothing will happen quickly in Venezuela, so it certainly won’t impact this election. Rebuilding Venezuela’s oil production will need several years,” the Tesla and SpaceX CEO said in late July 2024.

In 2025, shortly after Trump took office in his second term, Musk took aim at Venezuela again, saying “Maduro is harming the Venezuelan people, just like his predecessor.”

Although the billionaire remained silent on this issue for several months, he continued his comments after Maduro’s capture on Saturday, January 3, 2026.