Bill Gates has sharply criticized Elon Musk, accusing him of “killing the world’s poorest children” following deep cuts to foreign aid under Musk’s leadership of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Musk, appointed by President Trump to slash federal spending, recently shut down USAID, once the world’s largest humanitarian donor.
Gates, speaking to the Financial Times, condemned the move as catastrophic, pointing out that the agency provided life-saving vaccines and food to countries battling diseases like measles, polio, and HIV. He specifically cited the cancellation of aid to a Gaza hospital that helped prevent mothers from passing HIV to their babies, calling Musk’s justification—that funds were going to Hamas—baseless and harmful.
“If he met the children now infected with HIV because he cut that money, maybe he’d see things differently,” Gates said. He also criticized Musk’s claim that USAID was a “ball of worms,” calling the decision shortsighted and devastating.
The remarks come as Gates prepares to give away nearly his entire $200 billion fortune by 2045. While he continues to champion global health through the Gates Foundation, he warned that private philanthropy can’t replace the massive void left by government aid cuts, especially at the scale Musk has enacted.
