An Indian-origin CEO has waded into the ongoing controversy over the future of the US Agency for International Development (USAID). Aravind Srinivas, the CEO of Perplexity AI, has challenged his Tesla counterpart Elon Musk to “stop” him if he can from raising a mammoth sum from the federal agency.
“Considering raising $500B from USAID. Funding secured. Stop me if you can @elonmusk What is USAID?” Mr Srinivas posted on X.
Considering raising $500B from USAID. Funding secured. Stop me if you can @elonmusk
— Aravind Srinivas (@AravSrinivas) February 5, 2025
The post came days after US President Donald Trump and Elon Musk called for shutting down the federal agency. Not long ago, Musk said USAID was a “criminal organisation” and deserved to be shut down.
Mr Srinivas’s post elicited some hilarious responses from fellow-X users, with many praising the 13-year-old’s sense of humour.
Commenting on the post, a person remarked, “This is getting interesting.”
This is getting interesting
— ABEL ✍️ Web3 Copywriter (@AbelIonadi) February 6, 2025
“He said funding secured just like that one guy did! Oh ho ho, you’re in big trouble, pal. Wait until Elon hears about this!” said another.
He said Funding Secured just like that one guy did! Oh ho ho, you’re in big trouble, pal. Wait until Elon hears about this!
— NotAChatBot (@FutureVibesOnly) February 5, 2025
“You are hilarious. I like your sense of humour while being a great entrepreneur,” read a comment.
you are hilarious. i like your sense of humor while being a great entrepreneur
— David Yoo ⚔️ (@davidyoope) February 5, 2025
“Don’t give a challenge to him, tomorrow Perplexity can be banned,” remarked another person.
Don’t give challenge to him, tomorrow Perplexity can be banned.
— Akshat Tak (@akshattak) February 5, 2025
According to reports in Reuters, the Trump administration plans to keep fewer than 300 staff at the USAID. The administration’s goal is to combine USAID with the State Department, overseen by Marco Rubio, whom Trump appointed as acting administrator of the agency.
As per the Congressional Research Service (CRS), the agency employed over 10,000 individuals worldwide, two-thirds of them outside the US.
As of midnight on Friday, February 7, “All USAID direct hire personnel will be placed on administrative leave globally, with the exception of designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and specially designated programs,” the USAID website read.
On Wednesday, hundreds of people gathered in Washington DC as part of a countrywide demonstration against Trump administration’s decision to dismantle USAID.
Earlier, the US administration revealed details of how the USAID funded “ridiculous” projects over the years. Taking to X, the Trump administration wrote, “For decades, USAID bureaucrats believed they were accountable to no one – but that era is over. President Trump is STOPPING the waste, fraud, and abuse.” Musk also reacted to the documents, saying, “Crazy waste of your tax money!”
Crazy waste of your tax money! https://t.co/9dEoj9xeMf
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 5, 2025
Before Musk called it a “criminal organisation”, Trump said the US agency was “run by radical lunatics”. The USAID has “been run by a bunch of radical lunatics, and we’re getting them out… and then we’ll make a decision (on its future),” Trump said.
The Trump administration has said that the agency is wasting money and has to be aligned with its policy priorities.