Elon Musk responded to a social media post on June 27, 2026, by saying, "Sadly, yes," in agreement with a critic of MacKenzie Scott's philanthropy. The exchange occurred after an X account identified as Pubity posted that Scott's $26.3 billion in donations had established her as one of the biggest individual donors in history. An X account with the handle @FrenlyOfficer replied to Pubity's post, stating, "Unfortunately, she's spending it making the world a worse place," to which Musk posted his agreement.

Scott has contributed over $26 billion to thousands of organizations through her organization, Yield Giving. In 2025, she was confirmed as the largest megadonor, accounting for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts during that year.

In December 2025, Musk discussed philanthropy with Nikhil Kamath in a podcast interview. He stated, "I agree with love of humanity, and I think we should try to do things that help our fellow human beings." He added, "It's very easy to give money away to get the appearance of goodness. It is very difficult to give money away for the reality of goodness. Very difficult."

More than 250 of the world's wealthiest individuals have signed the Giving Pledge. French Gates said in an interview with Wired published in December 2025 that some billionaires who signed the Giving Pledge have not given enough. She stated, "Have they given enough? No." She also acknowledged, "Okay, have those people actually been giving money? Some of them, yes, some of them at massive scale."

In a June 2026 interview with Fortune's Emma Hinchliffe, French Gates commented on Scott's recent giving. She said she looks "back at the giving MacKenzie [Scott] has done in the last year." Gates noted, "Look at what she has said about historically Black colleges in the United States and the importance of them." She concluded, "We have the old adage, actions speak louder than words."