Elon Musk reveals: Gates shorting Tesla might face a $10 billion loss According to Elon Musk, Bill Gates established a short position equivalent to about 1% of Tesla's shares when the company's market value was only $40 billion. This trade, which Musk referred to as a 'massive short bet,' has lasted for about eight years. Musk speculates that the position has not yet been closed, meaning Gates' current paper loss has exceeded $10 billion.