---
title: "Bill Gates Slams Elon Musk For Spouting COVID Misinformation"
description: "Learn more about why Bill Gates is urging Elon Musk to stop spreading \"outrageous\" misinformation about the coronavirus pandemic."
date: "2020-07-28"
modified: "2020-08-05"
authors:
  - name: "Dan Robitzski"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/danrobitzski"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/bill-gates-slams-elon-musk-covid"
categories:
  - "Elon Musk"
  - "Future Society"
  - "The Industrialists"
tags:
  - "Bill Gates"
  - "coronavirus"
  - "elon musk"
  - "the digest"
---

# Bill Gates Slams Elon Musk For Spouting COVID Misinformation

![Bill Gates urged Elon Musk to stay in his lane and stop spreading "outrageous" misinformation about the coronavirus pandemic.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/bill-gates-elon-musk-coronavirus-misinformation.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Ken Shipp/DOE/NORAD/USNORTHCOM/Victor Tangermann\</em\>*

## Money Fight!

Bill Gates has had enough of fellow tech billionaire Elon Musk's [habit of spreading](<https://futurism.com/neoscope/elon-musk-coronavirus-public-health-risk>) coronavirus misinformation.

On Tuesday, Gates spoke at length about online misinformation [with *CNBC*](<https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/28/bill-gates-lies-spread-faster-than-facts-on-social-media.html>). And when the conversation pivoted to Musk's online comments, Bill Gates said that the SpaceX and Tesla CEO seemed way out of his element.

"Elon’s positioning is to maintain a high level of outrageous comments," Gates told *CNBC*.

## Off-Base

Since the pandemic began, Musk has spread disinformation about the [COVID-19 death toll](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/elon-musk-sharing-coronavirus-misinformation>), he repeatedly [downplayed the danger](<https://futurism.com/musk-trump-coronavirus-twitter>) of the coronavirus, and [wrongfully implied](<https://futurism.com/neoscope/elon-musk-coronavirus-public-health-risk>) that children are "essentially immune" to the disease.

"He's not much involved in vaccines," Gates said of Musk. "He makes a great electric car. And his rockets work well. So he's allowed to say these things. I hope that he doesn’t confuse areas he's not involved in too much."

Basically: Stay in your lane, Elon.

## Broader Problem

But the problems certainly don't begin and end with Musk. Gates acknowledged that the very nature of the internet and social media makes it easy to [propagate disinformation](<https://futurism.com/expert-online-disinfo-covid-black-lives-matter>).

"When you let people communicate, you have to deal with the fact that certain incorrect things that are very titillating can spread very rapidly compared to the truth," Gates told *CNBC*. "And we've always seen that with vaccines."

**READ MORE:** [Bill Gates: Lies spread faster than facts on social media, which is hard to police](<https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/28/bill-gates-lies-spread-faster-than-facts-on-social-media.html>) \[*CNBC*\]

**More on Elon Musk:** *[Elon Musk Is Still Sharing Coronavirus Misinformation](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/elon-musk-sharing-coronavirus-misinformation>)*

## Author
Dan Robitzki is a senior reporter for Futurism, where he likes to cover AI, tech ethics, and medicine. He spends his extra time fencing and streaming games from Los Angeles, California.

### Author social links  
[Twitter](<https://x.com/danrobitzski>)