Gates says Musk was mean’ but he’ll still work with him

Microsoft co-founder tells The Independent he’s surprised’ at Silicon Valley figures showing support for Donald Trump

- KEVIN E G PERRY

Bill Gates has opened up about his relationship with Elon Musk, saying that despite their differences he hopes to collaborate with his fellow billionaire. “He’s been nice to me at times, and mean to me at times,” the Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist told The Independent. “I will try and work with him because he’s brilliant, he’s rich, he’s influential.”

Mr Gates, 69, was considered the world’s richest person from 1995 to 2007 and from 2014 to 2017. Mr Musk, 53, became the world’s richest person in 2021. Mr Gates revealed that the two men have discussed philanthropy, with the Tesla and SpaceX CEO agreeing to join his Giving Pledge campaign and commit to donating a majority of his wealth to charitable causes.

However, they have also sparred in public, with Mr Musk criticizing Mr Gates for taking a short position on Tesla stock. He has also said Mr Gates’s understanding of AI is “limited”. Last week, Mr Gates described Mr Musk’s political activities as “insane shit”.

Speaking to The Independent ahead of the publication of his memoir Source Code, Mr Gates said he admired Mr Musk for many reasons. “I’m in awe of the great work he did at SpaceX and Tesla,” he said. “The fact that Tesla kind of forced the car industry to do great EVs is a gigantic contribution.”