Elon Musk

For other uses, see Elon Musk (disambiguation).

Elon Musk Template:Post-nominals
Musk in 2022
Born	Elon Reeve Musk Template:Birth date and age Pretoria, Transvaal, South Africa
Citizenship	South Africa Canada United States
Education	University of Pennsylvania (BA, BS)
Title	Template:Indented plainlist
Spouses	Template:Marriage Template:Marriage Template:Marriage
Partners	Amber Heard (2015–2017)<ref>"Elon Musk Reflects on "Brutal" Relationship With Amber Heard in New Biography". E! Online. September 13, 2023. Archived from the original on October 20, 2023. Retrieved October 17, 2023.</ref>
Children	11<ref group="lower-alpha">Including one deceased child.<ref name="FOOTNOTEBerger2021182">Berger (2021), p. 182.</ref></ref><ref name=NYTTAU/>
Parents	Errol Musk Maye Musk
Relatives	Kimbal Musk (brother) Tosca Musk (sister) Lyndon Rive (cousin)
Family	Musk family
Signature

Elon Reeve Musk (/ˈiːlɒn/; EE-lon; born June 28, 1971) is a businessman and investor. He is the founder, chairman, CEO, and CTO of SpaceX; angel investor, CEO, product architect, and former chairman of Tesla, Inc.; owner, executive chairman, and CTO of X Corp.; founder of the Boring Company and xAI; co-founder of Neuralink and OpenAI; and president of the Musk Foundation. He is one of the wealthiest people in the world, with an estimated net worth of US$213 billion as of February 2024, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, and $210 billion according to Forbes, primarily from his ownership stakes in Tesla and SpaceX.<ref>"Bloomberg Billionaires Index". Bloomberg L.P. Archived from the original on July 8, 2017. Retrieved July 25, 2022.</ref><ref>"Real Time Billionaires". Forbes. Archived from the original on February 10, 2014. Retrieved August 27, 2017.</ref>

A member of the wealthy South African Musk family, Elon was born in Pretoria and briefly attended the University of Pretoria before immigrating to Canada at age 18, acquiring citizenship through his Canadian-born mother. Two years later, he matriculated at Queen's University at Kingston in Canada. Musk later transferred to the University of Pennsylvania, and received bachelor's degrees in economics and physics. He moved to California in 1995 to attend Stanford University, but dropped out after two days and, with his brother Kimbal, co-founded online city guide software company Zip2. The startup was acquired by Compaq for $307 million in 1999, and that same year Musk co-founded X.com, a direct bank. X.com merged with Confinity in 2000 to form PayPal.

In October 2002, eBay acquired PayPal for $1.5 billion, and that same year, with $100 million of the money he made, Musk founded SpaceX, a spaceflight services company. In 2004, he became an early investor in electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla Motors, Inc. (now Tesla, Inc.). He became its chairman and product architect, assuming the position of CEO in 2008. In 2006, Musk helped create SolarCity, a solar-energy company that was acquired by Tesla in 2016 and became Tesla Energy. In 2013, he proposed a hyperloop high-speed vactrain transportation system. In 2015, he co-founded OpenAI, a nonprofit artificial intelligence research company. The following year, Musk co-founded Neuralink—a neurotechnology company developing brain–computer interfaces—and the Boring Company, a tunnel construction company. In 2022, he acquired Twitter for $44 billion. He subsequently merged the company into newly created X Corp. and rebranded the service as X the following year. In March 2023, he founded xAI, an artificial intelligence company.

Musk has expressed views that have made him a polarizing figure.<ref name="Trouble">Ghaffary, Shirin (May 20, 2023). "Elon Musk won't stop tweeting his way into trouble". Vox. Archived from the original on October 27, 2023. Retrieved October 28, 2023.</ref> He has been criticized for making unscientific and misleading statements, including COVID-19 misinformation and antisemitic conspiracy theories.<ref name="Trouble"/><ref>"Disney, Apple among major companies to pull business from X after Elon Musk's antisemitic post". NBC News. November 18, 2023. Archived from the original on November 18, 2023. Retrieved November 18, 2023.</ref><ref>Hatmaker, Taylor (November 17, 2023). "Backlash builds after Elon Musk called an antisemitic conspiracy theory the 'actual truth'". Archived from the original on November 18, 2023. Retrieved November 18, 2023.</ref><ref>"Another Day, Another Antisemitic Conspiracy Theory for Elon Musk and X". Vanity Fair. November 16, 2023. Archived from the original on November 17, 2023. Retrieved November 18, 2023.</ref> His ownership of Twitter has been similarly controversial, being marked by the laying off of a large number of employees, an increase in hate speech and misinformation and disinformation on the website, as well as changes to Twitter Blue verification. In 2018, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued him, alleging that he had falsely announced that he had secured funding for a private takeover of Tesla. To settle the case, Musk stepped down as the chairman of Tesla and paid a $20 million fine.

Early life and education

Childhood and family

Further information: Musk family

Elon Reeve Musk was born on June 28, 1971, in Pretoria, South Africa's administrative capital.<ref name="Eligon-2022" /><ref>Vance (2017), pp. 25, 31.</ref> He is of British and Pennsylvania Dutch ancestry.<ref name="sjmn20140411">Hall, Dana (April 11, 2014). "Rocket Man: The otherworldly ambitions of Elon Musk". The Mercury News. Archived from the original on April 14, 2014. Retrieved April 14, 2014.</ref><ref>Elliott, Hannah (March 26, 2012). "At Home With Elon Musk: The (Soon-to-Be) Bachelor Billionaire". Forbes. Archived from the original on May 27, 2012. Retrieved May 30, 2015.</ref> His mother, Maye Musk (Template:Nee), is a model and dietitian born in Saskatchewan, Canada, and raised in South Africa.<ref name="Biog">Template:Triangulation, discussion of his family starts around the 15th minute</ref><ref>Vargas, Chanel (March 6, 2018). "11 Things to Know About Stunning 69-Year-Old Model Maye Musk". Town & Country. Archived from the original on March 7, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2020.</ref><ref name="Usborne-2018">Usborne, Simon (February 21, 2018). "Meet the Musks: who's who in Elon's extended family?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on May 27, 2020. Retrieved March 25, 2020.</ref> His father, Errol Musk, is a South African electromechanical engineer, pilot, sailor, consultant, and property developer, who partly owned a rental lodge at the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve.<ref name="auto">Isaacson (2023), p. 23.</ref><ref>Hull, Dana; May, Patrick. "Exploring the otherworldly ambitions of Elon Musk". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on September 26, 2022. Retrieved October 24, 2021.</ref><ref name="NewYorker2009">Friend, Tad (August 17, 2009). "Plugged In". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022.</ref><ref name="Smith">Smith, Adam (June 28, 2021). "50 years of Elon Musk's huge wealth, from emeralds to SpaceX and Tesla". The Independent. Archived from the original on November 25, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2021.</ref> Elon has a younger brother, Kimbal, and a younger sister, Tosca.<ref name="Usborne-2018" /><ref>Lieberman, Hallie. "The Musk of Romance". Wired. Archived from the original on September 2, 2020. Retrieved September 2, 2020.</ref>

