Elon Musk has lashed out at Bill Gates, rejecting the Microsoft co-founder’s claims that Musk’s cuts to U.S. foreign aid are jeopardizing vital global health programs. The billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX is in the crosshairs of Gates, who accused Musk of endangering global health initiatives by reducing U.S. funding to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Gates, who has made his mark through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation with massive investments in global health programs, specifically HIV prevention efforts, criticized Musk’s fiscal policies in a recent statement.
He warned that Musk’s funding cuts would “endanger millions of vulnerable children worldwide.” However, Musk didn’t take kindly to these comments and fired back with a personal attack, questioning Gates’ credibility on social media.
In an explosive response, Musk tweeted, “I wouldn’t trust that guy to babysit my kids,” referring to Gates’ controversial past associations with the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Musk was quick to point out that Gates had maintained professional ties with Epstein long after his conviction, citing their multiple meetings, which some reports suggest were even after Epstein’s arrest in 2019.
Musk’s remarks were far from a simple retort. The SpaceX founder also posted a meme on Twitter mocking Gates for his climate change agenda, ridiculing the energy investments Gates has made, which Musk claims are nowhere near as effective or innovative as the clean energy solutions Tesla continues to push forward.
Musk’s meme drew attention to Gates’ advocacy for renewable energy projects, with Musk making the case that innovation in technology, rather than government-driven funding, will ultimately be the key to solving the world’s most pressing problems.
“Once Tesla fully solves autonomy and has Optimus in volume production, anyone still holding a short position will be obliterated, even Gates,” Musk tweeted, further highlighting his confidence in Tesla’s ability to dominate the future of energy and automation.
