Billionaire Charlie Munger Called Elon Musk Talented, Unusual, And Peculiar— 'I Don't Buy Him And I Don't Sell Him Short' Billionaire Charlie Munger Called Elon Musk Talented, Unusual, And Peculiar— 'I Don't Buy Him And I Don't Sell Him Short' Jeannine Mancini May 2, 2026 9 min read TSLA NVDA INTC DJCO Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. Not every billionaire critique comes with a compliment baked in. But when Charlie Munger sized up Tesla CEO Elon Musk, he didn't dismiss him or cheer him on.
He separated the talent from the investment. Speaking during the Daily Journal shareholder meeting in 2023, Munger gave a read on Musk that sounded less like a hot take and more like a rule for how to think about him. "My policy on Elon Musk is that he's a very talented man, but also quite peculiar," Munger said.
"I don't buy him and I don't sell him short. I just say, well, he's a very unusual person." Don't Miss: NVIDIA & Tesla Steal the Spotlight — RAD Intel Emerges as an AI Stock Worth Watching Think the biggest tech gains happen after an IPO? Click here to see why some investors are looking at opportunities before companies go public.
A Rivalry Framed by Respect, Not Ownership Munger never needed to own Tesla to have an opinion on it. Berkshire Hathaway stayed out, even as the company became one of the most talked-about stocks in the market. He consistently pointed to BYD as the stronger bet, especially in China.
Berkshire's early investment turned into one of its standout wins, and Munger made it clear he valued execution and positioning over personality. Still, none of that turned into outright criticism of Musk. Munger's view held two ideas at once.
Musk was capable of extraordinary things. And that didn't mean he fit Munger's framework for investing. Trending: What If Your Investment Income Didn't Rely Entirely on Market Swings?
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