Elon Musk announced on Sunday that a “cage match” arranged to by him and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg as a fund-raiser will be broadcast live on X, formerly known as Twitter, which he owns.
“Zuck v Musk fight will be live-streamed on X,” Musk posted. “All proceeds will go to charity for veterans.”
Zuckerberg soon hit back on Threads, the new app he launched last month in a direct challenge to what was then still called Twitter, saying he was ready.
“Shouldn’t we use a more reliable platform that can actually raise money for charity?” he added, in a dig at the wave of problems faced by Musk’s platform since he took over last year.
The two billionaire entrepreneurs, who had previously sparred from afar, became direct rivals once Zuckerberg’s Meta launched its Twitter-like Threads network in early July, quickly attracting 120 million members, according to Quiver Quantitative.
Musk then wrote on X, “I’m up for a cage match if he is lol,” alluding to a type of Mixed Martial Arts in which competing fighters use a range of disciplines, such as wrestling or Brazilian jiu-jitsu, while adhering to few regulations.
Zuckerberg, a martial arts enthusiast who has taken part in jiu-jitsu competitions, responded to Musk’s initial, seemingly humorous, challenge by replying on Instagram “Send me location.”
The exchange elicited a flood of social media reactions, as well as a spirited round of betting on the prospective winner.
Despite Musk’s obvious height advantage, the 39-year-old Zuckerberg emerged as the clear favorite due to his combat expertise.
There is no definite date for the bout, which is scheduled to take place in Las Vegas if it happens.
Over the years, the two tech titans have fought on matters ranging from politics to artificial intelligence.
Musk paid $44 billion for the social network before announcing significant layoffs and turning the platform up to conspiracy-minded posters, prompting some advertisers to look elsewhere.
