Elon Musk says he has chosen to sell all of his possessions so that people can no longer "attack" him for being a billionaire.

The Tesla CEO spoke in a new episode of Joe Rogan's podcast.

Musk announced earlier this month on Twitter that he's "selling almost all physical possessions" and "will own no house".

"Why are you doing that?" Rogan asked on the podcast. Musk said he's "slightly sad" about the move, prompting Rogan to enquire: "If you're sad about it, why are you doing it?"

Musk then explained: "I think possessions kind of weigh you down. They're kind of an attack vector, you know?

"People say, 'Hey, billionaire, you've got all this stuff.' Well, now I don't have stuff, what are you going to do?"

Rogan asked Musk if he means that people "target" his status as a billionaire, to which Musk responded affirmatively.

Musk then said he's going to rent a place to stay and keep some possessions, including those that have sentimental value.

"What's the worst thing that can happen?" Musk mused. "It'll be fine."

Rogan replied: "Yeah, you can always buy more stuff if you don't like it."

He asked Musk if he feels like people define him according to his wealth. Musk, whose net worth is $37.9bn, said it does happen, although "not everyone" does it.

"For sure, in recent years, 'billionaire' has become a pejorative. It's like that's a bad thing," Musk said.

"Which I think doesn't make a lot of sense in most cases."