Lawrence Krauss

UpdatedSeptember 7, 2026

ByEpsteinWiki

Jvangiel, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Snapshot

Lawrence Maxwell Krauss is a theoretical physicist, author, and science communicator whose relationship with Jeffrey Epstein extended across scientific conferences, personal friendship, fundraising, travel, social gatherings, and private advice.

Krauss helped organize a 2006 physics conference in the United States Virgin Islands that Epstein financed. The conference included a dinner on Little Saint James. After Epstein pleaded guilty in Florida in 2008 and became a registered sex offender, Krauss continued the relationship. Epstein’s Enhanced Education foundation contributed approximately $250,000 to the Origins Project at Arizona State University, which Krauss founded and directed. Records also document funding connected to Leon Black, continuing social contact, visits, event coordination, and correspondence lasting into 2019.

Krauss did more than remain in contact. In 2011, he publicly defended Epstein and expressed skepticism toward the accounts of girls involved in Epstein’s Florida case. In 2017 and 2018, when reporters and Arizona State University were examining allegations of sexual misconduct against Krauss, he sent materials to Epstein and sought his advice about public statements, lawyers, media strategy, and his university response.

Arizona State University later found by a preponderance of the evidence that Krauss violated university policy by grabbing a woman’s breast at a 2016 convention. Krauss denied harassment and assault, disputed the university’s conclusion, and maintained that the broader allegations against him were false and misleading. He retired from Arizona State University in May 2019 after a negotiated resolution.

Krauss has not been accused by prosecutors of participating in Epstein’s trafficking crimes. He has not been criminally charged or convicted in connection with Epstein. The documented concern is different: he helped give Epstein scientific credibility, accepted and cultivated support after Epstein’s conviction, defended him publicly, and later treated Epstein as a trusted adviser when his own reputation was in danger.

Key Facts

Full name: Lawrence Maxwell Krauss
Born: May 27, 1954
Nationality: Canadian and American
Profession: Theoretical physicist, cosmologist, author, and science communicator
Major academic roles: Yale University, Case Western Reserve University, and Arizona State University
Arizona State role: Foundation professor and founder and director of the Origins Project
Documented Epstein relationship: Scientific conferences, donations, personal correspondence, social visits, travel logistics, event planning, and strategic advice
Known relationship period: At least the early 2000s through 2019
Post conviction contact: Extensive
Direct payments identified in bank records: $15,000 on April 5, 2018 and $10,000 on November 5, 2018
Criminal status: No Epstein related criminal charge or conviction identified
Evidence classification: Repeated association, financial support, institutional credibility, public defense, and private strategic consultation

Background and Academic Career

Krauss was born in New York City and raised in Toronto. He studied mathematics and physics at Carleton University and earned a doctorate in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1982.

He held academic posts at Yale University and Case Western Reserve University before joining Arizona State University in 2008. His research and public writing focused on cosmology, particle physics, dark matter, the early universe, and scientific skepticism. His books include The Physics of Star Trek and A Universe from Nothing.

At Arizona State, Krauss created the Origins Project, an interdisciplinary program built around major public events, workshops, visiting scholars, and debates about the universe, life, consciousness, violence, and the future of humanity. The program attracted prominent scientists, public intellectuals, entertainers, and donors.

That visibility made Origins valuable to Epstein. A public association with respected researchers and universities helped Epstein present himself as a serious patron of science. Krauss, in turn, gained access to Epstein’s money, properties, travel network, wealthy contacts, and willingness to finance gatherings outside ordinary university structures.

The 2006 Confronting Gravity Conference

Krauss helped organize a March 2006 conference in St. Thomas titled Confronting Gravity. Epstein and his Virgin Islands foundation financed the event.

The gathering brought together approximately twenty prominent physicists, including Stephen Hawking, Gerard ‘t Hooft, David Gross, Frank Wilczek, Kip Thorne, Lisa Randall, Alan Guth, Barry Barish, Maria Spiropulu, and Jim Peebles. The program combined formal scientific discussions with excursions. Participants also attended a dinner on Epstein’s private island, Little Saint James.

The conference occurred before Epstein’s 2008 Florida conviction, but after Palm Beach police had begun investigating him in 2005. Public evidence does not establish that Krauss knew the full scope of that investigation when he organized the event.

The 2006 gathering matters because it demonstrates the exchange at the center of Epstein’s scientific network. Epstein paid for access to celebrated scientists and the legitimacy their presence created. Krauss obtained a privately financed conference with unusually prestigious participants and luxurious surroundings.

