"Did Bill Gates Short Tesla?" Musk Challenges Him, Posts Mocking Photo Too

Mocking by Posting Photo of Gates with a Belly on Twitter

Photo of Elon Musk mocking Bill Gates posted on Twitter / Photo by Musk Twitter capture

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Nayeon] It was revealed on the 23rd (local time) that Tesla CEO Elon Musk confronted Bill Gates about whether he had shorted Tesla stock worth 620 billion won, CNBC reported.

According to CNBC on the day, Musk confirmed this while responding to a netizen's question on his Twitter.

A netizen posted a screenshot of a text message conversation presumed to be between Musk and Gates from the previous day and asked Musk if it was true, to which Musk replied that it was correct.

He said he recently attended the global lecture platform TED event and heard about Gates' Tesla short selling there as well, adding, "It is not a top secret that I asked Gates about (Tesla short selling)."

He further claimed that he did not spread the conversation with Gates himself and that it seemed to have spread through a friend of a friend.

The screenshot circulated on social media included Musk questioning Gates about whether he held a $500 million (620 billion won) short position on Tesla.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk [Image source=Yonhap News]

Gates responded to Musk's question by saying, "Sorry, but I have not closed the short position," then shifted the topic to discuss charity work with Musk.

In response, Musk shot back, "You hold a massive short position on Tesla, which is doing the most to solve climate change," adding, "Under these circumstances, I cannot take your climate change charity work seriously."

Short selling is a trading technique that anticipates a decline in the price of a specific stock.

It involves borrowing shares of a stock expected to fall in price and selling them, then buying them back at a lower price to return the borrowed shares, thereby making a profit.

After acknowledging the conversation, Musk mocked Gates by posting a photo of Gates with a protruding belly along with an emoji depicting a pregnant man on Twitter.

According to the economic media Business Insider, Musk and Gates have publicly clashed over various topics including electric vehicles, COVID-19, and Mars exploration.