Tuesday saw the publication of Walter Isaacson’s book “Elon Musk,” and the author discussed a contentious interaction he observed between the Tesla CEO and Bill Gates on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
According to Isaacson, who claims that his book explores all sides of Musk, one of the things that irks the billionaire is when others try to benefit by shorting Tesla stock. Musk spoke with Gates, a co-founder of Microsoft, in the beginning of last year. Gates had previously shorted the shares of the automobile and gambled that it would decline in value.
Tesla shorts are among the “demons and dancing in Elon Musk’s brain,” according to Isaacson on Tuesday.
Since Musk did not have an assistant at the time, Gates and Musk had to text one another to arrange a meeting to talk about philanthropic initiatives related to climate change, according to Isaacson. When Gates came, one of the first things Musk asked was if he was still shorting Tesla, to which Gates replied truthfully: Yes, he was.
According to Isaacson, Musk erupted, and he later sent him a text in which he among other things branded Gates “crazy.”
Source (CNBC)
