Bill Gates Accuses Elon Musk of Endangering Lives After Foreign Aid Cuts

• Bill Gates has accused Elon Musk of endangering lives after USAID was shut down by Musk’s DOGE initiative, halting key global health programs
• Gates plans to donate nearly his entire fortune over the next 20 years, pledging $200 billion before closing the Gates Foundation in 2045
• The feud between Gates and Musk intensifies, as Gates says Musk acted out of ignorance and disrupted critical aid operations, including HIV prevention

Tensions between two of the world’s most prominent billionaires have intensified, with Bill Gates accusing Elon Musk of putting vulnerable lives at risk by orchestrating severe cuts to U.S. foreign aid programs.

The Microsoft co-founder claimed that Musk’s move to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has directly endangered global health efforts and could undo decades of progress.

DOGE dismantles USAID

The controversy stems from a decision earlier this year by Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, which effectively dismantled USAID, a key provider of humanitarian assistance around the world.

Gates alleges the abrupt halt in funding has led to vital medical supplies expiring in warehouses and disrupted critical health programs, including childhood vaccinations and HIV prevention services in under-resourced areas.

“The picture of the world’s richest man killing the world’s poorest children is not a pretty one,” Gates said in an interview, citing the cancellation of aid to a hospital in Mozambique’s Gaza Province that helped prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission.

He further accused Musk of acting out of ignorance, stating:

“He had no understanding of what the US agency did or how it operated.”

Gates to donates entire fortune in coming years

This latest clash comes as Gates unveiled an ambitious plan to donate nearly his entire fortune within the next two decades.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, one of the world’s largest philanthropic organizations, is now slated to close in 2045.

Gates said the foundation aims to spend over $200 billion in that period—doubling what it has spent in its first 25 years—to maximize its impact on global health, education, and poverty alleviation.

“It gives us clarity,” Gates explained.

“We’ll have a lot more money because we’re spending down over the 20 years, as opposed to making an effort to be a perpetual foundation.”

Despite his far-reaching pledge, Gates acknowledged that private philanthropy alone cannot replace government-backed aid. USAID’s annual budget of $44 billion dwarfs what even the largest foundations can mobilize.

Gates warned that slashing public funding could fuel the resurgence of preventable diseases such as measles, polio, and HIV, particularly in communities with no alternative support.

While Gates took a more measured tone in discussing President Donald Trump’s role in aid cuts, he was sharply critical of Musk, calling his anti-aid rhetoric dangerous.

Past personal spats between the two have also added fuel to the fire, including a 2022 incident where Musk mocked Gates publicly on social media after discovering he had shorted Tesla stock.

Musk has acknowledged some factual errors, including confusing Mozambique’s Gaza Province with the Gaza Strip, but neither he nor his team have issued a formal response to Gates’s latest remarks.

Trump's executive orders that may affect Nigeria

Meanwhile, Legit.ng also previously reported that President Trump issued over 200 executive orders on his first day in office.

Trump's executive orders cut across immigration, climate, pardons, and foreign policy, with many expected to be contested.

However, some of these executive orders signed by the US President would have an impact on Nigeria and other African countries.

Source: Legit.ng