Tesla founder Elon Musk accused Bill Gates, founder and former president of Microsoft, of speculating on the shares of the electric car maker and targeting it with short selling, that is, betting on the depreciation of a fixed asset.
In a tweet on Friday, Musk admitted that he asked Gates if he had short positions worth half a billion dollars once morest Tesla shares, saying: “I heard from several people at TED that Gates is betting that amount on the company’s stock, which is why I asked him, and it is not very secretive.”
In turn, Gates replied: “I’m sorry to say that I did not close these centers, and I prefer to discuss the possibilities of charitable work instead.” Musk replied, “Sorry, I can’t take your philanthropy on climate change seriously when you have a massive short position in a bet once morest the stock of Tesla, the company that is doing everything it can to solve climate change.”
It is reported that this is not the first time that the two men have publicly disagreed. On an earlier occasion last year, Gates commented that it is important to say that what Elon did on Tesla is one of the biggest contributions to climate change ever, and that it is not a good idea to take it lightly. But he added that what Tesla does by making passenger cars are easy things and represent a third of the problem, stressing the need to make a greater impact on climate change by tackling other difficult issues such as steel, cement and meat. (agencies)
