Gates/Buffet Versus Bezos/Musk: Donate or Invest?

Abstract

In contrasting approaches, Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos have chosen to use some of their wealth to build rocketry businesses, while Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett have chosen philanthropy. A question The Economist (2011) posed after analyzing IBM versus the Carnegie Corporation in recognition of their respective 100th anniversaries in 2011 is still relevant: “Has the multinational business or universal philanthropy done more for society?” Paraphrased for this context, it reads, “Is the Gates-Buffett approach to philanthropy a better use of money than rocketry as envisioned by Bezos-Musk?” This is the question students are asked to ponder.

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