Washington (AFP) - Elon Musk adopted the moniker “Kekius Maximus” on X Tuesday, sparking speculation among his 210 million followers about his mysterious new handle that is a mash-up of an alt-right symbol, a memecoin, and the lead character of the movie “Gladiator.”

Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX and a confidant of US President-elect Donald Trump, also replaced his profile picture with one of “Pepe the Frog,” a popular cartoon character, wearing ancient Roman attire and holding a video game joystick.

In typical Musk fashion, the billionaire tech mogul and owner of X – formerly Twitter – offered no explanation about the new username and avatar, but the move triggered immediate ripple effects.

The change roiled the cryptocurrency world, sending the value of a memecoin – a digital currency inspired by an internet meme – with the same name skyrocketing.

It also sent internet sleuths hunting for answers: Was the name change just for the laughs? Was there a hidden message? Was this another thinly-disguised attempt to jolt the crypto markets? More troublingly, was it a wink and a nod to online hate groups?

Musk and X did not immediately respond to AFP’s request for comment.

His new handle appears to be a blend of “Maximus Decimus Meridius” – a Roman general played by Russell Crowe in the 2000 smash hit “Gladiator” – and “kek,” an expression popular among the alt-right and internet trolls that is used as a variation of “LOL,” or laugh out loud.

“Kek” is also a reference to a “virtual white nationalist god,” the nonprofit Southern Poverty Law Center told AFP, adding that Roman male images have been used by white nationalist groups such as Identity Evropa.

Pepe the Frog was originally a cartoon character from the “Boy’s Club” comic series, but during Trump’s first presidential campaign it became associated with the alt-right and white supremacists, with the Anti-Defamation League dubbing it a “hate symbol.”

“The majority of uses of Pepe the Frog have been, and continue to be, non-bigoted,” the ADL wrote on its website.

However, as it proliferated online, the meme was centered on “racist, antisemitic or other bigoted themes,” the ADL added.

- ‘Hate is not a joke’ -

“Manipulators can twist anything to give a wink and a nod to a sub-culture of online hate, while claiming ignorance,” the SPLC said.

“The use of the meme and name are indicative of the continued online culture that claims hateful ideas are simply jokes. Hate is not a joke.”

Before changing his handle, Musk posted a teaser on X: “Kekius Maximus will soon reach level 80 in hardcore PoE.”

PoE is an apparent reference to the popular “Path of Exile 2” video game.

The billionaire is known to play the game, calling it a “hall-of-famer” earlier this month in a post on X.

In the wake of Musk’s handle change, the memecoin Kekius Maximus’s value soared by more than 900 percent as of Tuesday evening, according to the site CoinGecko.

The memecoin was trading at less than one-fifth of a dollar at around 0030 GMT.

In the past, Musk has sent crypto prices on a rollercoaster ride with his social media commentary, but it was not immediately clear if he has any involvement in this particular memecoin.

The billionaire, an advisor to the incoming Trump administration, has been tapped to run the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), tasked with reducing government spending.

Musk’s account on X has become increasingly influential – and has often courted criticism for amplifying misinformation – since his purchase of the platform for $44 billion in 2022.