The family was wealthy during Elon's youth.<ref name="Smith"/> After having claimed to be part owner of an emerald mine,<ref name="Smith" /> in 2023 Errol revised his statement and said he was just illegally dealing in emeralds in the 1980s.<ref>Mann, Jyoti (September 11, 2023). "Elon Musk really was telling the truth by saying his father Errol never owned an emerald mine, biographer says". Business Insider. Archived from the original on November 22, 2023. Retrieved February 22, 2024.</ref> Errol was elected to the Pretoria City Council as a representative of the anti-apartheid Progressive Party and has said that his children shared their father's dislike of apartheid.<ref name="Eligon-2022">Eligon, John; Chutel, Lynsey (May 5, 2022). "Elon Musk Left a South Africa That Was Rife With Misinformation and White Privilege". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 11, 2022. Retrieved May 5, 2022.</ref>

Elon's maternal grandfather, Joshua N. Haldeman, was an American-born Canadian who took his family on record-breaking journeys to Africa and Australia in a single-engine Bellanca airplane.<ref name="Hull-2014">Hull, Dana; May, Patrick (April 10, 2014). "2014: Rocket Man: The otherworldly ambitions of Elon Musk". The Mercury News. Archived from the original on September 6, 2016. Retrieved April 7, 2021.</ref><ref>Keating, Joseph C. Jr. (September 1995). "Joshua N Haldeman, DC: the Canadian Years, 1926–1950". The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association. PMC 2485067.</ref><ref>Vance (2017), pp. 26–30.</ref><ref>Isaacson (2023), p. 16.</ref>

After his parents divorced in 1980, Elon chose to live primarily with his father.<ref name="sjmn20140411" /><ref name="auto" /> Elon later regretted his decision and became estranged from his father.<ref name="rollingstone20171115">Strauss, Neil (November 15, 2017). "Elon Musk: The Architect of Tomorrow". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on August 17, 2020. Retrieved November 15, 2017.</ref> In one incident, after having called a boy whose father had committed suicide "stupid", Elon was thrown down concrete steps.<ref>Isaacson (2023), pp. 2—3.</ref><ref>Bhaimiya, Sawdah. "Errol Musk denies berating his son after an attack at school put Elon Musk in hospital". Business Insider. Archived from the original on December 5, 2023. Retrieved December 5, 2023.</ref> Elon has four paternal half-siblings.<ref>Kay, Grace (September 30, 2023). "Elon Musk's dad, 77, says he'd have more kids — but only if he could find a woman under 35". Business Insider. Archived from the original on February 23, 2024. Retrieved February 23, 2024.</ref><ref name="Hull-2014" /><ref>Crilly, Rob (March 25, 2018). "Elon Musk's father has baby with step-daughter he has known since she was four". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on April 26, 2021.</ref>

Elon was an enthusiastic reader of books, later attributing his success in part to having read Benjamin Franklin: An American Life, The Lord of the Rings, the Foundation series, and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.<ref name="NewYorker2009" /><ref>"Elon Musk shares the science fiction book series that inspired him to start SpaceX". CNBC. February 22, 2020. Archived from the original on November 4, 2023. Retrieved November 9, 2023.</ref><ref>"Billionaire Elon Musk says he was 'raised by books' and credits his success to these 8". CNBC. November 16, 2017. Archived from the original on November 9, 2023. Retrieved November 9, 2023.</ref> At age ten, he developed an interest in computing and video games, teaching himself how to program from the VIC-20 user manual.<ref>Vance (2017), p. 38.</ref> At age twelve, Elon sold his BASIC-based game Blastar to PC and Office Technology magazine for approximately $500.<ref name="play">O'Kane, Sean (June 9, 2015). "Play the PC game Elon Musk wrote as a pre-teen". The Verge. Archived from the original on February 7, 2018. Retrieved January 12, 2019.</ref><ref>Belfiore (2007), pp. 166–95.</ref>

Education

Musk graduated from Pretoria Boys High School in South Africa

Musk attended Waterkloof House Preparatory School, Bryanston High School, and then Pretoria Boys High School, where he graduated.<ref name="slate20191204">Mak, Aaron (December 4, 2019). "Elon Musk Says 'Pedo Guy' Was a Common Insult in His Youth. We Checked With His Schoolmates". Slate. Archived from the original on October 6, 2020. Retrieved December 7, 2019.</ref> Musk was a good but not exceptional student, earning a 61 in Afrikaans and a B on his senior math certification.<ref>Isaacson (2023), p. 26.</ref> Musk applied for a Canadian passport through his Canadian-born mother,<ref name="arrived" /><ref>Vance (2017), p. 44. Musk's opportunity to flee arrived with a change in the law that allowed Maye to pass her Canadian citizenship to her children.</ref> knowing that it would be easier to immigrate to the United States this way.<ref name="Esquire">Junod, Tom (November 15, 2012). "Elon Musk: Triumph of His Will". Esquire. Archived from the original on August 18, 2020. Retrieved May 29, 2020.</ref> While waiting for his application to be processed, he attended the University of Pretoria for five months.<ref>Vance (2017), pp. 43–44. What rarely gets mentions is that Musk attended the University of Pretoria for five months before heading off on his grand adventure. ... Musk characterized the time at university as just something to do while he awaited his Canadian documentation.</ref>

Musk arrived in Canada in June 1989 with $4,000 from his parents,<ref name="Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson" /> connected with a second cousin in Saskatchewan,<ref>Vance (2017), p. 45. After a 1,900-mile bus ride, he ended up in Swift Current, a town of fifteen thousands people. Musk called a second cousin out of the blue from the bus station and hitched a ride to his house.</ref> and worked odd jobs including at a farm and a lumber mill.<ref>Vance (2017), p. 46. Musk spent the next year working a series of odd jobs around Canada. He tended vegetables and shoved out grain bins at a cousin's farm located in the tiny town of Waldeck. ... He inquired about the job with the best wage, which turned out to be a gig cleaning the boiler room of a lumber mill for eighteen dollars an hour.</ref> In 1990, he entered Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario.<ref>Vance (2017), pp. 46–47. Elon ended up enrolling at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, in 1989.</ref><ref>Locke, Taylor (December 20, 2019). "Elon Musk's college pal: This is what 'differentiates Elon from the rest of humanity'". CNBC. Archived from the original on December 14, 2020. Retrieved January 8, 2021.</ref>

