Reed Hastings, the co-founder and co-CEO of Netflix, called Elon Musk “the bravest, most creative person on the planet” during a conversation at the New York Times DealBook conference.
“What he’s done in multiple areas is phenomenal,” Hastings said (via Deadline). “His style is different. I’m trying to be, like, a steady, respectable leader up here and he’s just out there.”
Hastings added that he is “100% convinced that [Musk] is trying to help the world in all of his endeavors,” saying he “could have built a mile-long yacht,” with $44 billion, but instead acquired Twitter because he “believes in free speech and the powers of democracy.”
Hastings, who is also the Chairman of Netflix, dismissed concerns around Musk’s rocky first days with Twitter, including his subscription verification plan that led to problems with impersonations and the flight of former advertisers, as well as an increase in hate speech on the platform. He said “people are sooo picky on, the blue check mark, and yes he’s making a mess of some things. Can you give the guy a break? This guy just spent all this money trying to make things better for democracy and society, to have a more open platform, and I am sympathetic to that agenda.”
Earlier this year, Netflix unveiled a new ad-supported plan, though it lacks some of the streamer’s most popular shows. Hastings said the company was “wrong” to stay out of advertising for so long, but added, “we’ll catch up in a few years and we won’t remember when we started.”
