Actually, he's absolutely right. The fact literally every other battery-electric truck is being designed for "local distribution" and drayage isn't some random coincidence. https://twitter.com/technology/status/1305298564520833024

Here's a good tell: of course Electrek defends Musk from Gates' critique by naming the Tesla Semi and the Freightliner eCascadia: https://electrek.co/2020/09/06/bill-gates-tesla-semi-electric-airplanes-will-never-work-wrong/

But their own coverage of eCascadia notes that it is indeed for "local and regional distribution": https://electrek.co/2020/03/04/daimler-electric-freightliner-semi-trucks-ecascadia/

Musk has this thing about trying to "prove" that BEVs are great at every application, but all technologies have strengths and weaknesses. A Tesla works as a road trip machine, for leisurely sightseeing by retired boomers, but that doesn't make it a competitive long-range option

Instead of trying to fit square pegs into round holes, real EV leadership would focus on saturating the massive use cases where EVs genuinely are competitive: weekday commuting and local delivery/distribution. This stuff is hard enough without trying to ice skate uphill.

Musk's performative "I'm too cool for market research" routine resonates with people, but there's a good deal of evidence that it has been not great for Tesla. The downsides are especially evident with the semi, as @BoziTatarevic pointed out in this thread https://twitter.com/BoziTatarevic/status/932459829335076864