He said that he would sell Tesla stock and donate any proceeds to charity if it was proven by the UN that even a small percentage of his wealth could save the lives of millions.
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Musk responded to comments made by David Beasley (director of UN's World Food Programme), who said last week on CNN's "Connect The World" that a $6 billion donation from billionaires like Musk and Jeff Bezos would help 42 million people who he claimed were "literally going be killed if we don’t reach them."
Musk is the richest man in the world and has recently become the first person to be included in the Bloomberg Billionaires Index with a net worth of over $300 billion.
The current index lists Tesla CEO's net worth as $311 billion. $6 billion would equal 2% of his wealth. This donation would still place him ahead of Bezos by at least $100 million. Their net worth is mainly made up of stock in the companies they founded.
Musk, however, is questioning the claim that the exact amount will solve the hunger problem. He tweeted that if the World Food Programme could prove its math, he would "sell Tesla stock now and do it." Musk demanded transparency regarding how the money would go about its spending.
Fact check:
$6B is @elonmusk's wealth. 2%
The UN World Food Program (WFP), raised $8.4B in 2020. Why didn't it "solve the world hunger?"
_ pic.twitter.com/x6w0MJ3Buc Dr. Eli David (@DrEliDavid) October 30, 2021
Musk's tweet was responded by Beasley who tweeted: "I can guarantee you that we have the systems to transparency and open source accounting in place. To be completely confident, your team can work with us and review the systems.
Musk also clarified that $6 billion had never been stated by the UN World Food Programme to "solve global hunger," as Musk tweeted. He tweeted, "This is a onetime donation to save 42 millions lives during this unprecedented crisis of hunger."
Beasley keeps repeating his appeal to billionaires to help end hunger around the world.
The world must wake up. The world is facing a humanitarian crisis that is out of control. Famine is threatening 42 million people in 43 countries NOW.
We only need $6.6Bjust.36% increase in net worth for the top 400 US billionaires last year. Is this too much? pic.twitter.com/YMD7zuPwsf David Beasley (@WFPChief) October 27, 2021
$36 billion in one Day - @elonmusk's net Worth Increased by a @Tesla / #Hertz Deal Congratulations Elon! Your one-day increase of 1/6 would save 42 million people who are at risk from famine. Unprecedented crisis. Unprecedented wealth. Please help! https://t.co/n4hfpl5NRE David Beasley (@WFPChief) October 28, 2021
It's not difficult. During his appearance on CNN, Beasley stated that he was not asking them to do it every day, every week and every year.
He said, "The net-worth of the top 400 billionaires in America increased by $1.8 trillion over the past year." "I'm asking for.36% of your net worth increase. While I support people making money, God knows that I am all for helping those in greatest need right now. The world is in serious trouble.
