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The U.S. spent $30 billion to ditch textbooks for laptops and tablets: The result is the first generation less cognitively capable than their parents

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Current price of oil as of July 13, 2026

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LeadershipEnergy

Here’s What Might Happen if Bill Gates and Elon Musk Founded a Company Together

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Feliz Solomon
Feliz Solomon
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By
Feliz Solomon
Feliz Solomon
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March 2, 2017, 3:51 AM ET
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Munich, Germany - February 17: Bill Gates at Munich Security Conference on February 17, 2017 in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Michael Gottschalk/Photothek via Getty Images)Michael Gottschalk—Photothek/Getty Images
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Imagine a future in which tech billionaire Bill Gates and transportation pioneer Elon Musk teamed up to start a business together. While it may be an unlikely scenario, Gates has given the idea some thought, and he says he knows what they might do.

The hypothetical dream team would take on energy alternatives, Gates said during a reddit Ask Me Anything session on Monday, CNBC reports.

“We need clean, reliable cheap energy—which we don’t have,” Gates said. “So we need some invention—perhaps miracle batteries or super safe nuclear or making sun into gasoline directly.”

The Microsoft (MSFT) co-founder has already ventured into the clean energy sector, and late last year he spearheaded a $1 billion fund aiming to reduce greenhouse emissions by financing alternative energy technology.

Musk, CEO and founder of both Tesla (TSLA) and SpaceX (SPACEX), also founded the green energy firm Solarcity (SCTY), America’s biggest solar energy provider. The company outfits homes, schools and businesses with solar power technologies and equipment. He also invests in clean energy companies through the X Prize and Musk Foundation.

For more on Gates and climate change, watch Fortune’s video:

Gates was also asked about his views on the administration of President Donald Trump, CNBC reports. Some members of the new government have expressed skepticism of climate change, and have emphasized fossil fuels as priority sectors.

Gates said he hopes the new administration will view research and development in renewables as “a good deal for the U.S. and for the world,” adding that, “climate change requires cooperation between countries over a period of decades but we don’t have much time to waste.”

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