Elon Musk has roasted his fair share of billionaires, but his ongoing feud with Bill Gates might be the pettiest — and most expensive — of them all.
According to Musk, the Microsoft co-founder didn't just short Tesla stock behind his back — he allegedly tried to profit off the company's collapse. Then, with perfect timing, Gates asked Musk to support his climate philanthropy. Musk's reaction? "Boggles the mind."
"The lack of self-awareness and hypocrisy of Gates who had the nerve to ask me to donate to his mostly window-dressing environmental causes," Musk posted on X, "while simultaneously aiming to make $500M from Tesla's demise, boggles the mind…"
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Musk wasn't done. "Gates placed a massive bet on Tesla dying when our company was at one of its weakest moments," he continued. "To the best of my knowledge, Gates still has that massive bet against Tesla on the table. Someone should ask him if he does."
The $500 million figure wasn't pulled from thin air. According to biographer Walter Isaacson, Gates placed the short years earlier, and by the time of a 2022 meeting with Musk at Tesla's Austin Texas gigafactory, he had already lost between $1.5 billion and $2 billion.
Gates reportedly apologized — and later told Isaacson, "Once he heard I'd shorted the stock, he was super mean to me. But he's super mean to so many people, so you can't take it too personally."
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Musk didn't exactly send back a fruit basket. After that meeting, he texted Isaacson:
"At this point, I am convinced that he is categorically insane (and an a–hole to the core). I did actually want to like him (sigh)."
This wasn't the first time the two billionaires butted heads. In 2020, Musk said Gates "has no clue" about electric trucks after Gates chose a Porsche Taycan over a Tesla. Gates later jabbed back in a CNBC interview, saying Musk's "rockets work well" but his "level of outrageous comments" is part of the brand.
So far, Gates hasn't publicly confirmed whether he still holds a short position on Tesla. But Musk seems to think he does — and he hasn't exactly let it go. In a post on X in July 2024, Musk warned: "Once Tesla fully solves autonomy and has Optimus in volume production, anyone still holding a short position will be obliterated. Even Gates."
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