Nikolas Sargeant
Former President Donald Trump and X CEO Elon Musk engaged in a wide-ranging conversation on Monday evening, covering topics from immigration to artificial intelligence, but notably omitted any mention of bitcoin or cryptocurrencies. The highly anticipated interview, which drew over a million listeners, experienced a 45-minute delay attributed by Musk to a "massive DDoS attack" on X.
The interview's content defied predictions from cryptocurrency betting markets. On Polymarket, a prediction platform, users had wagered over $600,000 on the likelihood of "crypto" being mentioned, with odds reaching 65%. A separate market for "bitcoin" peaked at 69% probability, with $330,000 at stake.
Despite Trump's recent appearance at a Bitcoin conference to discuss crypto policy, digital assets remained absent from this mainstream conversation. The omission aligns with the trend seen in other high-profile political events, such as the first presidential debate in June.
The interview covered a range of issues including illegal immigration, economic policies, AI advancements, and climate change. While Trump avoided directly mentioning Tesla, he referred to Musk's electric vehicles as "your cars," disappointing bettors who had placed significant wagers on hearing the company's name.
One savvy bettor, using the handle 'bama1234', correctly predicted most of Trump's word choices during the interview, resulting in a windfall of over $1 million. Their largest single payout came from accurately betting that Trump would not say "crypto," netting $336,918.
The event's delayed start sparked controversy, with Musk claiming it was due to opposition to Trump's platform. However, a source cited by The Verge contested this explanation, suggesting there was a "99 percent chance Musk was lying" about the alleged attack.
This interview highlights the growing intersection of politics, technology, and finance, while also demonstrating the public's keen interest in predicting the content of high-stakes political discussions.
