- Ross Gerber said he plans to ditch his Model Y for a Rivian over Elon Musk’s agreement with an antisemitic post on X.
- The Tesla investor said his clients are “pissed off.”
- Musk had called a post accusing Jewish groups of “hatred against whites” the “actual truth.”
Tesla investor Ross Gerber spoke out against Elon Musk on Thursday after the billionaire voiced his agreement with an antisemitic post on social media.
“Sadly, this is a win for Rivian,” Gerber wrote on X. “I will be replacing my Tesla model Y for a Rivian next year and I’m sure the rest of LA will as well.”
Musk had responded to a post on X from a user who said “Jewish communities” had been pushing hatred “against whites.”
“You have said the actual truth,” Musk wrote in response to the antisemitic post which appeared to echo the “great replacement theory” — a racist ideology that white supremacists subscribe to that contends that non-white immigrants to the US and other western countries are replacing white populations. It’s oftentimes invoked against Jewish supporters of immigration.
Gerber, who held some 420,000 shares of Tesla stock as recently as this spring and is the CEO of Gerber Kawasaki Wealth and Investment Management, said his clients are “pissed off.”
“Getting a flood of messages from clients wanting out of tesla and anything to do with Elon Musk,” he wrote on X. “Many saying they are selling their cars as well. What is he doing to the tesla brand??!!?!?”
Gerber, Musk, and a spokesperson for Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Gerber’s comments came after Barron’s reported that Musk’s name had been dropped from the APEC CEO Summit speaker list on Thursday.
“It takes a lifetime to build a reputation, and a day to lose it,” Gerber wrote in a post on X, citing the article.
A spokesperson for the event did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
“Elon Musk had a schedule change that prevented him from joining the APEC CEO Summit 2023,” a spokesperson told Barrons. “We’re thankful for his offer to join the session remotely, however it was agreed among all speakers that participation would be in person.”
Musk is scheduled to speak at The New York Times’ Dealbook Summit later this month. A spokesperson for the event did not respond to a request for comment ahead of publication.
Musk is no stranger to controversy
This is only the latest public backlash for the bombastic CEO, whose polarizing views have only been amplified since he took over X in 2022.
Last year, after Musk took heat for a series of transphobic posts and comments, several Tesla order holders and owners took to the social media website to say they had canceled orders or planned to sell their Teslas.
But the backlash has yet to really hit Tesla’s bottom line.
The company sold nearly half a million vehicles in the third quarter alone, adding to a year of growth for the company that is only expected to increase once the Cybertruck is launched later this month.
Are you a Tesla owner or order-holder who’s changing your opinion of the company after Musk’s comments this week? Reach out to these reporters at [email protected] and [email protected].
