When Bill Gates recently declared that the Gates Foundation would close down its doors in 2045. This announcement comes in response to increasing pressure over proposed cuts to international development assistance. In a surprisingly personal statement, Gates just criticized Musk. Kerry urged that Musk’s apparent plan to withdraw financial support for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is likely to have dire impacts on vulnerable populations around the globe.
During a recent press conference, Gates expressed his disappointment with Musk’s latest moves. In particular, he spelled out how damaging these decisions could be on health efforts. He derided Musk’s takeover as everything that’s wrong with social media. He said, “The image of the world’s richest man eliminating the world’s poorest children is not a good one.” Gates made sure to underscore the real-world implications behind these cuts in funding. Yet Oxfam’s development policy lead, David Hall-Matthews, goes further, estimating that these reductions will result in an additional million childhood deaths annually.
This debate was compounded by the fact that Musk recently did cancel grants to a civilian hospital in Gaza province, Mozambique. This facility was instrumental in ensuring mothers with HIV were able to protect their children from this disease, which can be transferred from mother to child. Gates went on to point out Musk’s key misconception. He erred in believing that U.S. aid was going towards handing out condoms to Hamas militants in Gaza, a comment that drew national outrage.
Gates did not hold back in his criticism of Musk’s motives, stating that the cuts to USAID were akin to putting the agency “in the wood chipper, because he didn’t go to a party that weekend.” He exposed the truth behind funding cuts resulting in life-saving foods and medicines going bad in warehouses.
The Gates Foundation aims to see $200 billion invested in global health initiatives by 2045. Their mission is to end extreme poverty and improve health outcomes in developing countries. Gates said he was excited by the prospects of these initiatives. He’s optimistic that they will produce the world’s next steps to end preventable maternal and child deaths.
“Over the next twenty years, the Gates Foundation will aim to save and improve as many lives as possible,” he stated. In the near term, he warned, “That’s a million more deaths per year.”
Gates noted the broader implications of Musk’s actions on USAID, stating that staffers from Musk’s Doge initiative have worked to dismantle the agency’s operations. As our recent reports found, over 5,600 USAID employees were terminated in this effort. These proposals have raised grave concerns about the future of international aid.
The friction between Gates and Musk is just the latest episode in an ongoing discussion about mega-philanthropy and the responsibilities of the wealthy. Gates said that he wished that he could have him meet the children who are living with HIV today. He noted how these infections have increased as a direct result of funding cuts. More broadly, his comments reflect a notable and positive intention to be more dogged in seeking accountability from those wielding great power.
As the Gates Foundation looks toward its long, but inevitable closure in 2045, it’s still trying to make a lasting impact. Gates stresses that though individual actions can create deep impact, the role of their foundation’s mission is to build change that lasts. As he once wrote, referring to his giving pledge, that “you can wait until you die and still meet it,” sharing his disposition of patient philanthropy.