Tesla CEO Elon Musk is the rocket entrepreneur, corporate founder, tireless salesman and a would-be colonizer of other planets, toiling to save us all. He is the co-founder of Tesla Motors, PayPal, and SolarCity, and the founder of SpaceX. His success has given rise to comparisons of him to Henry Ford and Steve Jobs. Amid a difficult childhood, Elon Musk has developed a single-minded vision and a relentless work ethic. He is known to work up to 100 hours per week.
Musk's interest in science fiction and fantasy novels is reflected in his concern with the impact of human activity. He works in the areas he believes to be crucial for our future, such as the Internet, space colonization and transition to renewable energy resources. With his work with SpaceX and SolarCity, he's made advances in all three of these areas. Today, we're unmasking Elon Musk: what you don’t know.
15 He Was Bullied As A Child
From Musk's descriptions, his childhood was brutal and lonely because he was bullied. He said that other students lured him out of hiding once and beat him up. He was chased around by gangs who tried to hurt him. These gangs were going after Musk nonstop. He didn't feel safe at home either.
14 His Parents Thought Musk Might Be Deaf
When Musk was a little child, he would gaze into the distance while other people were speaking to him. This led his parents to think that the child might be deaf. Doctors removed his adenoids, but he didn't stop gazing. His mother, Maye, says that he just goes into his brain.
13 His Dad Was Abusive
Musk says that his dad "is good at making life miserable. I don’t know how someone becomes like him." He often describes his dad as the darkest aspect of his life. It seems like he may have been abusive – if not physically, then mentally. Musk refuses to talk about his father in detail.
12 He Sold A Video Game In 1984
The game was called Blastar, and Musk, when 12, received $500 when he published the source code in the South African magazine PC and Office Technology. In 2015, a Google software engineer revised the code and made the game playable. In the game, you should destroy alien ships with weapons.
11 He Flew To Canada To Avoid Serving In The Military
In order to avoid serving in the military, Musk flew to Canada. He would get Canadian citizenship through his mother. In the late '80s, Musk enrolled in Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario and met Justine Wilson, a book writer. They would marry and have 5 children together, before divorcing in 2008.
10 He Almost Sold Tesla To Google
In 2013, Musk almost sold Tesla to Google "for $11 billion, according to Ashlee Vance, author of Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future. At the time, Tesla’s future was looking bleak, and Musk reached out to Google’s co-founder and CEO Larry Page for a takeover."
9 He Threw House Parties To Pay For College
Musk threw house parties and charged a cover fee of 5$ while he was studying. With this money he could pay for college. He and his roommate were the residents of a 10-beedrom house, and they would cover the walls with bright paint. Musk stayed sober during parties to keep everything under control.
8 His First Business Was Zip2
Musk and his brother started their first business, Zip2, together. It was basically mapquest. Even though they could sell the company for $307 million, they had problems with investors. The investors forced the product towards Media companies and not towards the B2C segment that Musk preferred. Still, Elon became the Silicon Valley's new rich guy.
7 He Owns A James Bond Car
In 2013, Musk bought the Lotus Esprit submarine car from the 007 film The Spy Who Loved Me for $866,000. He said that as a child, he would watch this movie over and over again. He was amazed to see how Bond presses the button and has a car transform into a submarine.
6 He Beat Out PayPal
Musk's company, "X.com, beat out its biggest competitor, PayPal, started by Peter Thiel as they agreed to merge together with Elon becoming the largest shareholder. After a horrible merger process, Elon finally had some time to step back. However, he ended up getting malaria in South Africa and almost died because of it."
5 He Made A Cameo On The Simpsons
In 2015, Musk made a cameo on the Simpsons. He starred in the episode called "The Musk Who Fell to Earth." In the episode he comes to Springfield in a spacecraft and gets some ideas from Homer. He also starred in an episode of a sitcom The Big Bang Theory.
4 He Views Knowledge As A Semantic Tree
Musk says, "I think most people can learn a lot more than they think they can. They sell themselves short without trying. It is important to view knowledge as sort of a semantic tree - make sure you understand the fundamental principles, i.e. the trunk and big branches, before you get into the leaves/details."
3 He Is A Staunch Leader
One of the SpaceX employees once said that when Elon isn't happy, everyone knows it. Steve Davis, another employee, was assigned a task that seemed impossible. He said that even the greatest engineer wouldn't attempt to finish the project. He worked on it for 9 months and all that Elon had to say was "Ok."
2 He Runs A School Called Ad Astra
Ad Astra is Musk's school that he runs at SpaceX headquarters. His own children attend the school with kids of many SpaceX employees. Musk founded the school to exceed other schools on important subjects through project-based learning. According to school reports, children often work in teams and learn science, math and engineering.
1 His Employees Work 24 Hours A Day
Elon is a fierce leader. When there is a project deadline, such as the announcement of the Tesla Model S prototype, two shifts of employees work 24 hours a day. In 2010, SpaceX had successfully launched their Dragon Capsule. Musk called in his top executives and yelled at them in front of other people.