Elon Musk claimed on Monday that Jeffrey Epstein initiated a campaign to short Tesla stock after Musk refused to visit his private island, and that the late financier recruited Bill Gates to bet against the EV maker.
“After I ghosted him, Epstein went on a massive campaign to short Tesla and got Gates to short 1% of Tesla stock when the market cap was $40B,” Musk wrote on X, responding to a post showing an email bounce-back indicating Epstein’s messages had been blocked at the server level by SpaceX.
“As far as I know, Gates still has the short open,” Musk added. “Someone should ask him how that’s working out.”
The post comes weeks after Musk said that “Epstein hounded me relentlessly to go to his p*do island and I always declined.”
In a separate post on Monday, Musk wrote: “If I had ever been there, Epstein would have bragged about it endlessly and used my visit as a means of getting others to go, like he did when Reid Hoffman went.”
Files Reveal Contact
Musk’s claims contrast with documents released by the Justice Department on January 30, which revealed at least 16 emails between Musk and Epstein from 2012 to 2014 — including multiple instances where Musk expressed interest in visiting Epstein’s Caribbean island, according to NBC News.
In November 2012, Epstein asked Musk how many people would be in his group for a “heli to island.”
Musk replied: “Probably just Talulah and me. What day/night will be the wildest party on your island?” — referring to his then-wife, Talulah Riley, according to Fortune.
On Christmas Day 2012, Epstein cautioned Musk that “the ratio on my island might make Talulah uncomfortable” — an apparent reference to the number of women who would be present.
Musk responded: “Ratio is not a problem for Talulah,” the emails show.
A calendar entry prepared by Epstein’s assistant for December 6, 2014, included a reminder reading: “Elon Musk to island Dec. 6 (is this still happening?),” Fortune reported.
It remains unclear whether any island visits took place.
The documents also showed Epstein visiting SpaceX in California in February 2013. Epstein’s assistant emailed Musk stating: “I have now sent you a copy of all 3 girls passports… Jeffrey will have his ID with him,” according to Fortune.
The following day, Epstein wrote to Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick: “the girls and i are going to see elon musk at space x tomorrow.”
In September 2013, Epstein tried to lure Musk to New York for the UN General Assembly opening. When Musk declined, Epstein responded: “do you think i am retarded? just kidding, there is no one over 25 and all very cute,” according to Electrek.
2015 Dinner With Tech Titans
A photograph contained in the Epstein files shows Musk attending a dinner on August 2, 2015, alongside Mark Zuckerberg, Peter Thiel, and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, according to the Daily Beast.
The dinner was hosted by Hoffman in Palo Alto for MIT neuroscientist Ed Boyden.
Epstein emailed an associate that day saying he was having dinner with Musk, Zuckerberg, and Thiel, and the following day emailed himself a photo from the gathering, according to the report.
In reaction to it, Musk posted an email showing Epstein tried to get him to visit the island by mentioning Hoffman would be there. Hoffman fired back: “You lied about this to everyone for over a decade.”
The Tesla chief has maintained he never visited Epstein’s island. “The big difference between you and me, Reid, is that you went and I did not,” Musk wrote on X.
Email Correspondence
Musk acknowledged earlier this month that he had email correspondence with Epstein after reacting to a BBC report titled “Who is in the Epstein Files?” which used an image of Musk as thumbnail.
“They worded this with a lawsuit in mind,” Musk wrote.
“Technically true that there is email correspondence, but absurdly false to use my image instead of someone who actually went to Epstein’s island,” he added.
Gates Short Position
Musk has repeatedly claimed Gates holds a substantial short position against Tesla, a dispute that became public in April 2022 when text messages between the two billionaires leaked to the New York Times.
In the exchange, Musk asked directly: “Do you still have a half billion dollar short position against Tesla?” Gates responded: “Sorry to say I haven’t closed it out. I would like to discuss philanthropy possibilities.”
Musk rejected it by saying, “Sorry, I 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.”
Gates has consistently avoided discussing his investment positions publicly. When asked during a February 2021 CNBC interview whether he was shorting Tesla stock, he responded: “I don’t talk about my investments.”
He has not publicly addressed whether he maintained, increased, or closed the position since the 2022 text message confirmation.
Potential Losses
If Gates maintained the position, his losses would be at several billion dollars.
Tesla shares have surged from around $40 billion in market capitalization when the short was allegedly placed to over $1.5 trillion today.
In mid-December, when Tesla shares hit a new all-time high of $495, Musk estimated the short position “might have cost him over $10B by now.”
Walter Isaacson’s 2023 biography of Musk reported that Gates had incurred a $1.5 billion loss over several years from the Tesla short position.
Last month, Musk urged Gates to exit what he described as a “crazy short position” held for approximately eight years.
“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,” Musk wrote.
A short position involves borrowing shares and selling them at the current price, betting the stock will decline so the shares can be repurchased later at a lower price. Short sellers face theoretically unlimited losses because a stock’s price can rise indefinitely.
