Tesla founder Elon Musk refused to walk back comments he made in May downplaying the dangers of the coronavirus.
Speaking on the New York Times opinion podcast Sway, Musk told host Kara Swisher that he and his family would not be taking a coronavirus vaccine because he doesn’t believe the virus poses a serious enough risk to their health.
“I’m not at risk, neither are my kids,” Musk said.
Musk said sweeping restrictions on movement and business enacted due to the coronavirus had “diminished” his “faith in humanity.” The entrepreneur said that instead of sweeping lockdowns, governments should focus on isolating those most at risk while allowing the rest of society to continue with normal life.
Musk told Fisher that “anyone who is at risk” should be “quarantined until the storm passes.” When Fisher said that some people could be more at risk if Musk’s idea became a reality, Musk responded that “everybody dies.”
Musk, who is now among the richest men in the world after Tesla’s valuation skyrocketed to staggering new heights this summer, said billionaire Microsoft founder Bill Gates was a “knucklehead” for suggesting that Musk was out of his depth when discussing “areas he’s not involved in too much.”
“Gates said something about me not knowing what I was doing,” Musk said. “It’s like, ‘Hey, knucklehead, we actually make the vaccine machines for CureVac, that company you’re invested in.’”
