Pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli has posted a video response to Australian schoolkids who recreated his company’s malaria pill for a tiny fraction of its price, as well as launching into a Twitter tirade over their project.
Shkreli shot to infamy last year when he jacked up the price of anti-parasitic drug Daraprim from US$13 to US$750.
READ MORE: Pharma firm hikes life-saving drug price by 5,500%
Earlier this week he was back in the headlines after a group of Sydney high school students recreated the medicine in their school lab for only $1.50.
The 33 year old took to Youtube on Thursday to congratulate the budding scientists. "We should congratulate these students for their interest in chemistry and all be excited about what is to come in the stem-focused 21st century," he said.
However, Shkreli struck a far less magnanimous tone on Twitter where he blasted the main stream media for spinning the story as if the Aussie schoolkids had outsmarted him and scolded them for not reporting it correctly.
He later went even further, inviting people to call him to discuss the issue while livestreaming the calls on Periscope.
"I especially want to hear from you if you hate me," Shkreli said.
He also specifically addressed journalists, saying: "You throw your potshots out but you don't have the f***ing balls to go one-on-one with the great one."
Dozens of people took Shkreli up on the offer, and the livestream continued for several hours.
While many callers did ask questions about pharmaceuticals, before long the question and answer session descended into arguments over the safety of vaccines, his Brooklyn heritage and his basketball prowess.
Shkreli also chatted up women callers who shared their Instagram profiles. At one point several commenters warned that the girl he was speaking with was underage, but he said that was alright “because he hasn’t had sex with her yet”.
Shkreli is currently on bail pending trial for eight criminal offences, including securities fraud and conspiracy charges. The trial is set to begin in June 2017. He has said he expects to spend at least $10 million on his legal defense.
The New York native has frequently been in the headlines since he shot to prominence over the Daraprim affair last year. He tried to buy the gun used to kill unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin, he claimed Hillary Clinton suffered from Parkinson's disease, and he recently tried to auction the opportunity to punch him in the face.