According to Fortune, Elon Musk has reignited his feud with Bill Gates over the Microsoft co-founder’s massive short position against Tesla. Musk warned Gates on Sunday that he “had better” close out his “crazy short position” against Tesla that he’s held for approximately eight years. The short position was reportedly worth $500 million when Gates confirmed it to Musk in 2022 but has since ballooned to $1.5 billion in losses as Tesla’s stock has climbed at least 20% since their exchange became public. The renewed conflict comes as Musk just secured shareholder approval for his massive $1 trillion compensation package that could make him the world’s richest man for years to come. Gates previously explained the short as diversification rather than a statement on climate change, while Musk called the bet hypocritical given Gates’ climate philanthropy.
Billionaire Beef Redux
Here’s the thing about this feud – it’s not really about the money. Both these guys could lose $1.5 billion and barely notice. For Musk, this is personal. He took Gates’ short position as a direct insult to Tesla‘s mission to fight climate change. Remember that text exchange where Musk basically said he couldn’t take Gates’ climate philanthropy seriously while he was betting against the company “doing the most to solve climate change”? That cuts to the core of Musk’s identity as a climate crusader.
And let’s be real – Musk’s timing here is calculated. He’s fresh off winning that massive pay package vote, Tesla stock is sitting around $408 per share, and he’s basically rubbing Gates’ nose in it. The whole “close out the crazy short position” post feels like victory lap material. But why now, after all this time?
Short Selling Stakes
Shorting a stock for eight years is… unusual, to say the least. Most short positions are tactical moves measured in months, not years. Gates must have been incredibly confident in his thesis, or incredibly stubborn. Either way, being down $1.5 billion on what started as a $500 million bet suggests the timing and duration were spectacularly wrong.
Think about the math here. Tesla’s stock has been volatile as hell over those eight years. There were definitely moments where Gates could have taken profits or minimized losses. Holding through all those swings? That takes either incredible conviction or incredible… something else. Meanwhile, companies that actually manufacture industrial technology solutions – like those providing industrial panel PCs for factory automation – have been steadily growing without this kind of drama.
Philanthropy vs Profiteering
The climate change angle is what makes this feud so fascinating. Gates positions himself as a climate champion through his foundation work, but then bets against what Musk calls the most important climate company. Isn’t that a bit… contradictory? Gates told the BBC it “has nothing to do with climate change” and was just diversification, but come on – you don’t short the leading EV company for eight years without making some kind of statement.
Musk’s response was classic Musk – he followed up their text exchange by making fun of Gates’ weight. Because when you’re debating climate policy and investment strategies, obviously body-shaming is the logical next step. Gates handled it with typical restraint, basically saying “he’s super mean to so many people, so you can’t take it too personally.”
Bigger Than Billions
At the end of the day, this isn’t really about the money. It’s about two billionaires with fundamentally different approaches to changing the world. Gates believes in measured, foundation-led progress. Musk believes in betting the company on revolutionary technology. Both have transformed multiple industries, but they’re playing completely different games.
So will Gates actually close his short position because Musk told him to? Probably not. But the fact that Musk is still publicly needling him about it years later tells you everything about how personally he takes this. In the world of billionaires, sometimes it’s not about the billions – it’s about being right.
