Billionaire Mark Cuban pushes back against Elon Musk again — this time over DEI
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- Mark Cuban is the latest billionaire to weigh in on the DEI debate.
- Cuban's defense of DEI was in response to Elon Musk, who said "DEI is racist."
- Cuban and Musk's comments come in the wake of Claudine Gay's resignation as Harvard president.
Claudine Gay's resignation as Harvard's president on Tuesday has sparked a debate among the country's most vocal billionaires about the value of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
The latest to weigh in on the debate is Shark Tank host Mark Cuban, who defended DEI initiatives in the corporate world in a post on X on Wednesday. Cuban was also responding to comments made by Elon Musk — whom he's previously publicly criticized — who equated DEI with "racism" in a post on X earlier that day.
In Cuban's view, DEI helps companies find talent they wouldn't discover otherwise. Without it, people of various races, ethnicities, and orientations will be regularly excluded from hiring consideration, according to Cuban.
"Good businesses look where others don't, to find the employees that will put your business in the best possible position to succeed," he wrote. So, companies that forgo DEI practices only stand to lose. "The loss of DEI-Phobic companies is my gain," Cuban wrote.
Musk had earlier written on X that "DEI is just another word for racism. Shame on anyone who uses it."
Musk's sentiments were similar to billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, who called DEI initiatives racist and "the root cause of antisemitism at Harvard" in a 4,000-word essay posted to X hours after Gay announced her resignation as Harvard president this week. Ackman's explanation: "Reverse racism is racism, even if it is against white people (and it is remarkable that I even need to point this out)."
Cuban has historically clapped back at Musk on social media on subjects other than DEI. He's criticized Musk's erratic posts on X and called Musk "his own worst enemy." He's also disagreed with some of Musk's business decisions regarding X, including charging all users a verification fee.
Cuban told Business Insider by email that he did not have further comment.