Two years later, he transferred to the University of Pennsylvania, an Ivy League university in Philadelphia, where he earned two degrees, a Bachelor of Arts in physics, and a Bachelor of Science degree in economics from the university's Wharton School.<ref>"Encyclopedia Britannica Elon Musk". Archived from the original on September 4, 2015. Retrieved January 11, 2023.</ref><ref name="VanceA1">Vance (2017), Appendix 1. I called Penn's registrar and verified these findings. Copies of Musk's records show that he received a dual degree in economics and physics in May 1997. O'Reilly also subpoenaed the registrar's office at Stanford to verify Musk's admittance in 1995 for his doctorate work in physics. "Based on the information you provided, we are unable to locate a record in our office for Elon Musk," wrote the director of graduate admissions.</ref><ref>Meisenzahl, Elizabeth. "SpaceX, founded by Penn graduate Elon Musk, launches U.S. astronauts into space". The Daily Pennsylvanian. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved June 1, 2020.</ref><ref>McCray, Patrick W. (June 11, 2012). "A pioneer in space and on Earth". CNN. Archived from the original on November 28, 2022. Retrieved November 19, 2022.</ref> Although Musk has said that he earned the degrees in 1995, the University of Pennsylvania did not award them until 1997.<ref>Kasprak, Alex (December 21, 2022). "Does Elon Musk Have an Undergraduate Degree in Physics?". Snopes. Archived from the original on December 23, 2022. Retrieved December 23, 2022.</ref><ref name="VanceA1" /><ref name="Vance368">Vance (2017), p. 368. Musk produced a document for me dated June 22, 2009, that came from Judith Haccou, the director of graduate admissions in the office of the registrar at Stanford University. It read, "As per special request from my colleagues in the School of Engineering, I have searched Stanford's admission data base and acknowledge that you applied and were admitted to the graduate program in Material Science Engineering in 1995. Since you did not enroll, Stanford is not able to issue you an official certification document." Musk also had an explanation for the weird timing on his degrees from Penn. "I had a History and an English credit that I agreed with Penn that I would do at Stanford," he said. "The I put Stanford on deferment. Later, Penn's requirements changed so that you don't need the English and History credit. So they awarded me the degree in '97 when it was clear I was not going to go to grad school, and their requirement was no longer there."</ref> He reportedly hosted large, ticketed house parties to help pay for tuition, and wrote a business plan for an electronic book-scanning service similar to Google Books.<ref name="ironman">Hern, Alex (February 9, 2018). "Elon Musk: the real-life Iron Man". The Guardian. Archived from the original on June 11, 2022. Retrieved November 3, 2022.</ref>

In 1994, Musk held two internships in Silicon Valley: one at energy storage startup Pinnacle Research Institute, which investigated electrolytic ultracapacitors for energy storage, and another at Palo Alto–based startup Rocket Science Games.<ref>"How internships helped Elon Musk figure out his future". CNBC. July 16, 2018. Archived from the original on December 28, 2019. Retrieved December 28, 2019.</ref><ref>Soni, Jimmi (February 22, 2022). "The little-known story about Elon Musk's first post-grad internship". Fortune. Archived from the original on March 7, 2022.</ref> In 1995, he was accepted to a PhD program in materials science at Stanford University.<ref name="VanceA1" /><ref name="Vance368" /><ref>Feeley, Jef (August 31, 2022). "Stanford Pulled Into Dropout Musk's Legal Fight With Twitter". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on September 3, 2022. Retrieved November 19, 2022.</ref> However, Musk decided to join the Internet boom, dropping out two days after being accepted and applied for a job at Netscape, to which he reportedly never received a response.<ref>Maidment, Paul (March 15, 2016). "7 college dropouts who made millions". CNBC. Archived from the original on May 15, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.</ref><ref name="arrived">Clifford, Catherine (June 12, 2018). "Multi-billionaire Elon Musk: 'I arrived in North America at 17 with $2,000'". CNBC. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved September 14, 2020.</ref>

Business career

Zip2

Main article: Zip2

External videos
Musk speaks of his early business experience during a 2014 commencement speech at USC on YouTube

In 1995, Musk, his brother Kimbal, and Greg Kouri founded Global Link Information Network, later renamed to Zip2.<ref>Delevett, Peter; Hull, Dana (August 13, 2012). "Greg Kouri, early investor in PayPal, dies in New York". The Mercury News. Archived from the original on October 6, 2022. Retrieved October 1, 2022.</ref><ref>Huddleston, Tom Jr. (June 19, 2018). "How Elon Musk founded Zip2 with his brother Kimbal". CNBC. Archived from the original on November 9, 2022. Retrieved October 1, 2022.</ref> The company was financed mainly through a financing round of $200,000, of which 10% was contributed by his father Errol Musk.<ref name="twitterzip2">Template:Cite tweet</ref> The company developed an Internet city guide with maps, directions, and yellow pages, and marketed it to newspapers.<ref>Chafkin, Max (December 1, 2007). "Entrepreneur of the Year, 2007: Elon Musk". Inc. Archived from the original on December 28, 2007. Retrieved February 22, 2022.</ref> They worked at a small rented office in Palo Alto,<ref name="shower" /> with Musk coding the website every night.<ref name="shower" /> Eventually, Zip2 obtained contracts with The New York Times and the Chicago Tribune.<ref name="ironman"/> The brothers persuaded the board of directors to abandon a merger with CitySearch;<ref>Kidder (2013), pp. 224–228.</ref> however, Musk's attempts to become CEO were thwarted.<ref>Vance (2017), p. 67.</ref> Compaq acquired Zip2 for $307 million in cash in February 1999,<ref>Vance (2017), p. 14.</ref><ref>Junnarkar, Sandeep (February 16, 1999). "Compaq buys Zip2". CNET. Archived from the original on October 21, 2014. Retrieved December 13, 2020.</ref> and Musk received $22 million for his 7-percent share.<ref name="Vance109">Vance (2017), p. 109.</ref>

X.com and PayPal

Main articles: X.com (bank), PayPal, and PayPal Mafia

In March 1999,<ref name="Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson" /> Musk co-founded X.com, an online financial services and e-mail payment company with $12 million of the money he made from the Compaq acquisition.<ref>Vance (2017), p. 78.</ref> X.com was one of the first federally insured online banks, and over 200,000 customers joined in its initial months of operation.<ref>Vance (2017), p. 84.</ref>

Musk's friends expressed scepticism about the naming of the online bank, fearing it might have been mistaken for a pornographic site. Musk brushed off their concerns, emphasizing that the name was meant to be straightforward, memorable, and easy to type. Additionally, he was fond of the email configuration derived from it, such as "e@x.com".<ref name="Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson">Isaacson, Walter (2023). Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson. Simon & Schuster. p. 74. ISBN 978-1-76142-261-4.</ref>

Even though Musk founded the company, investors regarded him as inexperienced and replaced him with Intuit CEO Bill Harris by the end of the year.<ref name="vance86">Vance (2017), p. 86.</ref>

