Leaked texts show an awkward conversation between Tesla mogul Elon Musk and an oil boss.
Even though Elon Musk might be the richest man in the world and is on track to become the first trillionaire, he isn't there yet. There are plenty of companies out there worth over a trillion, with Apple's $3.599 trillion market cap making it the biggest in the world. Microsoft, Nvidia, Amazon, and Alphabet (Google) round out the top five. Meanwhile, Musk's Tesla is down in eighth with a market cap of 'only' $1.249 trillion.
Musk has plenty of wealth and power to throw around, but in leaked texts, the Tesla, SpaceX, and X CEO has made it clear that money can't buy you everything.
The exchange shows how Musk turned down dinner from Nicolai Tangen after the head of Norway's $1.7 trillion sovereign wealth fund voted against the tech boss' controversial Tesla pay packet.
Advert
Musk has been fighting to get his hands on a supposed $56 billion Tesla pay packet for years, but while some shareholders have voted for him to get it, others and the courts have repeatedly decided against it.
Mr. Musk hasn't forgotten those who voted against him, with Norges Bank Investment Management rejecting a compensation deal back in June 2024. The fund is one of Tesla's 10 largest shareholders and has around a 1% stake. The compensation deal is now estimated to be worth $100 billion, but it doesn't look like Musk is getting it anytime soon.
In the texts, Musk lectures Tangen on how to be a 'better friend' and firmly rejects the latter's offer for dinner.
Advert
The messages were first revealed by Norwegian newspaper E24 after NBIM released them under freedom-of-information laws - then shared by Business Insider. In the charged messages, Tangen invited Musk for dinner at his home in Oslo, with Musk being part of a guest list that included the bosses of Ferrari, Nestlé, Adidas, DoorDash, and Novo Nordisk. It comes ahead of the NBIM's annual investment conference in April.
Musk sniped: "When I ask you for a favor, which I very rarely do, and you decline, then you should not ask me for one until you've done something above nothing to make amends."
He then left the barb, "Friends are as friends do."
Advert
Tangen replied: "Noted and fully understand. As a large shareholder, we cheer for you. Good luck with everything. Best Nicolai."
This wasn't the end of things, as a few days later, Musk forwarded messages from an unnamed person and claimed the NBIM boss had told the Norwegian media that he wouldn't be attending the dinner. Musk then accused Tangen of having 'political ambitions' and trying to 'promote himself'.
Tangen says that because Norway has a Freedom of Information Act, the messages were public knowledge. It ended with Tangen writing: "The country is obsessed about you, but this is not reflecting badly on you. Still, sorry for any inconvenience. Nikolai."
We know that Elon isn't afraid of having a heated debate via text, with us previously covering Musk's former friend who managed to fall out with him over a single message that ended years of friendship.