Musk criticizes money creation and defends the Bitcoin model

As the global race for artificial intelligence accelerates, Elon Musk returns to the forefront of the crypto scene. In a message published on “energy-based” and therefore impervious to state manipulation. This position places the flagship asset at the heart of international monetary debates.

Bitcoin, an energy bulwark against fiat currency

In a concise but unequivocal publication posted this Tuesday on X (formerly Twitter), Elon Musk revived the debate around bitcoin and inflationary monetary policies, in a context of violent correction in the crypto market.

Reacting to a message from analyst Zerohedge, the Tesla CEO said: “ this is why bitcoin is based on energy: you can issue fake fiat currency, and every government in history has done that, but it is impossible to fake energy“.

THE message evoked the fear of a new episode of massive monetary creation, intended to finance the next great global race: that of artificial intelligence. For Zerohedge, this context would already be at the origin of the recent rise in bitcoin, gold and silver, perceived as refuges from future devaluation.

By emphasizing that the production of bitcoin is based on a measurable and irreducible energy expenditure, Musk reinforces an old but still debated thesis: that of bitcoin as a hard, incorruptible asset that cannot be manipulated by States.

Its Proof-of-Work model gives it, according to its defenders, unique legitimacy among assets. As such, Musk's statement highlights several key elements :

• Monetary inflation as a systemic threat, fueled by expansionary fiscal policies and the race for AI;
• The role of energy as a unit of economic truth, in a system where the creation of money is based on physical and verifiable expenditure;
• Historical criticism of fiat currency, seen by Musk as inherently subject to manipulation by governments.

In this context, bitcoin is presented not as a simple speculative asset, but as a defense mechanism against the depreciation of purchasing power. A positioning that resonates with part of the crypto community, seeking stability in an increasingly uncertain geopolitical and economic environment.

A symbolic but ambivalent statement

This media outing by Musk is all the more remarkable as it constitutes his first significant public position on bitcoin in almost three years. The last one dates back to November 2022, at the heart of the FTX collapse.

At the time, the founder of SpaceX soberly declared: “theBTC will get through this, but it will be a long winter», while the price of bitcoin had just plunged to $16,000. The current timing of this new message, while the debate on the sustainability of public debt and AI rages, suggests a renewed strategic, even political, interest in the potential role of bitcoin in the new world economic order.

It is, however, worth remembering Musk's past reservations regarding the Bitcoin network itself. In May 2021, Tesla suspended BTC payments, citing environmental concerns related to the use of fossil fuels in mining.

This decision caused an immediate fall in the price of around 6%. If Elon Musk then committed to reassess this position if the network reached at least 50% renewable energy, neither he nor Tesla have confirmed to date a resumption of payments. However, the use of renewable energies in mining has reportedly exceeded 55%, without provoking any official reaction from the company.

The current declaration, although laudatory, therefore does not erase certain ambiguities. Is this a simple ideological signal, or a prelude to a new industrial strategy from Musk around Bitcoin? If the billionaire chose to fully reintegrate BTC into the Tesla ecosystem, or to add certain AI services to it, the impact would potentially be major on the market. In the meantime, this release highlights the extent to which positioning on cryptos is becoming a strategic indicator, at the intersection of future economic, monetary and technological issues.