Of all the masters of Silicon Valley, there is one for whom Elon Musk seems to harbor a terrible enmity.
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Their differences seem very deep and nothing seems able to reconcile them. It is even worse because the messages from the whimsical and charismatic CEO of Tesla (TSLA) - Get Free Report suggest that the enmity will only get worse.
That enemy is Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of social media giant Meta Platforms (META) - Get Free Report, formerly known as Facebook. Meta is the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.
Musk gave Zuckerberg an unflattering nickname, suggesting that he has autocratic impulses. He dubbed him "Zuck the Fourteenth," an apparent nod to the French King Louis XIV, famous for his hubris and excess.
"As for media sort of ownership, I mean, you've got, you know, Zuck work [at and owning] Facebook and Instagram and WhatsApp, and with a share ownership structure that will have Zuckerberg the 14th still controlling those entities. [We] certainly won't have that at Twitter. If you commit to opening up the algorithm, that definitely gives some level of confidence," Musk said on April 2022 during a TED interview about his acquisition of Twitter, the microblogging website.
Zuckerberg recently tried to start a warming between them, by claiming to have been inspired by Musk to launch a much-welcomed austerity cure at Meta. Since announcing the cut of 21,000 jobs since November, Meta's stock has soared as has the tycoon's net worth.
"I do think that Elon led a push early on to make Twitter a lot leaner. And I think that you can agree or disagree exactly with the tactics on how he did that... but a lot of the specific principles he pushed on... fewer layers of managers. I think that those were generally good changes and I think they were probably good changes for the industry," Zuckerberg said during an interview with podcaster Lex Fridman.
After acquiring Twitter for $44 billion last October, Musk cut more than 69% of the company's 7,500 jobs.
The billionaire has not been touched by the recognition of his peer, since he has just issued a warning against the latter whose group is developing a rival version of Twitter.
"META to Release 'Twitter Rival' Called THREADS," a Twitter user posted on Jun. 20. "META, the same company that copied Snapchat, TikTok, StumbleUpon, Foursquare, BeReal and Clubhouse, began coding 'Project 92' three months after Elon acquired Twitter. Rumors have been circulating about the app's public name being 'Threads'."
Musk was quick to comment, seeing in this new competition Zuckerberg's endless expansion to control the entire social media industry. A hypothesis that he considers bad for consumers.
"I'm sure Earth can't wait to be exclusively under Zuck's thumb with no other options," the billionaire blasted out. "At least it will be 'sane'. Was worried there for a moment," he added with a laughing emoji.
Musk seems to be saying that Zuckerberg may end up controlling all social media platforms. This centralization of virtual interactions is a danger for the billionaire, because it will give his rival too much power.
It was then that a Twitter user asked him to be careful because Zuckerberg practiced the martial art of jiu-jitsu. Musk then took this remark to offer to finally resolve their differences via an MMA-style fight.
"Better be careful @elonmusk I heard he does the ju jitsu now," the user said.
"I'm up for a cage match if he is lol," Musk responded.
The billionaire was likely joking.
Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Zuckerberg, who got into jiu-jitsu during the covid-19 lockdown, won two medals in the Brazilian martial art last month.
Meta is reportedly about to launch a rival of Twitter, which it has been developing under codename "P92," "Project 92," or "Barcelona."
The app is said to allow for creators to have "conversations" with their audience and peers using a maximum of 500 characters alongside attachable links, photos, and videos. Users will also be able to engage with posts through replies, likes, and reposts.
Creators will be able to link their Instagram accounts onto the new app and bring along their followers as well as their bio, handle, and verification.
This means that Meta is becoming a centralized social media entity, by having a copy of the other social media apps in its ecosystem. Instagram is, for instance, battling TikTok with Reels which focuses on short form video content, the core of TikTok's identity.