Elon Musk warns Bill Gates over Tesla short position

Elon Musk warns Bill Gates over Tesla short position

Elon Musk has publicly urged Bill Gates to exit what he called a “crazy short position” against Tesla Inc., setting the stage for one of the most talked‐about feuds in tech finance.

In a brief post on the platform X, Musk wrote: “If Gates hasn’t fully closed out the crazy short position he has held against Tesla for ~8 years, he had better do so soon.”  That message comes amid renewed scrutiny of Gates’ long-standing bet against the electric-vehicle maker and follows a recent disclosure that the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust sold around 65 percent of its stake in Microsoft Corporation, generating approximately $8.8 billion.

The origins of this rivalry trace back to 2022, when leaked text messages revealed that Gates admitted to Musk that he had placed a roughly $500 million short bet on Tesla shares. Musk snapped back, saying he “cannot take your philanthropy on climate change seriously when you have a massive short position against Tesla, the company doing the most to solve climate change.”

Tesla’s performance adds nuance to the debate. The stock has climbed nearly 150 percent over the past five years and remains up about 6 percent this year, despite a recent pull-back from its highs. Short sellers betting against the company face theoretically unlimited risk because a stock’s price can rise without limit while profits from a short are capped. For Gates, the exact size and current status of his short position remain unclear; he has not publicly confirmed whether he still holds it.

Analysts say Musk’s pronouncement serves both strategic and symbolic functions. It signals confidence in Tesla’s long-term trajectory, like drawing attention to initiatives such as robotaxi launches, its AI roadmap and hardware innovations, while also putting psychological pressure on short-sellers and critics of the company.  On the other hand, some observers caution that aggressive calls like Musk’s could reflect defensive posturing amid heightened volatility rather than purely technical or fundamental arguments.

For Gates the message is diplomatic and loaded: Musk mixes personal challenge with broader themes of technological optimism and climate ambition. One analyst states that while the warning may be “a rhetorical flourish”, it also underscores how intertwined the interests of these two tech titans have become, such as in philanthropy, AI, and capital markets.

Unlike more muted corporate communications, Musk’s style remains unfiltered and visible. His message to Gates re-opens the headline rivalry and brings renewed attention to Tesla’s stock, performance, and share-sell sentiment. Whether Gates takes this public cue or quietly adjusts his position is yet to be seen, but the stage is set, and the stakes remain high.