Clash of Titans: Elon Musk and Norway’s Wealth Fund CEO in Heated Exchange

A recently revealed conversation has exposed a tense exchange between Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Nicolai Tangen, the head of Norway’s sovereign wealth fund—one of Tesla’s major investors.

The dispute traces back to June, when the fund opposed Musk’s staggering $56 billion compensation package at Tesla’s annual general meeting, citing concerns over its scale and structure.

Following this, Tangen extended an invitation to Musk for a high-profile conference in Oslo set for April, along with an intimate, home-cooked dinner at Tangen’s residence the night before. Musk, however, declined, expressing in a private iMessage on October 14 that when he requested a favor—a rare occurrence—it had been refused, and therefore, no reciprocal requests should be made until efforts were taken to rectify the situation. He also emphasized his stance by stating that friendships are defined by actions.

Tangen responded the next day, acknowledging Musk’s position and affirming that, as a major shareholder, the fund continued to support Tesla, wishing Musk success.

The Norwegian business website e24.no was the first to report the exchange. Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), which operates the fund, is Tesla’s seventh-largest shareholder, holding a 0.95% stake valued at $6 billion as of June, according to LSEG data.

Tesla has yet to comment on the matter, while NBIM stated that it chose to release the messages due to growing public interest. A spokesperson explained via email that part of the dialogue stemmed from the fund’s voting record at Tesla, where it had opposed Musk’s pay package, among other decisions.

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