Tesla Inc TSLA CEO Elon Musk blasted an alleged pouring of millions of dollars by Microsoft Corporation MSFT co-founder Bill Gates into a “Dark Money” fund attacking him on Tuesday.
What Happened: Musk labeled Gates' alleged support to the Fund as a “[d*ck] move.” The comment was made in response to a tweet by the alt-right social media personality and political commentator Mike Cernovich.
What a dick move!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 24, 2022
Cernovich shared a report by Breitbart, a far-right news and commentary website. Breitbart said it had identified “millions of dollars” flowing from Gates’ foundation to 11 out of 26 organizations that urged a boycott of Twitter Inc TWTR if Musk fails to uphold content policies at the social media platform after the entrepreneur takes over management.
Media Matters, a left-leaning non-profit organization, had released the letter signed by the activist groups. Breitbart said that the Tides Foundation, a recipient of the Gates Foundation funds, also funds Media Matters and five other signatories like Free Press and Black Lives Matter Global Network.
The Breitbart report tied New Venture Fund, an alleged large beneficiary of the Gates Foundation to four other signatories like The Center for Media Justice and Accountable Tech.
Two other signatories — Empowering Pacific Islanders Community and Reproaction — were also linked to The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation by Breitbart.
Why It Matters: In May, Musk questioned the funding sources of the organizations that “want to control your access to information” after the letter to Twitter advertisers was released.
Who funds these organizations that want to control your access to information? Let’s investigate …https://t.co/dBFsGjOMC8
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 3, 2022
Recently, Gates took a swipe at Musk’s attempts centered around acquiring Twitter and said he could “actually make it worse.”
Last month, leaked text messages, whose authenticity was confirmed by Musk on Twitter, revealed that the Tesla CEO had confronted Gates about shorting the automaker’s stock.
Musk mocked Gates in subsequent tweets and compared him to the pregnant man emoji, but later said he was “moving on” from making fun of the former Microsoft executive.
Price Action: On Tuesday, Tesla shares closed 6.9% lower at $628.16 in regular trading and rose 0.9% higher in the after-hours session. On the same day, Microsoft shares fell 0.4% to $259.62 in regular trading and appreciated 0.8% in the after-hours session, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
Photo: Courtesy of Daniel Oberhaus via Flickr
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