Elon Musk may have called out Jeff Bezos with ‘puppet master’ comment to Washington Post
The two billionaires have competed for the spot as the world's richest man with Bezos overtaking Musk again last week
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Tesla CEO Elon Musk gave a brief but loaded comment to the Washington Post this week when the newspaper reached out over a story written about him.
"Give my regards to your puppet master," Musk replied to the paper’s request for its story "Elon Musk Moved to Texas and embraced celebrity. Can Tesla Run on Autopilot?"
Musk was almost certainly referring to Jeff Bezos, who owns the Post.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}There have been reports of a brewing feuding between the two for years, frequently over their ambitions in space: Musk owns the company SpaceX and Bezos owns Blue Origin.
In 2019, Bezos subtly mocked Musk’s plans to send people to Mars.
TESLA CEO ELON MUSK SLAMS TEXAS ENERGY AGENCY AS UNRELIABLE: 'NOT EARNING THAT R'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Tesla CEO Elon Musk speaks during the unveiling of the new Tesla Model Y in Hawthorne, California on March 14, 2019. (Photo by Frederic J. BROWN / AFP) (Photo credit should read FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
"My friends who want to move to Mars, I say, do me a favor and go live on the top of Mount Everest for a year first, and see if you like it, because it’s a garden paradise compared to Mars," he told SpaceNews.
The two billionaires have also competed for the spot as the world's richest man with Bezos overtaking Musk again last week after Musk's wealth fell by $15 million when he tweeted that Bitcoin prices "seem high."
JEFF BEZOS OVERTAKES ELON MUSK TO BECOME WORLD'S RICHEST PERSON
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Post article reported on Tesla’s "questionable business moves" and claimed critics have said his personal schedule and "seeming cult of personality that has developed around him, are beginning to show in the car company he runs."
Jeff Bezos (AP)
Author Faiz Siddiqui said the story was written following interviews with a dozen of "current and former Tesla employees, investors and analysts."
The Post has said that Bezos has no editorial influence over the paper and it has written plenty of stories casting the company in a negative light, including one last week headlined "New York sues Amazon alleging ‘flagrant disregard’ of health standards at warehouses."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Former President Trump has also been critical of Bezos and the newspaper, calling it Amazon's "chief strategist" and "fake news."
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The Washington Post told Fox News it had no comment and Tesla did not immediately respond to Fox News' after-hours request for comment.