NPR’s 2026 reconstruction of the conference reported that Krauss said he never saw Epstein expose the criminal side of his life. Krauss said Epstein presented himself as someone who wanted to support science and that he believed him.

Attendance at the conference is not evidence that every participant knew about or participated in Epstein’s crimes. The responsibility examined on this page concerns Krauss’s own organizing role and the relationship he maintained afterward.

The Relationship Continued After Epstein’s Conviction

Epstein pleaded guilty in Florida state court on June 30, 2008 to offenses involving prostitution, including an offense involving a minor. He served approximately thirteen months in custody, much of it with extensive work release, and registered as a sex offender.

Krauss continued communicating and meeting with him after that conviction. The released correspondence shows scientific proposals, fundraising discussions, travel plans, event invitations, personal conversations, and visits to Epstein properties.

EFTA02418318 records an October 2010 discussion in which Krauss updated Epstein about a long call with Barnaby Marsh of the John Templeton Foundation. Krauss and Epstein discussed the motivations behind scientific funding and possible proposals.

EFTA00751595 contains a November 2010 Origins proposal that Krauss forwarded to Epstein. Krauss wrote that he would be happier if Epstein’s Florida Science Foundation partnered in the proposed programs. The document connects Epstein directly to Krauss’s efforts to fund research, workshops, and public outreach.

EFTA00924081 documents travel planning for a December 2011 conference in the Virgin Islands. Krauss asked whether he should stay at a hotel or with Epstein. Epstein replied that his own accommodations were already full.

Other released records document lunches, Manhattan meetings, Paris transportation, property access, and an October 2015 lunch for Krauss and his family on Little Saint James. In April 2019, Epstein’s staff arranged apartments for Krauss at 301 East 66th Street in New York.

This was not a brief encounter or an isolated donation. It was a sustained relationship that survived Epstein’s conviction and continued almost until Epstein’s 2019 arrest.

Origins Project Funding

The Origins Project received approximately $250,000 from Enhanced Education, an Epstein foundation, between 2010 and 2017. The donations therefore occurred after Epstein’s conviction and sex offender registration.

EFTA02412462 documents Epstein directing a $100,000 donation to the Arizona State University Foundation for the Origins Project and identifying Krauss as the intended program contact.

The Arizona State Press reported that records attributed about $250,000 in Origins funding to Enhanced Education. A later Arizona State Press investigation reported that Origins also received $2 million in donations from Leon and Debra Black between 2014 and 2015.

The Black donations should not be inaccurately described as Epstein’s personal money. They came from Black family sources. The records are relevant because released correspondence shows Epstein participating in discussions about the funds and later authorizing efforts involving the remaining balances.

EFTA01008505 contains correspondence and accounting information about Origins donations and unspent funds. EFTA02633422 documents later efforts involving approximately $607,000 associated with Black family funding and $25,000 remaining from Enhanced Education. The correspondence concerns moving funds from Arizona State toward the MIT Media Lab after Krauss’s departure.

A donation proves that money was provided. It does not establish that the money financed criminal activity. The accountability issue is institutional and reputational: a registered sex offender was allowed to continue buying access, influence, and prestige through a university science program.

Krauss’s 2011 Public Defense of Epstein

In 2011, Krauss publicly defended Epstein after the Florida conviction. This is one of the most consequential parts of the record because it moved beyond private friendship.

Krauss said that his personal experience led him to regard Epstein as thoughtful, kind, and generous. He questioned whether girls in the Florida case had understood what they were doing and said he believed Epstein’s claim that he did not know they were minors. He also used the language of scientific skepticism to discount information that did not match what he personally witnessed.

In an interview quoted by The Arizona State Press, Krauss said he felt elevated, rather than tarnished, by the relationship. He described seeing young women around Epstein whom he believed were adults and treated that observation as grounds to favor Epstein’s account.

EFTA00908299 preserves correspondence concerning Krauss’s public defense. EFTA00628940 contains a longer exchange in which he discussed the victims, Epstein’s explanation, and his friendship with Epstein. EFTA00628945 records additional public and private discussion of his position.

The reasoning was deeply flawed. Not personally witnessing abuse does not rebut police evidence, victim testimony, a guilty plea, or a pattern that occurred outside a witness’s presence. The ages of other women seen around Epstein did not determine the ages of the girls in the criminal case.