In 2000, X.com merged with the online bank Confinity to avoid competition,<ref name="shower">Huddleston, Tom Jr. (June 19, 2018). "Elon Musk slept on his office couch and 'showered at the YMCA' while starting his first company". CNBC. Archived from the original on August 18, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2020.</ref><ref name="vance86" /><ref>Jackson (2004), pp. 40, 69, 130, 163.</ref> as the latter's money-transfer service PayPal was more popular than X.com's service.<ref>Vance (2017), pp. 85–86.</ref> Musk then returned as CEO of the merged company. His preference for Microsoft over Unix-based software caused a rift among the company's employees, and eventually led Confinity co-founder Peter Thiel to resign.<ref>Vance (2017), pp. 85–87.</ref> With the company suffering from compounding technological issues and the lack of a cohesive business model, the board ousted Musk and replaced him with Thiel in September 2000.<ref>Vance (2017), pp. 87–88.</ref><ref group="lower-alpha"></ref> Under Thiel, the company focused on the money-transfer service and was renamed PayPal in 2001.<ref name="vance89" /><ref>Odell, Mark (September 30, 2014). "Timeline: The rise of PayPal". Financial Times. Archived from the original on June 22, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2020.</ref>

In 2002, PayPal was acquired by eBay for $1.5 billion in stock, of which Musk—PayPal's largest shareholder with 11.72% of shares—received $175.8 million.<ref>"SEC 10-K". PayPal. December 31, 2001. Archived from the original on August 25, 2020.</ref><ref>Vance (2017), pp. 116.</ref> In 2017, more than 15 years later, Musk purchased the X.com domain from PayPal for its "sentimental value".<ref>Huang, Echo. "Elon Musk bought a web domain worth millions with 'sentimental value' to him". Quartz. Archived from the original on June 25, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2020.</ref><ref>Statt, Nick (July 10, 2017). "Elon Musk now owns X.com, the defunct domain of his second startup". The Verge. Archived from the original on June 25, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.</ref> In 2022, Musk discussed a goal of creating "X, the everything app".<ref>Kleinman, Zoe (October 5, 2022). "Elon Musk, Twitter and the mysterious X app". BBC. Archived from the original on October 21, 2022. Retrieved October 27, 2022.</ref>

SpaceX

Main article: SpaceX

Then-NASA Administrator Charles Bolden congratulating Musk by the SpaceX Dragon following its 2012 mission

In early 2001, Musk became involved with the nonprofit Mars Society and discussed funding plans to place a growth-chamber for plants on Mars.<ref>Vance (2017), pp. 99, 102–103.</ref> In October of the same year, he traveled to Moscow with Jim Cantrell and Adeo Ressi to buy refurbished intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) that could send the greenhouse payloads into space. He met with the companies NPO Lavochkin and Kosmotras; however, Musk was seen as a novice<ref name="Vance-2015" /> and the group returned to the United States empty-handed. In February 2002, the group returned to Russia with Mike Griffin (president of In-Q-Tel) to look for three ICBMs. They had another meeting with Kosmotras and were offered one rocket for $8 million, which Musk rejected. He instead decided to start a company that could build affordable rockets.<ref name="Vance-2015">Vance, Ashlee (May 14, 2015). "Elon Musk's space dream almost killed Tesla". Bloomberg L.P. Archived from the original on February 23, 2017. Retrieved June 7, 2015.</ref> With $100 million of his own money,<ref>Wayne, Leslie (February 5, 2006). "A Bold Plan to Go Where Men Have Gone Before". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 12, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2015.</ref> Musk founded SpaceX in May 2002 and became the company's CEO and Chief Engineer.<ref>California Business Search (C2414622 – Space Exploration Technologies Corp), archived from the original on February 23, 2018, retrieved December 13, 2020</ref><ref>Koren, Marina (May 6, 2021). "Elon Musk Is Maybe, Actually, Strangely, Going to Do This Mars Thing". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on May 31, 2022. Retrieved June 8, 2022.</ref>

SpaceX attempted its first launch of the Falcon 1 rocket in 2006.<ref name="FOOTNOTEBerger2021178–182">Berger (2021), pp. 178–182.</ref> Though the rocket failed to reach Earth orbit, it was awarded a Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program contract from NASA Administrator (and former SpaceX consultant<ref>Friedman, Josh (April 22, 2003). "Entrepreneur Tries His Midas Touch in Space, Los Angeles Times". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 29, 2022. Retrieved October 29, 2022.</ref>) Mike Griffin later that year.<ref>Malik, Tariq (November 21, 2005). "Griffin Reiterates NASA's Commitment to Commercial Cargo, Space News". Archived from the original on June 19, 2022. Retrieved October 29, 2022.</ref><ref>Dunbar, Brian. "NASA Invests in Private Sector Space Flight with SpaceX, Rocketplane-Kistler". nasa.gov (Press release). Archived from the original on September 8, 2021. Retrieved December 2, 2021.</ref> After two more failed attempts that nearly caused Musk and his companies to go bankrupt,<ref name="FOOTNOTEBerger2021178–182">Berger (2021), pp. 178–182.</ref> SpaceX succeeded in launching the Falcon 1 into orbit in 2008.<ref>Ledur, Júlia (May 1, 2019). "Falcon Flights". Reuters. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.</ref> Later that year, SpaceX received a $1.6 billion Commercial Resupply Services contract from NASA for 12 flights of its Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station, replacing the Space Shuttle after its 2011 retirement.<ref>Chang, Kenneth (May 22, 2012). "Big Day for a Space Entrepreneur Promising More". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 1, 2017. Retrieved January 11, 2021.</ref> In 2012, the Dragon vehicle docked with the ISS, a first for a commercial spacecraft.<ref>Harwood, William (May 31, 2012). "SpaceX Dragon returns to Earth, ends historic trip". CBS News. Archived from the original on April 22, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2013.</ref>

Musk examining F9R Dev1 debris in 2014

Working towards its goal of reusable rockets, in 2015 SpaceX successfully landed the first stage of a Falcon 9 on an inland platform.<ref>"SpaceX rocket in historic upright landing". BBC News. December 22, 2015. Archived from the original on August 31, 2019. Retrieved June 30, 2016.</ref> Later landings were achieved on autonomous spaceport drone ships, an ocean-based recovery platform.<ref>O'Kane, Sean (May 27, 2016). "SpaceX successfully lands a Falcon 9 rocket at sea for the third time". The Verge. Archived from the original on June 27, 2016. Retrieved June 30, 2016.</ref> In 2018, SpaceX launched the Falcon Heavy; the inaugural mission carried Musk's personal Tesla Roadster as a dummy payload.<ref>Drake, Nadia (February 25, 2018). "Elon Musk's Tesla in Space Could Crash into Earth". National Geographic. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.</ref><ref>Chow, Denise (November 6, 2019). "'Starman' and the Tesla Roadster that SpaceX launched into orbit have now cruised beyond Mars". NBC News. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.</ref> Since 2019,<ref>Berger, Eric (August 28, 2019). "Starhopper aces test, sets up full-scale prototype flights this year". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on January 21, 2021. Retrieved December 15, 2021.</ref> SpaceX has been developing Starship, a fully-reusable, super-heavy-lift launch vehicle intended to replace the Falcon 9 and the Falcon Heavy.<ref name="Roulette-2022">Roulette, Joey (March 28, 2022). "SpaceX ending production of flagship crew capsule". Reuters. Archived from the original on March 29, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2022.</ref> In 2020, SpaceX launched its first crewed flight, the Demo-2, becoming the first private company to place astronauts into orbit and dock a crewed spacecraft with the ISS.<ref>Wattles, Jackie (May 30, 2020). "SpaceX and NASA launch Crew Dragon in Florida: Live updates". CNN. Archived from the original on August 29, 2020. Retrieved May 30, 2020.</ref>

