Bill Gates Slams Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos: 'Rich People Can Do Whatever They Want… But Malnourishment Is the Worst Thing There Is'

In a recent interview with YouTuber Modern Day Eratosthenes, Microsoft Corp.’s co-founder Bill Gates criticized Tesla Inc.’s Elon Musk and Amazon.com Inc.’s Jeff Bezos for prioritizing space exploration over real-world crises.

What Happened: Gates argues that While they spend billions on Mars colonies and space tourism, their money would be better spent addressing urgent global issues like hunger, disease, and climate change. "Rich people can do whatever they want… but I do think malnourishment is the worst thing there is," he said.

Space vs. Real-World Problems: For Gates, issues on Earth deserve far more attention than space exploration. "Farmers… they're experiencing climate change, which will mean sometimes too much rain, sometimes drought," he noted, emphasizing the urgent need for solutions.

He also highlighted the staggering human cost of mosquito-borne diseases, stating, "Nobody who has money has malaria," which is why he believes these issues receive far less funding than space ventures. "With mosquitoes, it's still like 600,000 [deaths] a year," he said, highlighting the scale of the problem.

While he acknowledges that some space technology has value — such as SpaceX's reusable rockets, which lower launch costs — he remains skeptical of long-term space ambitions. In his view, billionaire resources would be better spent addressing immediate crises on Earth rather than funding extravagant space projects.

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Why It Matters: Gates dismissed Musk's vision of a Mars colony as impractical, saying, "It's not a very hospitable place." He also aimed at Bezos' plans for space stations, suggesting they serve more as billionaire hobbies than meaningful contributions to humanity.

"Some people like more artificial satellites that you could put people on. People like Jeff Bezos are into that," he said.

While Musk and Bezos push for interplanetary expansion, Gates sees their priorities as misplaced. "I put my money into things like getting rid of malaria and measles and polio," he said, contrasting his focus with their space ambitions.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and reviewed by Benzinga editors before publication.

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