A scandal erupted in Donald Trump's administration after Elon Musk publicly criticized the president's $500 billion Stargate initiative, which was unveiled this week as a key artificial intelligence infrastructure project, Politico reports.
Key White House advisers and Trump allies expressed outrage over Musk's comments, accusing the billionaire of undermining the president's efforts. One White House official said that Musk had "overstepped his bounds," while one of Trump's allies accused Musk of "abusing his closeness to the president." Another insider noted that White House staffers are "outraged" that Musk used his social media platform to criticize the project.
“It’s clear he has abused the proximity to the president,” said the Trump ally. “The problem is the president doesn’t have any leverage over him and Elon gives zero fucks.”
The Stargate initiative, aimed at strengthening the artificial intelligence infrastructure in the United States with investments from tech giants OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle, was presented by Trump as a "tremendous achievement" for American innovation and job creation. However, Musk, who co-founded OpenAI but later left the company, has openly criticized the project, questioning its $500 billion valuation and attacking OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
“They don’t actually have the money,” Musk wrote on his social network X, stating that SoftBank has secured funding of "less than $10 billion." Musk also mocked Altman and his team by reposting a joke on X that OpenAI came up with a figure of $500 billion under the influence of drugs.
Altman responded to Musk: "I understand that what's good for the country is not always what's best for your companies, but in your new position, I hope you will put 🇺🇸 first."
At a press briefing, President Trump shrugged off Musk's criticism, saying he was not concerned. “No, it doesn’t. He hates one of the people in the deal,” Trump said, referring to the conflict between Musk and Altman. The president emphasized that the project's funding comes from private investors, not the government.
“They’re very rich people, so I hope they do,” Trump added.
White House spokeswoman Caroline Leavitt defended the Stargate initiative without mentioning Musk. “So the American people should take the words of President Trump and those CEOs,” she said in an interview with Fox News. “These investments are coming to our great country, and American jobs are coming along with them.”
The loud criticism of Musk has once again sparked speculation about a possible deterioration in relations between the president and the billionaire, who has gained unprecedented access to Trump during the transition. Musk currently heads the Office of Government Effectiveness, a role created specifically for him in the Trump administration.
Despite Musk's comments, the administration continues to work with him. The White House official acknowledged Musk's "innovative ideas" but noted that their implementation is problematic. "We are now working with him to understand his ideas," the official said.