In a stunning revelation, Elon Musk, the visionary behind Tesla and SpaceX, has exposed a bitter rivalry with Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. A newly released biography delves into the contentious relationship between these tech titans and Musk’s unfiltered feelings towards Gates.
Musk recalled an audacious move by Gates, who once took a short position on Tesla, a vulnerable EV manufacturer struggling at the time. This financial maneuver meant that if Tesla went bankrupt, Gates stood to gain half a billion dollars. Musk found the timing of this move particularly offensive.
Simultaneously, Gates had the audacity to solicit donations from Musk for what the Tesla CEO characterized as “window-dressing environmental causes.” To Musk, this reeked of hypocrisy and a stunning lack of self-awareness.
Elon Musk says someone should ask Bill Gates which Carribean island is his favorite.
Which one do you think it is? pic.twitter.com/MMXGnWKUIX
— TaraBull (@TaraBull808) September 12, 2023
According to the biography, the two tech magnates met at Tesla’s Texas gigafactory in March 2022 to discuss philanthropy. During this encounter, Musk expressed his outrage over Gates’ $1.5 billion loss due to his position against Musk’s EV company.
Gates reportedly apologized to Musk for this costly miscalculation, but it did little to mend their strained relationship.
In the following month, Musk confirmed that he had rejected Gates’ philanthropic gestures over the stock transaction. In a text exchange, Musk questioned Gates about his substantial short position on Tesla, essentially a financial bet against the company’s success. Gates responded that he hadn’t closed the position but preferred to discuss philanthropy.
Musk, in a scathing response, conveyed his disbelief that an environmental activist like Gates would bet against a company like Tesla, which was making significant strides in combatting climate change. Musk wondered aloud, “Why profit from the potential failure of a sustainable energy car company?”
Frustrated, Musk terminated the conversation and conveyed his impression of Gates to the biographer, stating, “At this point, I am convinced that he is categorically insane.” Musk punctuated this with an expletive for emphasis when describing the Meta CEO.
