A rumor making the rounds online in March 2025 claimed Microsoft cofounder and billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates announced a $333 million bid to buy X, the social media platform fellow tech billionaire Elon Musk purchased for $44 billion in 2022. At the time this rumor circulated, Musk was serving as an adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump in Trump's second term.
For example, on March 4, a Facebook user displaying the name Erik Yates posted, "Bill Gates Makes Bold Move Against Elon Musk, Announcing $333 Million Bid for X...." The post, receiving over 38,000 reactions, 24,100 comments and 2,400 shares, displayed two pictures with one showing Gates and the other featuring Musk. In a reply under the post, the same user added a link to more information on an external website.
Numerous other users also spread the rumor about Gates and Musk on Bluesky, Facebook, Threads and X.
However, there was no evidence of Gates announcing the intent to bid $333 million to buy X from Musk. Searches of DuckDuckGo, Google and Yahoo displayed no news whatsoever regarding any interest Gates might have in purchasing X. Gates' own X account displayed no recent posts about the matter, either.
This rumor about Gates and Musk arose as a copycat of a previous claim users shared in February 2025, in which Amazon founder and fellow billionaire Jeff Bezos also purportedly announced an intention to bid $333 million for X. USA Today rated that previous rumor as false.
Regarding the Erik Yates Facebook profile and post, the profile's page transparency tab displayed several page managers located in Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. No information suggested the user's name truly belonged to someone managing the page.
The link in the reply under the post directed users to an advertisement-filled article on the disreputable website videoviral2.greensmartmobility.com. The story displayed a headline reading, "Bill Gates Strikes Back at Elon Musk, Announces $333 Million Offer to Buy X—Musk's Immediate Reaction Shakes the Internet!"
Despite the headline, the text of the article said nothing of Gates announcing a $333 million offer for X. The body of the article simply displayed a copy of an unrelated story about Gates and Musk originally published by NDTV.com.
Many of the pages and accounts that shared the rumor previously posted additional made-up stories relating to Musk and other famous people.
Snopes has addressed similar untrue claims about Gates and Musk in the past, including the assertion that Musk once said, "It's time to put Bill Gates in prison," as well as a rumor that Musk called Gates "evil."