You might call it a tale of two billionaires. One has pledged to give away nearly all his fortune to eradicate disease and reduce poverty worldwide. The other is busy slashing the world’s largest aid programs under the banner of cutting government waste. As you may have guessed, the former is Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, and the latter is Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. These two of the world’s wealthiest individuals are pursuing radically different visions of their legacy — and depending on which path prevails, the future of the world may look profoundly different.
The story took a dramatic turn earlier this month when Gates announced he would donate “virtually all” of his wealth over the next 20 years — an unprecedented philanthropic pledge totaling around $200 billion, the largest in history. This is in addition to the nearly $100 billion he has already spent through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which he launched in 2000 to combat disease and poverty in the world, particularly in Africa. Now approaching his 70s, Gates intends to reduce his personal fortune by 99 percent by the time he turns 90 in 2045. At that point, the foundation will be dissolved, having fully disbursed its endowment. Originally, Gates planned for the foundation to continue after his death, but he accelerated the timeline in response to growing global crises and declining international aid.
That decline in global giving has, in part, been driven by Musk — now serving as head of the newly formed US Department of Government Efficiency, created by President Trump to root out what they deem government waste. One of Musk’s first moves was to shut down the US Agency for International Development — formerly the world’s largest public aid agency, which had long supported health and development efforts across Africa and the Global South. Coupled with the Trump administration’s cuts to funding for medical and scientific research, this decision could have dire consequences for millions of vulnerable people, particularly children in Africa. As Gates told the Financial Times in a recent interview, the world’s richest man now faces accusations of “killing the world’s poorest children.”
The stark contrast between Gates and Musk reflects two competing forces in today’s world. On one side are those who believe in global cooperation and compassion, who see humanity as interconnected and share the fruits of capitalism with its most disadvantaged. Gates is not alone — Warren Buffett has donated more than $50 billion, George Soros about $20 billion, Michael Bloomberg $15 billion and Jeff Bezos around $10 billion. Over 240 of the world’s wealthiest have joined the Giving Pledge, a commitment initiated by Gates and Buffett to give away the majority of their wealth in their lifetimes or after death. This includes Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, who has pledged $45 billion.
On the other side is a growing movement of nationalism, isolationism and protectionism — a worldview that sees international aid as a drain rather than an investment. For these leaders, the world is a zero-sum game: your gain is my loss and my gain is your loss. This view, championed by Trump and Musk, seeks to dismantle institutions that promote international cooperation, such as USAID and even international media efforts like Voice of America, which has long advanced US soft power. The short-sighted belief that economic and national interests must come first ignores the lasting benefits of diplomacy and soft influence. As the late Harvard professor Joseph Nye, architect of the soft power concept, warned before his death this month, these policies are eroding America’s most valuable global asset — its soft power.
What Gates and his foundation have achieved for the world is nothing short of astounding. The Gates Foundation has helped cut child mortality in Africa by half through vaccines for malaria, measles, polio and other deadly diseases. Its contribution to the fight against AIDS is particularly notable. Working alongside the George W. Bush administration, the foundation helped deliver affordable antiretroviral drugs to millions of AIDS patients in Africa, saving countless lives. Their joint effort — blending public resources and private philanthropy — is hailed as a model for global public-private partnership.
In contrast, South Korea’s contribution to global giving remains modest. The late Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee posthumously donated nearly $1 billion to medicine and the arts. Hyundai’s Chung Mong-koo gave around $600 million for education and public causes. More recently, Kakao founder Kim Beom-soo pledged up to $4 billion for youth and education. However, many of these gifts were driven by public pressure following scandals or their unethical or illegal business practices. Furthermore, most donations remain domestically focused, aimed at improving local reputation and appeasing regulators.
But as Korean companies expand globally, so too should their sense of responsibility. Their operations now span continents — and so should their philanthropy. Is it too much, or too early, to hope for a Korean equivalent of Bill Gates?
Lee Byung-jong
Lee Byung-jong is a former Seoul correspondent for Newsweek, The Associated Press and Bloomberg News. He is a professor at the School of Global Service at Sookmyung Women’s University in Seoul. The views expressed here are the writer’s own. — Ed.
koreaherald@heraldcorp.com