Krauss’s stature gave the defense additional weight. Epstein could point to a famous scientist who framed belief in him as an exercise in evidence and reason. That is how reputation laundering works: credibility is transferred from a respected institution or expert to a person whose conduct should instead be judged from the actual record.

Personal Friendship and Social Access

The emails reflect a relationship more personal than a conventional donor contact. Krauss shared travel schedules, funding plans, scientific ideas, professional worries, and private concerns with Epstein.

In the 2011 correspondence preserved in EFTA00628940, Krauss explicitly described Epstein as his friend and expressed hope that both men would remember that friendship regardless of controversy.

EFTA02380554 shows Epstein and Barnaby Marsh discussing whether to add Krauss to a March 2017 lunch. EFTA02348847 places Krauss and Epstein together in correspondence with Noam Chomsky about an event. EFTA02329623 includes Krauss on a list of friends asked to contribute a dining room story for an Epstein birthday booklet.

Krauss also used services coordinated by Epstein’s staff. These included transportation in Paris, housing in New York, and arrangements connected to Virgin Islands visits. Such assistance does not prove criminal conduct. It demonstrates intimacy, access, and a relationship that continued long after Epstein’s public conviction.

Sexual Misconduct Allegations Against Krauss

In February 2018, BuzzFeed News published allegations from women and witnesses describing unwanted touching, forcible kissing, sexual comments, and other inappropriate conduct by Krauss over many years. The accounts involved several institutions and professional settings.

Krauss denied the allegations and called the reporting false, misleading, and defamatory. He published a lengthy response disputing specific incidents and arguing that the story relied on anonymous claims, hearsay, and distorted context. He acknowledged that his language or demeanor may sometimes have made people uncomfortable but denied harassment and assault.

The allegations themselves are not Epstein related crimes. They matter here because Krauss turned to Epstein for advice while preparing responses, dealing with reporters, choosing counsel, and navigating the Arizona State investigation.

They also require careful classification. A media allegation is not the same as an institutional finding. Arizona State did not publicly substantiate every allegation in the reporting. It did reach a formal finding concerning one 2016 incident.

The Arizona State University Finding

Arizona State placed Krauss on paid leave in March 2018 while it reviewed the allegations. Its Office of Equity and Inclusion reopened an earlier complaint concerning the 2016 Australian Skeptics National Convention.

The university concluded by a preponderance of the evidence that Krauss grabbed a woman’s breast without permission during a photograph at a convention dinner. Investigators relied on consistent accounts from several witnesses, including the woman involved.

The woman reportedly told investigators that she did not consider herself victimized and viewed the event as a clumsy interpersonal interaction. That statement is part of the record and should not be omitted. The university nevertheless found that the conduct created an offensive environment and violated its sexual harassment policy and code of ethics.

Krauss disputed the finding. He argued that the photograph captured his hand moving away, challenged witness interpretations, and contested the university’s jurisdiction and analysis.

The Arizona State Press published a detailed account of the finding, including Krauss’s explanation and the evidence cited by investigators. Arizona State removed him from leadership positions under its direct control, did not renew his Origins Project directorship, and restricted him from campus. A dean recommended dismissal from his tenured faculty position.

Krauss and the university later reached an agreement, and Krauss retired effective May 2019. It is therefore imprecise to say simply that Arizona State fired him in July 2018. He was removed from leadership posts, remained on leave, faced a dismissal process, negotiated an agreement, and then retired.

Seeking Epstein’s Advice During the 2017 and 2018 Crisis

The released emails show that Krauss shared reporter inquiries and draft responses with Epstein before and after the allegations became public.

EFTA02522580 records Epstein advising Krauss in February 2018 to create distance, avoid a lawsuit, and stop amplifying the story. EFTA02520295 contains a longer exchange involving Krauss, Arizona State communications, advisers, and response strategy.

EFTA02495716 documents discussions surrounding attorney Justin Dillon. Krauss described Epstein to Dillon as an infamous friend with connections to people facing public scandal. Epstein expressed concern about disclosure of his conversations and contacts.

Other records show Epstein scrutinizing Krauss’s draft denials, warning him about university access restrictions, and advising him about institutional exposure. The correspondence continued during the Arizona State process.

The relationship remained active after Krauss reached a settlement with Arizona State. EFTA01019075 contains the agreement and correspondence in which Krauss sought Epstein’s views about a retirement statement and whether to end his relationship with counsel.

