I’m not super well-versed in the tech or finance scene, but I can’t seem to stay away from all the crypto drama that is being created by Elon Musk, one of the richest and most controversial people in the world. Let me catch you up.
It all started when Tesla – Elon Musk’s electric vehicle company – announced it had purchased $1 billion of Bitcoin, planning to accept cryptocurrency in the future as payment from its customers, only to sell 10% of its holdings, to “demonstrate the currency’s liquidation”.
Musk then took to Twitter, to announce that Tesla had suspended purchases using Bitcoin, amid concerns around Bitcoin consumes more energy than an entire European country, directly contradicting Tesla’s brand values.
Musk’s rapidly changing actions and opinions surrounding the currency caused both its highest surge and lowest plunge in a matter of weeks, prompting countries like China to ban the transaction of cryptocurrency if the currency went bust, meaning its investors would be left with no protection and more importantly, no cash.
It’s pretty difficult to know what’s going on in Elon Musk’s head at the best of times, but when you’re worth $151 billion USD, working to take over outer space and in control of some of the world’s leading technologies, surely you have some idea of what’s up?
Regardless of how smart he’s proved himself to be, people are super mad with Musk. They don’t know what to believe anymore. Is cryptocurrency still worth investing in? With a few simple tweets, Musk has demonstrated how unstable cryptocurrency can be, but is it all just for show?
Last week, the Tesla CEO published a cryptic tweet, with the hashtag #Bitcoin next to a broken heart emoji. Attached was a meme that references a break up. I’m no Nancy Drew, but has Elon Musk just broken up with Bitcoin? And if so, who’s the new lucky lady?
#Bitcoin 💔 pic.twitter.com/lNnEfMdtJf
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 4, 2021
I mean, for someone who has nothing invested in Bitcoin, I find the whole thing pretty amusing, but there is one international hacker group that aren’t standing for it anymore.
Anonymous (the international hacker group from Elementary) has released a video that directly targets Elon Musk over his recent cryptocurrency comments, saying they are tired of his “temper tantrums”.
In a chilling video, the group warned Mr Musk to “expect us” and said the games played by the entrepreneur had destroyed lives.
The hackers said the “carefully curated” image of Elon Musk would be exposed and people were “beginning to see (him) as nothing more than another narcissistic rich dude who is desperate for attention”.
“There are plenty of other companies working on space exploration and electric vehicles, you are just the only CEO who has gained a cult following through sh*tposting and trolling the world on social media,” the group said.
Anonymous is the group that is responsible for some of the biggest online scams in history. In this video addressed to Musk, they took aim at his “superiority complex” in the footage posted to YouTube, citing the time he dubbed himself the “Emperor of Mars”.
Let’s keep in mind that this is all happening while Bitcoin continues to suffer its worst month in a decade, plunging 7% during trading yesterday.
Bitcoin mining is done by solving mathematical puzzles on powerful computers that require large amounts of energy, and given that Musk is the CEO of an electric car company, it could be as simple as he’s realised that his company and “brand”, don’t align with the unsustainable needs of cryptocurrency.
After all, what is a $1 billion investment to a centibillionaire?
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