Skip to main content

Elon Musk Says He 'Probably' Won't Take Saudi Money After Khashoggi Death

Elon Musk has sought to distance himself from Saudi money following murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi 

Elon Musk has said he “probably would not” take Saudi money in the wake of the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi last month.

In an extensive interview, the Tesla chief executive admitted the murder of Mr Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate building in Istanbul “was really bad”, but was cautious to blame the kingdom-at-large for the incident. Mr Khashoggi was strangled and dismembered, Turkish prosecutors have said.

Tesla has a $2bn investment from the Saudis, and was linked to a further injection of cash from the regime after Mr Musk sent out a tweet in August to suggest he had secured funding to take Tesla private.

Mohammed bin Salman, crown prince and head of the country’s sovereign wealth fund, is reported to have approached Tesla “multiple times” about the potential to take Tesla private. MBS has since been accused of orchestrating the murder of Mr Khashoggi, a vocal critic of the Saudi government.

“Yeah, well I mean, it’s important to appreciate that the Saudis have been approaching me for two years about going private. It wasn’t like spur-of-the-moment,” Mr Musk said in an interview with Recode co-founder Kara Swisher.

“Saudi Arabia’s an entire country, so I think you don’t want to, if there’s one really bad thing that occurred, nail down the whole country, it’s not great.”

The reach and influence of Saudi money in the tech industry has come under scrutiny in recent weeks.

SoftBank’s $100bn Vision Fund, which was launched in 2016 and has made significant investments in startups such as WeWork and Uber, has had a pledge of $45bn from the Saudi Public Investment Fund.

A shifting narrative from the Saudi government on the “disappearance” of Mr Khashoggi started to mount pressure on the Future Investment Initiative, a conference dubbed “Davos in the desert” held towards the end of October.

Global tech leaders such as Uber chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi were due to attend but dropped out after uncertainty around Mr Khashoggi’s whereabouts grew. SoftBank chief executive Masayoshi Son withdrew from the event.

Mr Musk tried to avoid criticism of the country, choosing to highlight that Saudi citizens didn’t elect MBS to be their leader.  

“I think we should just consider that there is a whole country, and there’s, you know...There are a lot of good people in Saudi Arabia, and Saudis who are outside of Saudi Arabia. So I think you cannot paint an entire country with one brush, “ he said.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

UNSATISFIED Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang Sarcastically Responds To 87-Rated FIFA 21 Card As Arsenal Talisman Receives Same Rating As Last Year

It’s safe to say Pierre-Emerick Aubemayang isn’t very happy about his FIFA 21 rating. The Gunners’ talisman has been handed an 87 rating for the new edition of the game – the same rating he was in FIFA 19. And the Gabon international has sarcastically responded to his card with a laughing face emoji. Aubameyang had another superb season for the Gunners, hitting 22 Premier League goals for Mikel Arteta’s side – the same he managed last year. However, the 31-year-old played a pivotal role in Arsenal’s FA Cup triumph, netting a brace against Chelsea to seal a first trophy in management for Arteta. Meanwhile, it is understood Aubameyang will ‘imminently’ sign a new three-year contract at the Emirates. It is understood he will become the club’s highest earner on his new deal, surpassing Mesut Ozil’s reported £350,000-a-week wages. The report adds Arteta has been integral in talks to keep the 31-year-old striker in north London. Former Arsenal head of football Raul Sanllehi is believed to ha...
Post a Comment
Read more

FINALLY!!! Kobe Bryant And His Daughter Gianna’s Remains Released To His Family A Week After Helicopter Crash

The remain of Kobe Bryant and his 13-year old daughter, have been released to their family a week after they died in an helicopter crash that took nine lives in California. A spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office, told DailyMail that the remains of the 44-year-old NBA legend and his daughter, who lost their lives when the helicopter crashed into a hillside in Calabasas, California, on January 26, were returned after confirmation of their identity and a cause of death was determined by investigators. The remains of the pilot, Ara Zobayan, and passengers Christina Mauser, 38, Sarah Chester, 45, and her 13-year-old daughter Payton, also have been released, the spokeswoman confirmed. Passengers John Altobelli, 56, his wife Keri, 46, and their daughter Alyssa, 14, are ready to be released, but have not yet been picked up by family members, according to the coroner’s office. READ ALSO:  BREAKING!! China Finally Finds Cure For Coronavirus
Post a Comment
Read more

'I Cried A Lot' - Arsenal Star Martinelli Opens Up On Knee Injury That 'Broke' Him

 The 19-year-old attacker has said that manager Mikel Arteta was a great support as he was returning to fitness. Arsenal attacker Gabriel Martinelli has admitted that the horror knee injury he suffered in June caused him a huge amount of pain both physically and emotionally. The young wide player sustained the issue during training, and though it did not feel like anything at first, it required surgery. After missing several months with the injury, Martinelli is now only finding his way back into competitive football. I was about to receive the ball and felt a little pain on my knee,” he told the Daily Mail. "Not enough for me to stop practising, but, while we were on the finishing session, I told them that I was in pain. They told me to rest and, if I felt the pain the next day, to let them know. “When I woke up, I felt it but I was able to walk. I thought it was nothing at first, but it was a pain I'd never felt before. I went to the club for the examinations and they said i...
Post a Comment
Read more