Starlink

Main article: Starlink

See also: Starlink in the Russo-Ukrainian War

50 Starlink satellites shortly before deployment to low Earth orbit, 2019

In 2015, SpaceX began development of the Starlink constellation of low-Earth-orbit satellites to provide satellite Internet access,<ref>Johnson, Eric M.; Roulette, Joey (October 31, 2018). "Musk shakes up SpaceX in race to make satellite launch window: sources". Reuters. Archived from the original on May 18, 2020. Retrieved March 28, 2021.</ref> with the first two prototype satellites launched in February 2018. A second set of test satellites, and the first large deployment of a piece of the constellation, occurred in May 2019, when the first 60 operational satellites were launched.<ref name="NYT-20190601">Hall, Shannon (June 1, 2019). "After SpaceX Starlink Launch, a Fear of Satellites That Outnumber All Visible Stars – Images of the Starlink constellation in orbit have rattled astronomers around the world". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 21, 2020. Retrieved June 1, 2019.</ref> The total cost of the decade-long project to design, build, and deploy the constellation is estimated by SpaceX to be about $10 billion.<ref>Shepardson, David; Roulette, Joey (July 30, 2020). "Taking on SpaceX, Amazon to invest $10 billion in satellite broadband plan". Reuters. Archived from the original on January 7, 2021. Retrieved January 12, 2021.</ref><ref group="lower-alpha">SpaceX received nearly $900 million in Federal Communications Commission subsidies for Starlink.<ref>Sheetz, Michael (December 7, 2020). "SpaceX's Starlink wins nearly $900 million in FCC subsidies to bring internet to rural areas". CNBC. Archived from the original on December 16, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2021.</ref><ref>Wattles, Jackie (December 8, 2020). "SpaceX gets almost $900 million in federal subsidies to deliver broadband to rural America". CNN. Archived from the original on December 18, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2021.</ref></ref> Some critics, including the International Astronomical Union, have alleged that Starlink blocks the view of the sky and poses a collision threat to spacecraft.<ref name="Griffin 2021">Griffin, Andrew (December 30, 2021). "Elon Musk rejects criticism that his satellite fleet is dangerous". The Independent. Archived from the original on December 30, 2021. Retrieved December 31, 2021.</ref><ref name="BBC News 2021">"Elon Musk rejects claims that his satellites are hogging space". BBC News. December 30, 2021. Archived from the original on December 31, 2021. Retrieved December 31, 2021.</ref><ref>Smith, Adam (February 7, 2021). "Astronomers create new global force to stop Elon Musk's internet satellites hiding killer asteroids". The Independent. Archived from the original on May 27, 2022. Retrieved June 30, 2022.</ref>

During the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Musk sent Starlink terminals to Ukraine to provide Internet access and communication.<ref>Sheetz, Michael (March 22, 2022). "Elon Musk's SpaceX sent thousands of Starlink satellite internet dishes to Ukraine, company's president says". CNBC. Archived from the original on March 27, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2022.</ref> In October 2022, Musk stated that about 20,000 satellite terminals had been donated to Ukraine, together with free data transfer subscriptions, which cost SpaceX $80 million. After asking the United States Department of Defense to pay for further units and future subscriptions on behalf of Ukraine,<ref name=ua22>Marquardt, Alex (October 13, 2022). "Exclusive: Musk's SpaceX says it can no longer pay for critical satellite services in Ukraine, asks Pentagon to pick up the tab". CNN. Archived from the original on October 24, 2022. Retrieved October 27, 2022.</ref> Musk publicly stated that SpaceX would continue to provide Starlink to Ukraine for free, at a yearly cost to itself of $400 million.<ref>Capoot, Ashley (October 15, 2022). "'The hell with it': Elon Musk tweets SpaceX will 'keep funding Ukraine govt for free' amid Starlink controversy". CNBC. Archived from the original on November 3, 2022. Retrieved October 27, 2022.</ref><ref>Hern, Alex (October 15, 2022). "Musk says SpaceX will keep funding Ukraine Starlink internet". BBC News. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022. Retrieved October 27, 2022.</ref><ref>"Elon Musk says SpaceX will keep funding Starlink internet in Ukraine". The Guardian. October 16, 2022. Archived from the original on October 24, 2022. Retrieved October 27, 2022.</ref> At the same time, Musk refused to block Russian state media on Starlink, declaring himself "a free speech absolutist".<ref>"SpaceX's Musk says Starlink has been told by some governments to block Russian news". Reuters. March 6, 2022. Archived from the original on April 4, 2022. Retrieved April 5, 2022.</ref><ref>Porter, Jon (April 4, 2022). "Elon Musk buys 9.2 percent of Twitter amid complaints about free speech". The Verge. Archived from the original on April 4, 2022. Retrieved April 5, 2022.</ref>

The Washington Post reported that Ukraine had asked for Starlink support to attack Russian naval vessels located at the Crimean port Sevastopol, Musk denied the request, citing concerns that Russia would respond with a nuclear attack.<ref name="Copp 2023 b431">Copp, Tara (September 11, 2023). "Elon Musk's refusal to have Starlink support Ukraine attack in Crimea raises questions for Pentagon". AP News. Archived from the original on February 29, 2024. Retrieved February 29, 2024.</ref>

Tesla

Main article: Tesla, Inc.

Musk next to a Tesla Model S, 2011

Tesla, Inc., originally Tesla Motors, was incorporated in July 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning, who financed the company until the Series A round of funding. Both men played active roles in the company's early development prior to Musk's involvement.<ref name=timelinefacts>Reed, Eric (February 4, 2020). "History of Tesla: Timeline and Facts". TheStreet.com. Archived from the original on December 20, 2021. Retrieved January 10, 2023.</ref> Musk led the Series A round of investment in February 2004; he invested $6.5 million, became the majority shareholder, and joined Tesla's board of directors as chairman.<ref>Vance (2017), pp. 153–154.</ref> Musk took an active role within the company and oversaw Roadster product design, but was not deeply involved in day-to-day business operations.<ref>Vance (2017), p. 159.</ref>

