Elon Musk Backs Indian Talent and H‑1B Visas, Tells Founders “Be a Bully”

Elon Musk has used a high‑profile appearance on Zerodha co‑founder Nikhil Kamath’s “People by WTF” podcast to deliver a three‑part message that resonates across India and the US: America has “benefitted immensely” from Indian talent, the H‑1B visa should be fixed rather than scrapped, and young Indian entrepreneurs should “be a bully” in the sense of being unapologetically value‑creating. ^[1]

The conversation lands at a volatile moment for skilled immigration: President Donald Trump’s new $100,000 fee for many new H‑1B visa petitions, a deepening political backlash against the programme, and fresh proposals in Congress to both tighten and expand it. ^[2]

What Elon Musk Told Nikhil Kamath About Indians, Immigration and H‑1B

On the podcast episode released on November 30, 2025, Kamath asked Musk why the US narrative around immigration had turned more hostile when the country had clearly benefited from bringing in “really smart people” from places like India. ^[3]

Musk’s answer did three things at once:

Strongly endorsed Indian talent.
He said the US has gained enormously from Indian engineers, scientists and founders who moved there, calling America “an immense beneficiary” of Indian talent over the years. ^[4]
Backed the H‑1B programme – with caveats.
- Musk reiterated that his companies struggle to hire enough highly skilled people and that, in his view, there is a persistent shortage of top‑tier talent in the US. ^[5]
- He argued that bringing in skilled workers through H‑1B is economically positive, especially for complex work in rockets, AI and advanced manufacturing.
- But he also stressed there has been “misuse” of H‑1B, pointing in particular to some outsourcing firms that allegedly “gamed the system” by using visas primarily to cut labour costs rather than to access rare skills. ^[6]
Opposed shutting H‑1B down.
While acknowledging public anger about abuse, Musk rejected calls from parts of the American right to abolish the programme. Scrapping H‑1B altogether, he warned, would be “very bad” for US competitiveness because there is still not enough local talent to fill all high‑skill roles. ^[7]

In short, Musk staked out a “reform, don’t kill it” position: crack down on loopholes and cheap‑labour models, but keep pathways open for genuinely specialised foreign professionals—many of whom are Indian.

Musk’s Sharper Line on Border Controls and Illegal Immigration

The podcast also highlighted how Musk is trying to balance his long‑standing pro‑immigration stance with a much tougher line on illegal entry and border management.

He criticised what he described as a near “free‑for‑all” approach under the previous Biden administration, arguing that weak border controls created incentives for irregular migration and a “negative selection effect” in who arrives. ^[8]
At the same time, he portrayed the US political debate as polarised between:
- A left that, in his characterisation, pushes for almost open borders.
- A right that fears jobs are being “stolen” by foreign workers — a perception he said doesn’t match his own experience of chronic talent shortages. ^[9]

This framing mirrors a broader shift in Washington: legal, high‑skill immigration is now being argued about in the same breath as illegal crossings, rather than as a separate policy track.

“Be a Bully”: Musk’s Provocative Advice to Young Indian Entrepreneurs

While the immigration comments drew headlines, another soundbite from the podcast went instantly viral in India: Musk’s suggestion to young founders to “be a bully.” ^[10]

On NDTV’s write‑up of the episode, Musk is quoted as saying he is “a big fan of anyone who wants to bully,” before clarifying he respects people who “make more than they take” — that is, who contribute more value to society than they extract. ^[11]

Decoded, his message to Indian entrepreneurs included several themes:

Be net value‑creators.
Musk urged founders to obsess over building products and services people genuinely find useful, rather than chasing money for its own sake. If you focus on usefulness, he argued, revenue and wealth follow as by‑products rather than primary goals. ^[12]
Prepare for extreme grind and high odds of failure.
He warned that making a business work means being ready to “grind super hard” with a “meaningful chance of failure” always hanging over you. The key test is whether the output of your effort is worth more than the input — that you really are creating value, not just extracting it. ^[13]
Reframing “bully” as relentlessly assertive.
In context, Musk’s use of the word “bully” sounded less like endorsing aggression against people and more like urging founders to be pushy about problems, bold about ambition and unembarrassed about winning big — a style that may resonate in India’s increasingly competitive startup scene.

The advice arrived just as Indian entrepreneurs are facing tighter US visa rules, turbulent global funding conditions, and an AI‑driven reset of many business models, making Musk’s “net contributor” framing especially topical.

