Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, is known for making headlines with his social media statements. In a recent post on X, Musk made a bold claim, stating that if Tesla becomes the most valuable company in the world, even billionaire Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, could go bankrupt. The statement has reignited the long-running feud between Musk and Gates. The conflict dates back to 2022 when Gates allegedly suffered a significant loss of $1.5 billion due to his brief position on Tesla stock.
Musk posted on X, “If Tesla becomes the most valuable company in the world, that short position bankrupts even Bill Gates.” Musk’s statement was a response to a user X, Teslaconomics, who shared an old tweet of his. In the 2023 tweet, the CEO stated that taking a short position against Tesla, as Bill Gates did, would only yield the highest return if Tesla were to go bankrupt. Musk also claimed that Gates had placed a massive bet on Tesla’s demise during a vulnerable period for the company. He further stated that such a large short position can drive down the stock price, hurting everyday investors.
“As far as I know, Gates *still* has that massive bet against Tesla on the table. Someone should ask him if he does. The lack of self-awareness and hypocrisy of Gates that he had the nerve to ask me to donate to his environmental causes is mostly out of the question, while simultaneously pretending to make $500 million off Tesla’s demise,” the tweet further reads.
When asked about his investment during a 2021 CNBC interview, Gates chose not to comment on his positions, but instead praised Tesla’s achievements, saying, “What Elon has done with Tesla is fantastic.”
Shorting is a stock market strategy in which an investor takes shares they don’t own, sells them at the current price, and then aims to buy them back later at a lower price. The investor profits from the difference between the initial sale price and the lower purchase price, essentially betting on the stock’s decline.
Elon Musk’s statement comes as Tesla’s current market capitalization is approximately $1.251 trillion, substantially lower than Apple’s $3.729 trillion. To surpass Apple and become the world’s most valuable company, Tesla would need to experience remarkable growth of nearly 200%.