The Guardian’s 2026 review of the released correspondence reported that Krauss also used demeaning language about a woman involved in a university committee and worked on public statements with Epstein. Krauss told reporters that he had sought advice from many people and that none of his communications with Epstein concerned Epstein’s later federal crimes.

This does not prove that Epstein controlled Krauss’s legal response. It does establish that Krauss treated a convicted sex offender as a trusted strategic adviser during a sexual misconduct crisis.

The April and November 2018 Payments

EFTA01681865 is a Deutsche Bank presentation prepared for federal prosecutors. Exhibit P identifies two payments to Lawrence Krauss:

$15,000 on April 5, 2018 from Gratitude America, Ltd.
$10,000 on November 5, 2018 from Jeffrey Epstein

The first payment occurred after the allegations became public and while Arizona State’s investigation was underway. The second occurred after the university finding and shortly after Krauss announced his planned retirement.

The exhibit does not state the purpose of either payment. It does not establish that the money paid legal fees, purchased silence, funded science, or rewarded any specific act. Those possibilities should not be presented as fact without supporting records.

The exhibit’s background text says Arizona State fired Krauss in July 2018. That summary is not fully accurate. The more precise employment sequence is removal from selected leadership posts, continued paid leave, a recommended tenured dismissal, a negotiated agreement, and retirement in May 2019.

The transaction data remain important even though the background summary contains that error. The bank identified the recipient, dates, amounts, and source accounts. The payments deepen the need to understand why Epstein or his foundation transferred money directly to Krauss during this period.

Funding Redirection After Krauss Left Origins

After Krauss’s relationship with Arizona State deteriorated, correspondence turned to unspent Origins Project donations.

Records show discussions about asking donors to reclaim funds and redirect them toward other projects. Epstein, Richard Kahn, Krauss, the ASU Foundation, and people connected to the MIT Media Lab appear in the correspondence.

EFTA01008505 records accounting for donations and remaining balances. EFTA02633422 documents efforts to redirect approximately $632,000 associated with Black family and Enhanced Education funds.

These records should not be summarized as Krauss personally receiving the entire amount. The money concerned institutional donations and remaining charitable funds. The evidence does show that Krauss and Epstein remained involved in discussions about where those funds would go after Origins changed form.

Krauss’s Later Explanation

Krauss has said that he never concealed knowing Epstein. He has maintained that he did not witness trafficking, sexual abuse, or evidence of the crimes revealed in the 2019 federal case.

In response to later reporting about the emails, Krauss said he sought advice from essentially everyone he knew when allegations against him circulated. He said the communications did not concern Epstein’s crimes and that he was shocked by Epstein’s 2019 arrest.

In the 2026 NPR report on the scientific conference, Krauss said Epstein contacted him after leaving custody and claimed the experience had changed him. Krauss said Epstein presented himself as finished with making money and interested in supporting science. Krauss said he believed that account.

This explanation addresses what Krauss says he knew. It does not answer why he discounted the girls in the Florida case, why he publicly elevated Epstein’s credibility over theirs, or why he regarded Epstein as an appropriate adviser on sexual misconduct accusations.

What the Evidence Establishes

Established by primary records and institutional findings

Krauss helped organize a 2006 Epstein financed physics conference in the Virgin Islands.
Conference participants attended a dinner on Little Saint James.
Krauss remained in contact with Epstein after the 2008 conviction.
Enhanced Education contributed approximately $250,000 to the Origins Project between 2010 and 2017.
Krauss publicly defended Epstein in 2011 and questioned the accounts and responsibility of girls in the Florida case.
Krauss continued social visits, event coordination, travel discussions, and private correspondence with Epstein.
Krauss sent material concerning sexual misconduct allegations to Epstein and sought his advice.
Arizona State found under the preponderance standard that Krauss violated university policy in a 2016 incident.
Deutsche Bank records identify a $15,000 payment in April 2018 and a $10,000 payment in November 2018.
Krauss retired from Arizona State in May 2019 after a negotiated resolution.

