The bitter public feud between tech giants Elon Musk and Bill Gates has escalated, as Gates blames Musk for cutting off aid to vulnerable populations—while Musk counters by questioning Gates’ moral authority over his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Gates recently accused Musk of contributing to “millions of potential deaths” by slashing the budget of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Speaking to The New York Times Magazine and Financial Times, the Microsoft co-founder said the cuts—carried out under the Trump-backed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), where Musk holds influence—have gutted key global health initiatives.
“These programs were preventing HIV, polio, measles—saving lives,” Gates said. He cited one case in Gaza Province, Mozambique, where funding reportedly ended for a hospital that had been helping stop mother-to-child HIV transmission.
But Musk didn’t hold back in his response. Speaking at the Qatar Economic Forum, the Tesla and SpaceX CEO dismissed Gates' claims as “completely false” and called him a “huge liar.”
More pointedly, Musk brought up Gates’ relationship with Epstein. “Who does Bill Gates think he is to lecture anyone about the welfare of children, given that he was very close with Jeffrey Epstein?” Musk said. “I wouldn't want that guy to babysit my kid.”
Musk has repeatedly demanded that Gates provide hard evidence that DOGE’s cuts are killing children. “Show us any evidence whatsoever. It’s false,” he stated.
Gates’ connection to Epstein has been the subject of public scrutiny for years. According to The New York Times, the two met multiple times in 2011—well after Epstein had served jail time and registered as a sex offender. In one leaked email following a visit to Epstein’s Manhattan townhouse, Gates wrote: “A very attractive Swedish woman and her daughter dropped by and I ended up staying there quite late.”
Gates has since acknowledged the meetings were a mistake and denied any deeper relationship with Epstein. He has repeatedly said he hoped Epstein could help raise philanthropic funds, but those efforts never materialized.
The current clash spotlights the stark contrast between two billionaires with global influence: Gates argues for sustained U.S. foreign aid to combat disease and poverty, while Musk, now operating within the Trump administration, is pushing for government efficiency and massive spending cuts.
At its core, the fight isn’t just about aid budgets—it’s about legacy, moral credibility, and the power these men wield in shaping the lives of people far beyond Silicon Valley.
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Firefighters across Greece and the Western Balkans are battling widespread wildfires as southern Europe endures its third heatwave of the summer. Several villages and settlements in Greece and Albania were evacuated on Saturday as flames spread rapidly due to high temperatures and strong winds.
Russia’s Ministry of Defence announced on Saturday that its forces had captured two villages in eastern Ukraine, including one located in the Dnipropetrovsk region — a new front where Moscow claims its troops are advancing.
The Israeli military announced on Saturday that it has resumed airdropped humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, just days after more than 100 international aid agencies warned of spreading mass starvation in the besieged enclave.
Thailand and Cambodia have agreed to meet for ceasefire talks after days of deadly border fighting that has killed more than a dozen people and forced over 150,000 civilians to flee.
Australia and the United Kingdom have signed a landmark 50-year treaty to cement their partnership under the AUKUS nuclear submarine programme.
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