Following a series of escalating conflicts in 2007, and the financial crisis of 2007–2008, Eberhard was ousted from the firm.<ref>Schilling, Melissa (2018). Quirky: The remarkable story of the traits, foibles, and genius of breakthrough innovators who changed the world. PublicAffairs. ISBN 978-1-61039-792-6.</ref><ref>Morrison, Chris (October 15, 2008). "Musk steps in as CEO". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 4, 2016. Retrieved December 13, 2020.</ref> Musk assumed leadership of the company as CEO and product architect in 2008.<ref>"Elon Musk: The Story of a Maverick". interestingengineering.com. August 13, 2020. Archived from the original on March 16, 2021. Retrieved April 3, 2021.</ref> A 2009 lawsuit settlement with Eberhard designated Musk as a Tesla co-founder, along with Tarpenning and two others.<ref name="CNET">LaMonica, Martin (September 2009). "Tesla Motors founders: Now there are five". CNET. Archived from the original on November 15, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2020. Tesla Motors and co-founder Martin Eberhard announced an agreement over who can claim to be a founder of the company on Monday.</ref><ref name="FastCompany">Schwartz, Ariel (September 21, 2009). "Tesla Lawsuit Drama Ends as Five Company Founders Emerge". Fast Company. Archived from the original on June 6, 2015. Retrieved April 14, 2020. Eberhard and Musk have reached a rather unexpected resolution–instead of agreeing to share the title of "founder", the pair has designated five people as company founders, including Musk, Eberhard, JB Straubel, Mark Tarpenning, and Ian Wright.</ref> As of 2019, Musk was the longest-tenured CEO of any automotive manufacturer globally.<ref name="auto6">Royse, Dave (July 8, 2019). "Industry Shift: With Four Departures This Year, Who Is The Longest-Tenured Automotive CEO?". Yahoo. Archived from the original on December 29, 2019. Retrieved June 8, 2022.</ref> In 2021, Musk nominally changed his title to "Technoking" while retaining his position as CEO.<ref>Shead, Sam (March 15, 2021). "Elon Musk has officially been made the 'Technoking of Tesla'". CNBC. Archived from the original on January 12, 2022. Retrieved January 28, 2022.</ref>

Musk before a Model X at the 2014 Tesla Inc. annual shareholder meeting

Tesla began delivery of an electric sports car, the Roadster, in 2008. With sales of about 2,500 vehicles, it was the first serial production all-electric car to use lithium-ion battery cells.<ref>Wilson, Kevin A. (March 15, 2018). "Worth the Watt: A Brief History of the Electric Car, 1830 to Present". Car and Driver. Archived from the original on March 17, 2021. Retrieved March 30, 2021.</ref> Tesla began delivery of its four-door Model S sedan in 2012.<ref>Boudreau, John (June 22, 2012). "In a Silicon Valley milestone, Tesla Motors begins delivering Model S electric cars". The Mercury News. Archived from the original on November 24, 2012. Retrieved June 22, 2012.</ref> A cross-over, the Model X was launched in 2015.<ref>Ruddick, Graham (September 30, 2015). "Tesla's Model X electric car spreads falcon wings at U.S. launch". The Guardian. Archived from the original on June 2, 2017. Retrieved November 4, 2015.</ref> A mass-market sedan, the Model 3, was released in 2017.<ref>Vlasic, Bill (July 29, 2017). "In Pivotal Moment, Tesla Unveils Its First Mass-Market Sedan". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> The Model 3 is the all-time bestselling plug-in electric car worldwide, and in June 2021 it became the first electric car to sell 1 million units globally.<ref name=1miModel3>Shahan, Zachary (August 26, 2021). "Tesla Model 3 Has Passed 1 Million Sales". CleanTechnica. Archived from the original on September 4, 2021. Retrieved August 26, 2021.</ref><ref name="Model3TopEV">Holland, Maximilian (March 10, 2020). "Tesla Passes 1 Million EV Milestone & Model 3 Becomes All Time Best Seller". CleanTechnica. Archived from the original on April 12, 2020. Retrieved April 20, 2020.</ref> A fifth vehicle, the Model Y crossover, was launched in 2020.<ref>O'Kane, Sean (March 16, 2020). "Tesla Model Y deliveries begin in the US". The Verge. Archived from the original on March 17, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2021.</ref> The Cybertruck, an all-electric pickup truck, was unveiled in 2019.<ref>Huddleston, Tom Jr. (November 22, 2019). "This is the James Bond sports car Elon Musk bought for nearly $1 million that inspired Tesla Cybertruck". CNBC. Archived from the original on November 27, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2020.</ref> Under Musk, Tesla has also constructed multiple lithium-ion battery and electric vehicle factories, named Gigafactories.<ref>Eddy, Melissa (March 4, 2022). "Tesla Wins Approval to Open European Assembly Plant". The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 4, 2022. Retrieved September 4, 2022.</ref>

Since its initial public offering in 2010,<ref>"With First Share Offering, Tesla Bets on Electric Car's Future". The New York Times. Associated Press. June 28, 2010. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> Tesla stock has risen significantly; it became the most valuable carmaker in summer 2020,<ref>"Tesla overtakes Toyota to become world's most valuable carmaker". BBC News. July 1, 2020. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref><ref>Boudette, Neal E. (July 2, 2020). "Tesla Shines During the Pandemic as Other Automakers Struggle". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> and it entered the S&P 500 later that year.<ref>Li, Yun (December 20, 2021). "Tesla shares fall 6% as it enters the S&P 500 with 1.69% weighting, fifth largest". CNBC. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref><ref>"Tesla Stock Joins the S&P 500: A Game Changer". The Wall Street Journal. December 21, 2020. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.</ref> In October 2021, it reached a market capitalization of $1 trillion, the sixth company in U.S. history to do so.<ref>Isidore, Chris (October 26, 2021). "Tesla is now worth more than $1 trillion". CNN. Archived from the original on November 14, 2021. Retrieved November 14, 2021.</ref> In November 2021, Musk proposed, on Twitter, to sell 10% of his Tesla stock, since "much is made lately of unrealized gains being a means of tax avoidance".<ref name="Haselton-2021" /> After more than 3.5 million Twitter accounts supported the sale, Musk sold $6.9 billion of Tesla stock within a week,<ref name="Haselton-2021">Haselton, Todd (November 13, 2021). "Elon Musk sold about $6.9 billion in Tesla stock this week". CNBC. Archived from the original on June 8, 2022. Retrieved November 15, 2021.</ref> and a total of $16.4 billion by year end, reaching the 10% target.<ref>Jin, Hyunjoo (December 30, 2021). "Tesla's Musk exercises all of his stock options expiring next year". Reuters. Archived from the original on May 31, 2022. Retrieved June 8, 2022.</ref> In February 2022, The Wall Street Journal reported that both Elon and Kimbal Musk were under investigation by the SEC for possible insider trading related to the sale.<ref>Michaels, Dave (February 24, 2022). "SEC Probes Trading by Elon Musk and Brother in Wake of Tesla CEO's Sales". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on March 3, 2022. Retrieved March 3, 2022.</ref> In 2022, Musk unveiled a robot developed by Tesla, Optimus.<ref>Siddiqui, Faiz (September 30, 2022). "Elon Musk debuts Tesla robot, Optimus, calling it a 'fundamental transformation'". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on October 22, 2022.</ref> On June 20, 2023, Musk met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New York City, suggesting that he might be interested in investing in India "as soon as humanly possible".<ref name=ModiNewYorkCity>"'I am a fan of Modi': Tesla CEO Elon Musk after meeting PM in New York". Hindustan Times. June 21, 2023. Archived from the original on June 21, 2023. Retrieved June 22, 2023.</ref>