Not established by the reviewed evidence

That Krauss participated in Epstein’s sexual abuse or trafficking operation
That Krauss recruited victims for Epstein
That Krauss witnessed Epstein abusing a minor
That every scientist at an Epstein funded event knew about Epstein’s crimes
That Origins Project donations financed criminal conduct
That the two direct payments to Krauss were illegal or made for a particular improper purpose
That Krauss was criminally charged or convicted in connection with Epstein

Unresolved questions

What Krauss knew about the Palm Beach investigation before the 2006 conference
Why Arizona State continued accepting Enhanced Education donations after Epstein’s conviction
The precise purpose of the April and November 2018 payments
The complete institutional approval process for donations and events involving Epstein
How much scientific access and reputational benefit Epstein obtained through Krauss and Origins

Evidence Assessment

Krauss’s connection to Epstein is not based on a name in an address book or a single photograph. It is supported by conference records, financial documents, emails, schedules, travel discussions, visits, public statements, and direct bank records.

The strongest evidence of reputational assistance is Krauss’s 2011 defense. He used his standing as a scientist to frame trust in Epstein as evidence based while discounting victims whose experiences he had not personally witnessed.

The strongest evidence of personal trust is the 2017 and 2018 consultation. Krauss shared sensitive materials and sought Epstein’s advice while facing allegations and an institutional investigation. That conduct occurred years after Epstein’s conviction was public.

The strongest institutional evidence is the Origins funding record. The program received substantial post conviction support while offering Epstein proximity to celebrated thinkers and respected university events.

The evidence does not support labeling Krauss a participant in Epstein’s trafficking crimes. It strongly supports classifying him as an academic credibility provider and sustained post conviction associate.

Timeline

1982

Krauss earns his doctorate in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

1993 through 2008

Krauss works at Case Western Reserve University and serves in senior physics roles.

March 2006

Krauss helps organize the Epstein financed Confronting Gravity conference in St. Thomas. The gathering includes a dinner on Little Saint James.

2008

Krauss joins Arizona State University and establishes the Origins Project. Epstein pleads guilty in Florida and later becomes a registered sex offender.

2009 and 2010

The correspondence shows renewed or continuing personal and scientific contact after Epstein leaves custody.

November 2010

Epstein directs a $100,000 contribution to the Arizona State University Foundation for the Origins Project.

April 2011

Krauss publicly defends Epstein and expresses skepticism toward the accounts of girls involved in the Florida case.

December 2011

Krauss discusses Virgin Islands conference travel and accommodation with Epstein.

2014 through 2015

Origins receives major donations from Leon and Debra Black. Krauss continues coordinating events and correspondence involving Epstein.

October 2015

Epstein’s staff schedules an island lunch for Krauss and his family.

November 2016

The incident later substantiated by Arizona State occurs at the Australian Skeptics National Convention.

2017

Enhanced Education makes its final reported Origins donation. Krauss continues meeting and corresponding with Epstein.

December 2017

Krauss forwards reporter questions and response material to Epstein while allegations are being investigated.

February 2018

The misconduct allegations become public. Krauss and Epstein discuss response strategy.

March 2018

Arizona State places Krauss on paid leave. Krauss continues consulting Epstein and discusses legal counsel.

April 5, 2018

Bank records identify a $15,000 payment to Krauss from Gratitude America.

July 2018

Arizona State concludes that Krauss violated university policy in the 2016 incident.

August 2018

Krauss is replaced as director of the Origins Project.

October 2018

Krauss reaches an agreement with Arizona State, announces his planned retirement, and seeks Epstein’s advice about his statement and counsel.

November 5, 2018

Bank records identify a $10,000 payment from Epstein to Krauss.

December 2018 through February 2019

Correspondence concerns the recovery and redirection of unspent Origins donations.

April 2019

Epstein’s staff arranges New York apartment access for Krauss.

May 2019

Krauss retires from Arizona State University.

July 2019

Epstein is arrested on federal sex trafficking charges. Krauss says he was shocked by the allegations revealed in the federal case.

2025 and 2026

Additional released emails and reporting reveal the extent of Krauss’s consultations with Epstein during the misconduct crisis.

Direct Epstein Data Records

Related EpsteinWiki Pages

Sources

Primary and institutional records

Funding and relationship reporting

Editorial Note

This article distinguishes documented association, payments, institutional findings, media allegations, denials, and criminal status. A donation, email, meeting, flight discussion, or property visit is not by itself proof of participation in Epstein’s crimes.

Krauss’s misconduct allegations are included because his response to them became a documented part of his relationship with Epstein. Only the 2016 convention incident is described here as an Arizona State finding. The broader allegations remain allegations that Krauss denied.

The financial records establish transactions and institutional funding. They do not independently establish the purpose of every payment or prove unlawful conduct.

PostedDecember 8, 2025