Personal Ties: Shivon Zilis, “Sekhar”, and an Emotional Pitch to Indians

Musk also revealed more intimate connections to India on Kamath’s show:

He said his partner Shivon Zilis, who works with him at Neuralink, is half‑Indian and was adopted as a child before growing up in Canada. ^[14]
One of their sons carries the middle name “Sekhar”, a nod to Zilis’s Indian heritage. ^[15]

In the same segment, Musk repeated that America has been an “immense beneficiary” of Indian talent but suggested that this flow is under threat as US visa rules and fees become more unpredictable, souring the “American dream” for many Indian students and professionals. ^[16]

These details give his defence of Indian immigrants a more personal edge: it’s not just about employees at Tesla or SpaceX, but also about family and identity.

Starlink, Rural India and a Bigger Bet on the India Story

Beyond immigration, Musk used the podcast to make a fresh pitch for his satellite‑internet venture Starlink in India. He told Kamath that Starlink is “ready for India” and could dramatically improve rural connectivity, especially in areas where laying fibre or building dense mobile networks isn’t economical. ^[17]

Key points from his remarks:

Starlink already operates in about 150 countries, using thousands of low‑Earth‑orbit satellites linked by laser “mesh” connections to deliver low‑latency connectivity. ^[18]
Musk highlighted Starlink’s usefulness in disaster zones where floods, fires or earthquakes have taken down ground infrastructure, noting that the network often provides free internet in crisis situations. ^[19]
For India, he positioned Starlink as complementary to domestic telecom operators: ideal for sparsely populated regions and underserved pockets, but not a substitute for fibre and dense mobile towers in cities. ^[20]

Taken together with his comments on Indian talent, Musk is clearly signalling that India isn’t just a talent pool for his companies — it’s also a strategic market for his infrastructure bets.

The Policy Earthquake: Trump’s $100,000 H‑1B Fee

Musk’s defence of skilled immigration lands in the middle of the most dramatic H‑1B policy shift in decades.

On September 19, 2025, President Donald Trump signed a presidential proclamation introducing a one‑time $100,000 supplemental fee for many new H‑1B visa petitions. ^[21]

Key facts about the fee as clarified by US agencies and legal analyses:

The fee applies to certain new H‑1B petitions filed on or after September 21, 2025, particularly for beneficiaries outside the United States who do not already hold a valid H‑1B visa. ^[22]
It is not an annual charge, but a one‑time payment tied to qualifying petitions, according to subsequent White House and USCIS guidance. ^[23]
Most extensions and changes of status for existing H‑1B workers inside the US are exempt, though some consular processing scenarios remain complicated. ^[24]
The fee was justified as a way to discourage replacement of US workers with cheaper foreign labour and to fund enforcement reforms, but critics warn it could simply push high‑end jobs and R&D centres out of the US. ^[25]

India, whose nationals account for roughly 70% of approved H‑1B beneficiaries, is particularly exposed to the change. ^[26]

Multiple analyses — from Indian media, US law firms and think tanks — argue that America may lose more than Indiain the long run if the fee deters top global talent and accelerates offshoring. ^[27]

H‑1B: A Programme Under Siege From Both Sides

Musk’s middle‑of‑the‑road view (“fix misuse, keep talent flowing”) stands out because the H‑1B system is now being attacked from both directions:

US populist right:
Commentators and politicians argue that H‑1B depresses wages and displaces American workers. A long essay in American Affairs describes 2025 as potentially “the beginning of the end” for H‑1B “as we know it”, calling for much higher mandated wages, tighter audits and even temporary suspensions under emergency powers. ^[28]
Business Standard notes that Musk himself previously drew fire after posting on X that America lacks enough people willing or able to do physically demanding work, a remark that fed into a heated debate on labour shortages and visa abuse. ^[29]
US business and higher‑education lobby:
Big tech companies and universities warn that the fee and ongoing crackdowns will cripple innovation and drive high‑skill jobs to Canada, Europe, the Gulf and India. A recent report on 2025’s top H‑1B employers shows US tech giants such as Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and Google increasingly rely on the programme — and could be hit hardest by the new fee. ^[30]
Competing visions in Congress:
While Trump has tightened the screws, Democratic Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi has reintroduced the HIRE Act, which would double the annual H‑1B cap from 65,000 to 130,000 while simultaneously boosting federal investment in US STEM education. ^[31]

Against this backdrop, Musk’s insistence that America still does not have enough highly skilled workers in cutting‑edge fields — and must keep tapping India — is a direct rebuttal to those calling for an outright shutdown.

What All This Means for Indian Students, Professionals and Founders

For Indians who dream of studying, working or building companies in the US, Musk’s comments and the new policy environment point to a more complicated future.

