The planned Department of Government Efficiency, which Musk is set to lead, is poised to become an advisory body to help cut US government spending

Claim: Tech billionaire Elon Musk plans to build a “GED office” in the Philippines by 2025 under US President-elect Donald Trump’s administration.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The video of the claim was posted on November 18 by a YouTube channel with 22,200 subscribers. At the time of writing, it has 40,482 views and 181 comments. Similar videos with the same claims have also been circulating on YouTube.

The video’s narrator said: “In an unexpected twist that could reshape the future of the Philippines, tech visionary Elon Musk has announced plans to open a GED office in the Philippines under the leadership of Donald Trump in 2025.”

The bottom line: The video provides no evidence for its claim and does not explain what the planned “GED office” is, but references to cutting red tape and simplifying regulatory processes to “revolutionize the Philippines’ technological and economic landscape” suggest it may refer to the proposed Department of Government Agency (DOGE) in the United States, which Musk will lead together with businessman Vivek Ramaswamy.

The proposed department is currently in its the planning phase. There are no messages from either Musk or Ramaswamy on creating a “GED office” in the Philippines or elsewhere outside the United States.

DOGE as an advisory body: Trump designated the two will lead the department, saying in a statement that Musk and Ramaswamy “will pave the way for my administration to dismantle government bureaucracy, cut redundant regulations, reduce wasteful spending and restructure federal agencies.”

ready to be one advisory committeeDOGEN aims to increase “the quality and credibility of federal decision-making” rather than having direct authority over the functions of the US government and federal spending as it is not a government department. Creating a state agency would require congressional approval.

Trump said that Musk and Ramaswamy will primarily “provide advice and guidance from outside government” to “drive large-scale structural reforms and create an unprecedented entrepreneurial approach to government.”

At the time of writing, Musk and Ramaswamy have done so shared plans for “mass reductions” in the federal government and identifies regulations that the Trump administration could rescind.

Future cabinet members: The YouTube videos were posted when Trump started naming his future cabinet members after winning the presidency against Democratic nominee Kamala Harris. Musk, who owns several of the largest technology companies in the world, is among the Trumps ardent supporters and his campaign largest donor.

Rappler has already published several fact-checks on the upcoming second Trump administration:

– Kyle Marcelino/Rappler.com

Kyle Marcelino is a graduate of Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program. This fact-check was reviewed by a member of Rappler’s research team and a senior editor. Learn more about Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program here.

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