Elon Musk predicts SMH will lose more readers in 2025 for ‘lying to their audience’

The world’s richest man Elon Musk, 53, took to X to predict the Sydney Morning Herald will continue to lose readership in 2025 for “relentlessly lying to their audience and boring them to death”.

Billionaire tech CEO Elon Musk has hit out at the Sydney Morning Herald predicting its demise for publishing “boring” stories after the paper surmised he would quit Tesla in 2025.

The masthead owned by Nine Entertainment had published a Sunday opinion piece by its technology editor David Swan sharing its forecasts for tech in the New Year.

One prediction questioned whether Musk’s heavy commitments would force him to relinquish control of Tesla to focus on his role as joint lead of the Department of Government Efficiency in the new Trump administration.

“To be juggling leadership roles at X, Tesla, SpaceX, xAI, the Boring Company and Neuralink was already unsustainable,“ the SMH opinion article read.

Swan went on: “Musk has already found himself at loggerheads with MAGA diehards like Steve Bannon over immigration issues, and the inauguration is still weeks away. He’s also been at loggerheads with the justice system, after a US judge blocked Musk’s $US56 billion ($90 billion) pay package from Tesla.

“After constant controversies and distractions, it will all come to a head in 2025, and Musk will be forced to hand over the reins at Tesla, a company many mistakenly think he founded.”

Elon Musk has taken aim at the Sydney Morning Herald for predicting he would relinquish control of Tesla in 2025. Photo: AFP

The world’s richest man Musk, 53, retaliated with characteristic force, writing on X: “I predict that the Sydney Morning Herald will continue to lose readership in 2025 for relentlessly lying to their audience and boring them to death”.

Social media influencer and journalist at The Post Millennial Andy Ngo, also weighed in on the debate, saying the Sydney Morning Herald had previously published “lies” about him reporting that he had been barred from X before he was reinstated.

“The Sydney Morning Herald published these lies. I was never banned on this platform, even under the worst times from the prior regime,” he said.

Comments from the boss of Tesla, SpaceX, and the social media platform X, come after the masthead apologised for erroneously reporting that South Australian barrister Ian Roberts was one of the two men who died during the Sydney to Hobart yacht race on Friday.

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, reportedly worth more than $US400 billion ($625 billion), hit back at the SMH for its 2025 predictions. Photo: Angela Weiss

NSW Police initially confirmed two men, aged 55 and 65, had died in wild weather but had not publicly identified them.

It was later reported the Adelaide barrister, 65, had survived.

A correction in the paper later stated: “The Sydney Morning Herald incorrectly named Adelaide barrister Ian Roberts as one of the victims in the Sydney to Hobart yacht race,“ the SMH said in a statement.

South African businessman Elon Musk. Picture: AFP

“This was incorrect. We apologise to Mr Roberts and his family.”

In May, the paper trumpeted its 7.3 million readers across its platforms, a figure down 1.1 million from its 2022 readership.

Nine Entertainment declined to comment.

Originally published as Elon Musk predicts SMH will lose more readers in 2025 for ‘lying to their audience’