SEC and shareholder lawsuits regarding tweets

In 2018, Musk was sued by the SEC for a tweet stating that funding had been secured for potentially taking Tesla private.<ref name="Goldstein_27-9-18" /><ref group="lower-alpha">Musk stated he was considering taking Tesla private at a price of $420 a share, an alleged reference to marijuana.<ref>Choudhury, Saheli Roy (September 28, 2018). "SEC says Musk chose $420 price for Tesla shares because it's a pot reference". CNBC. Archived from the original on October 6, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.</ref> Members of Tesla's board and rapper Azealia Banks alleged that Musk may have been under the influence of recreational drugs when he wrote the tweet.<ref>Swisher, Kara (August 23, 2018). "How and Why Silicon Valley Gets High". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 24, 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2021.</ref><ref>Woodyard, Chris (August 30, 2018). "Elon Musk's tweet on taking Tesla private now dogged by drugs claim from rapper Azealia Banks". USA Today. Archived from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved May 11, 2021.</ref></ref> The lawsuit characterized the tweet as false, misleading, and damaging to investors, and sought to bar Musk from serving as CEO of publicly traded companies.<ref name="Goldstein_27-9-18">Goldstein, Matthew (September 27, 2018). "S.E.C. Sues Tesla's Elon Musk for Fraud and Seeks to Bar Him From Running a Public Company". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 23, 2020. Retrieved September 27, 2018.</ref><ref>Patnaik, Subrat; Kalia, Shubham (September 28, 2018). "Factbox – 'Funding secured': SEC gives timeline surrounding tweet from Tesla's Musk". Reuters. Archived from the original on November 23, 2019. Retrieved November 23, 2018.</ref><ref name="OkaneLopatto18">O'Kane, Sean; Lopatto, Elizabeth (September 27, 2018). "Elon Musk sued by SEC for securities fraud". The Verge. Archived from the original on July 30, 2020. Retrieved September 27, 2018.</ref> Two days later, Musk settled with the SEC, without admitting or denying the SEC's allegations. As a result, Musk and Tesla were fined $20 million each, and Musk was forced to step down for three years as Tesla chairman but was able to remain as CEO.<ref>"Elon Musk forced to step down as chairman of Tesla, remains CEO". The Verge. Archived from the original on May 27, 2020. Retrieved September 29, 2018.</ref> In April 2022, the shareholder who sued Musk over the tweet, along with several Tesla shareholders, said that a federal judge had ruled that the tweet was false, although the ruling in question has not been unsealed.<ref>Brodkin, Jon (April 18, 2022). "Musk keeps falsely claiming 'Funding secured' tweet was accurate, judge is told". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on September 9, 2022. Retrieved September 9, 2022.</ref> In February 2023, the jury found Musk and Tesla not liable.<ref>Godoy, Jody; Jin, Hyunjoo (February 3, 2023). "Tesla's Elon Musk found not liable in trial over 2018 'funding secured' tweets". Reuters. Archived from the original on February 4, 2023. Retrieved February 4, 2023.</ref> Musk has stated in interviews that he does not regret posting the tweet that triggered the SEC investigation.<ref>"Tesla's Elon Musk says tweet that led to $20 million fine 'Worth It'". Reuters. October 27, 2018. Archived from the original on May 22, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2018.</ref><ref>Youn, Soo; Katersky, Aaron (October 11, 2018). "Elon Musk commits to SEC settlement despite mocking tweets". ABC News. Archived from the original on October 23, 2019. Retrieved October 17, 2018.</ref>

In 2019, Musk stated in a tweet that Tesla would build half a million cars that year.<ref>Ohnsman, Alan (February 25, 2019). "Elon Musk's Tesla Tweet Puts CEO Role at Risk Again". Forbes. Archived from the original on May 28, 2020. Retrieved February 26, 2019.</ref> The SEC reacted to Musk's tweet by filing in court, asking the court to hold him in contempt for violating the terms of a settlement agreement with such a tweet; the accusation was disputed by Musk. This was eventually settled by a joint agreement between Musk and the SEC clarifying the previous agreement details.<ref>Wattles, Jackie (April 27, 2019). "Elon Musk and SEC reach an agreement over tweeting". CNN Business. Archived from the original on June 8, 2020. Retrieved July 16, 2019.</ref> The agreement included a list of topics that Musk would need preclearance before tweeting about.<ref>Marino-Nachison, David (April 26, 2019). "Tesla CEO Elon Musk Gets a Long Do-Not-Tweet List From the SEC". Barrons. Archived from the original on January 22, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2019.</ref> In 2020, a judge prevented a lawsuit from proceeding that claimed a tweet by Musk regarding Tesla stock price ("too high imo") violated the agreement.<ref>Bursztynsky, Jessica (May 1, 2020). "Tesla shares tank after Elon Musk tweets the stock price is 'too high'". CNBC. Archived from the original on August 18, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2020.</ref><ref>"Court Rules That No One Can Stop Elon Musk From Tweeting Tesla News—For Now". Observer. May 20, 2020. Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2020.</ref> FOIA-released records showed that the SEC itself concluded Musk has subsequently violated the agreement twice by tweeting regarding "Tesla's solar roof production volumes and its stock price".<ref>Elliott, Dave; Michaels, Rebecca (June 2, 2021). "WSJ News Exclusive: Tesla Failed to Oversee Elon Musk's Tweets, SEC Argued in Letters". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on June 10, 2021. Retrieved June 10, 2021.</ref>

SolarCity and Tesla Energy

Main articles: SolarCity and Tesla Energy

SolarCity solar-panel installation vans in 2009

Musk provided the initial concept and financial capital for SolarCity, which his cousins Lyndon and Peter Rive founded in 2006.<ref>Kanellos, Michael (February 15, 2008). "Elon Musk on rockets, sports cars, and solar power". CNET. Archived from the original on January 29, 2014.</ref> By 2013, SolarCity was the second largest provider of solar power systems in the United States.<ref>"2013 Top 250 Solar Contractors". Solar Power World. September 13, 2013. Archived from the original on October 10, 2017. Retrieved December 13, 2020.</ref> In 2014, Musk promoted the idea of SolarCity building an advanced production facility in Buffalo, New York, triple the size of the largest solar plant in the United States.<ref>Smith, Aaron (June 17, 2014). "Elon Musk's sunny plans for Buffalo". CNNMoney. Archived from the original on October 9, 2017. Retrieved December 13, 2020.</ref> Construction of the factory started in 2014 and was completed in 2017. It operated as a joint venture with Panasonic until early 2020.<ref>Kolodny, Lora (February 26, 2020). "Tesla, Panasonic will reportedly stop joint solar cell production at Gigafactory 2 in Buffalo". CNBC. Archived from the original on August 8, 2020. Retrieved September 1, 2020.</ref><ref>"The highs, lows and legacy of Panasonic's doomed project in Buffalo". The Business Journals. Archived from the original on November 23, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2021.</ref>