1. The Classic “Study → H‑1B → Green Card” Path Just Got Riskier

The $100,000 fee, even if it doesn’t apply to every case, makes employers more selective about who they sponsor from abroad.
Frequent shifts in messaging from the White House and USCIS have introduced unprecedented uncertainty, making it harder for Indian students to plan long‑term US careers. ^[32]
Simultaneously, some US agencies have begun highlighting alleged “rampant abuse” of H‑1B and have launched campaigns accusing businesses of stealing the “American Dream” from young US workers, with India singled out as the main beneficiary. ^[33]

2. High‑Skill, High‑Salary Profiles May Still Thrive

Musk’s own hiring philosophy — paying “way above average” and competing globally for the very best people — suggests that truly top‑tier talent will likely continue to have pathways, even in a harsher regulatory climate. ^[34]

Future reforms could further tilt H‑1B in favour of:

Higher wage levels and stricter prevailing‑wage enforcement. ^[35]
Advanced degrees in STEM or defence‑critical areas.
Roles in companies building strategic technologies such as AI, semiconductors, aerospace and clean energy.

For Indian students and professionals, that means leaning into specialisation, research and genuinely scarce skills, rather than generic software or support roles.

3. Outsourcing and “Body‑Shopping” Models Face Real Pressure

Musk’s repeated criticism of outsourcing firms that allegedly use H‑1B primarily for cost arbitrage aligns with Republican and labour‑protection arguments and could feed into targeted crackdowns on those business models. ^[36]

Indian IT and staffing companies that rely heavily on onsite H‑1B placements may:

Shift more work permanently back to India or near‑shore locations.
Pivot from labour‑arbitrage projects to product, platform and AI‑automation businesses where value is less about onsite headcount.

4. India’s Startup Ecosystem: Bully, But Build at Home

Musk’s “be a bully” advice can also be read as an indirect nudge toward building globally competitive companies from India itself, rather than just treating the US as the ultimate destination.

Combined with:

Rising H‑1B costs and unpredictability, and
New infrastructure possibilities like Starlink‑enabled rural connectivity, ^[37]

the incentives are strengthening for Indian founders to:

Target global markets from Indian soil.
Use remote‑first teams that don’t depend on mass US relocation.
Focus on deeptech, climate, space, fintech and health‑tech where India has unique advantages.

Forecast: Where Does the H‑1B and India–US Tech Corridor Go from Here?

No one can say exactly how the H‑1B saga ends, but current trends suggest a few plausible directions.

Short Term (Next 12–24 Months)

Policy volatility stays high. Expect more clarifications, exemptions and possible lawsuits around the $100,000 fee, keeping employers and would‑be immigrants guessing. ^[38]
Selective sponsorship. Companies will reserve H‑1B sponsorship – and the new fee – for roles that are demonstrably mission‑critical, often in AI, semiconductors, defence tech and advanced manufacturing. ^[39]
Public debate intensifies. With figures like Musk loudly defending skilled immigration while also calling out misuse, H‑1B will remain a lightning‑rod issue in US politics and media. ^[40]

Medium Term (2–5 Years)

“High‑wage H‑1B” model likely. Many proposals now on the table would effectively transform H‑1B into a premium, high‑salary visa for top earners, rather than a mass mid‑skill work programme. ^[41]
Parallel channels expand. Countries like Canada, the UK and some EU states are already courting frustrated H‑1B aspirants with easier pathways. India may also benefit as multinational firms move more R&D and operations to Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune and Gurugram. ^[42]
Legislative compromise possible. A future deal could look like a mix of the HIRE Act’s higher caps and Trump‑style enforcement: more visas overall, but with stricter wage floors, transparency, and tougher audits of outsourcing‑heavy employers. ^[43]

Long Term: India as Equal Partner, Not Just Talent Supplier

If Musk’s India‑centric remarks are any indication, the long‑term trajectory may be less about Indians going to America and more about America partnering with India:

Starlink and similar infrastructure plays could help close India’s digital divide. ^[44]
Indian founders adopting Musk’s “net contributor” mindset can build companies that collaborate with, not merely supply, Silicon Valley.
A maturing Indian capital market and domestic deep‑tech ecosystem could gradually reduce the perceived need to “escape” to the US at all costs.

Bottom Line

Elon Musk’s latest comments do three things at once: they reassure Indians that their talent is still deeply valued in the US, they acknowledge the anger over real abuses in the H‑1B system, and they challenge young Indian founders to think bigger and act bolder — to “be a bully” in pursuing ambitious, value‑creating ideas.

Whether Washington follows Musk’s “reform, don’t kill it” approach to H‑1B — or continues down the path of ever‑higher fees and restrictions — will determine whether the India–US tech corridor remains the world’s most powerful talent engine, or splinters into competing hubs across continents.