TLDR
- Elon Musk praised Bitcoin’s energy-based proof-of-work model as protection against fiat currency inflation on October 14, 2025
- Musk stated governments can print fake fiat money but cannot fake energy, making Bitcoin’s foundation more reliable
- The comment responded to analysis linking Bitcoin’s price momentum to government spending on AI development arms race
- This marks Musk’s first serious Bitcoin post in nearly three years since predicting crypto winter after FTX collapse in 2022
- Bitcoin mining now uses over 55% renewable energy, surpassing Musk’s 2021 threshold for Tesla to resume Bitcoin payments
Elon Musk returned to discussing Bitcoin on October 14 with comments praising the cryptocurrency’s energy-based economic model. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO posted on X that Bitcoin offers protection from government money printing. He called fiat currency “fake” compared to Bitcoin’s foundation in energy.
Musk wrote that governments can issue fake fiat currency and have throughout history. However, he said it is impossible to fake energy. This makes Bitcoin’s proof-of-work system more reliable than traditional money.
True.
That is why Bitcoin is based on energy: you can issue fake fiat currency, and every government in history has done so, but it is impossible to fake energy.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 14, 2025
The billionaire entrepreneur made these comments in response to analyst Zerohedge’s post. Zerohedge connected Bitcoin’s recent price momentum to government spending patterns. The analyst suggested rising Bitcoin prices relate to currency debasement from AI development funding.
“AI is the new global arms race, and capex will eventually be funded by governments (US and China),” Zerohedge wrote. The post linked Bitcoin’s performance alongside gold and silver to this spending trend.
Musk’s Bitcoin History
This marks Musk’s first serious Bitcoin-related post since November 2022. His last comment came after the FTX exchange collapse. At that time, Bitcoin dropped to $16,000 during the bear market.
Musk predicted a “long winter” for crypto following FTX’s bankruptcy filing on November 11, 2022. The exchange collapsed due to misappropriation of user funds. Investors lost $8.9 billion in the failure.
This is inaccurate. Tesla only sold ~10% of holdings to confirm BTC could be liquidated easily without moving market.
When there’s confirmation of reasonable (~50%) clean energy usage by miners with positive future trend, Tesla will resume allowing Bitcoin transactions.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 13, 2021
Tesla suspended Bitcoin payments in May 2021 citing environmental concerns. The announcement caused Bitcoin’s price to drop 6% within an hour. The price fell from $54,800 to roughly $51,600.
Bitcoin Mining Energy Use
Musk previously criticized Bitcoin mining for relying too heavily on fossil fuels. He pledged Tesla would resume Bitcoin payments once mining operations used sufficient clean energy. His threshold was 50% renewable energy usage.
Bitcoin mining’s sustainable energy usage has now reached over 55%. This data comes from climate tech venture capitalist Daniel Batten and Bitcoin analyst Willy Woo. The figure represents an all-time high for renewable energy use in mining operations.
Tesla has not sold most of its Bitcoin holdings. The company has not commented on potentially reinstating Bitcoin payments. This remains true despite mining operations now exceeding Musk’s stated renewable energy requirements.
The June 2021 pledge specified Tesla would allow Bitcoin transactions after confirming clean energy usage. Mining operations have met this standard. Tesla purchased Bitcoin in early 2021 and still holds the majority of those assets.