Tesla acquired SolarCity for over $2 billion in 2016 and merged it with its battery unit to create Tesla Energy. The deal's announcement resulted in a more than 10% drop in Tesla's stock price. At the time, SolarCity was facing liquidity issues.<ref>Kolodny, Lora; Bursztynsky, Jessica (April 27, 2022). "Elon Musk wins shareholder lawsuit over Tesla's $2.6 billion SolarCity acquisition". CNBC. Archived from the original on May 24, 2022. Retrieved June 7, 2022. According to emails that were part of evidence in the trial, Musk wrote an e-mail to SolarCity CFO Brad Buss on Sept. 18, 2016, saying that to get Tesla investors on board with the deal, SolarCity needed to get a handle on its liquidity problem and sign a letter of intent for a contract with Panasonic.</ref> Multiple shareholder groups filed a lawsuit against Musk and Tesla's directors, stating that the purchase of SolarCity was done solely to benefit Musk and came at the expense of Tesla and its shareholders.<ref>Strong, Michael (March 16, 2020). "Shareholder $2.2B Lawsuit Against Tesla CEO Musk Halted After Trial Postponed Due to Coronavirus". The Detroit Bureau. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020. Retrieved September 1, 2020.</ref><ref>Mitchell, Russ (September 23, 2019). "Elon Musk knew SolarCity was going broke before merger with Tesla, lawsuit alleges". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 30, 2020. Retrieved September 1, 2020.</ref> Tesla directors settled the lawsuit in January 2020, leaving Musk the sole remaining defendant.<ref>Hals, Tom (January 30, 2020). "Tesla directors settle, isolating Musk as SolarCity trial looms". Reuters. Archived from the original on July 28, 2020. Retrieved September 1, 2020.</ref><ref>Chase, Randall (August 17, 2020). "Judge OKs $60M settlement over Tesla buyout of SolarCity". ABC. Archived from the original on August 25, 2020. Retrieved September 1, 2020.</ref> Two years later, the court ruled in Musk's favor.<ref>Kolodny, Lora; Bursztynsky, Jessica (April 27, 2022). "Elon Musk wins shareholder lawsuit over Tesla's $2.6 billion SolarCity acquisition". CNBC. Archived from the original on May 24, 2022. Retrieved June 7, 2022.</ref>

Neuralink

Main article: Neuralink

Musk discussing a Neuralink device during a live demonstration in 2020

In 2016, Musk co-founded Neuralink, a neurotechnology startup company, with an investment of $100 million.<ref name="sew"/><ref name="neuraverge"/> Neuralink aims to integrate the human brain with artificial intelligence (AI) by creating devices that are embedded in the brain to facilitate its merging with machines. Such technology could enhance memory or allow the devices to communicate with software.<ref name="neuraverge">Statt, Nick (March 27, 2017). "Elon Musk launches Neuralink, a venture to merge the human brain with AI". The Verge. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved April 10, 2017.</ref><ref>Winkler, Rolfe (March 27, 2017). "Elon Musk Launches Neuralink to Connect Brains With Computers". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on October 2, 2020. Retrieved October 10, 2020.</ref> The company also hopes to develop devices with which to treat neurological conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, dementia, and spinal cord injuries.<ref name="pig">"Elon Musk's Neuralink puts computer chips in pigs' brains in bid to cure diseases". NBC News. Reuters. August 29, 2020. Archived from the original on April 26, 2022. Retrieved July 26, 2022.</ref>

In 2019, Musk announced work on a device akin to a sewing machine that could embed threads into a human brain.<ref name="sew">Markoff, John (July 16, 2019). "Elon Musk's Neuralink Wants 'Sewing Machine-Like' Robots to Wire Brains to the Internet". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 20, 2022. Retrieved July 26, 2022.</ref> He is listed as the sole author of an October 2019 paper that details some of Neuralink's research,<ref>Zhavoronkov, Alex. "Elon Musk's Big Neuralink Paper: Should We Prepare For The Digital Afterlife?". Forbes. Archived from the original on August 17, 2022. Retrieved August 17, 2022.</ref> although Musk's being listed as such rankled the Neuralink team's researchers.<ref>Kahn, Jeremy; Vanian, Jonathan (January 27, 2022). "Inside Neuralink, Elon Musk's mysterious brain chip startup: A culture of blame, impossible deadlines, and a missing CEO". Fortune. Archived from the original on September 25, 2022. Retrieved August 17, 2022.</ref> At a 2020 live demonstration, Musk described one of their early devices as "a Fitbit in your skull" that could soon cure paralysis, deafness, blindness, and other disabilities. Many neuroscientists and publications criticized these claims,<ref name="mit" /><ref>Cellan-Jones, Rory (September 1, 2020). "Is Elon Musk over-hyping his brain-hacking Neuralink tech?". BBC News. Archived from the original on September 12, 2020. Retrieved September 14, 2020.</ref><ref>Rogers, Adam (September 4, 2020). "Neuralink Is Impressive Tech, Wrapped in Musk Hype". Wired. Archived from the original on September 6, 2020. Retrieved September 14, 2020.</ref> with MIT Technology Review describing them as "highly speculative" and "neuroscience theater".<ref name="mit">Regalado, Antonio (August 30, 2020). "Elon Musk's Neuralink is neuroscience theater". MIT Technology Review. Archived from the original on December 13, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.</ref> During the demonstration, Musk revealed a pig with a Neuralink implant that tracked neural activity related to smell.<ref name="pig"/> In 2022, Neuralink announced that clinical trials would begin by the end of the year.<ref>Neate, Rupert (January 20, 2022). "Elon Musk's brain chip firm Neuralink lines up clinical trials in humans". The Guardian. Archived from the original on July 12, 2022. Retrieved July 26, 2022.</ref>

Neuralink has conducted further animal testing on macaque monkeys at the University of California, Davis' Primate Research Center. In 2021, the company released a video in which a Macaque played the video game Pong via a Neuralink implant. The company's animal trials—which have caused the deaths of some monkeys—have led to claims of animal cruelty. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine has alleged that Neuralink's animal trials have violated the Animal Welfare Act.<ref>Ryan, Hannah (February 17, 2022). "Elon Musk's Neuralink confirms monkeys died in the project, denies animal cruelty claims". CNN Business. Archived from the original on July 11, 2022.</ref> Employees have complained that pressure from Musk to accelerate development has led to botched experiments and unnecessary animal deaths. In 2022, a federal probe was launched into possible animal welfare violations by Neuralink.<ref name="botched monkeys">Levy, Rachel (December 5, 2022). "Musk's Neuralink faces federal probe, employee backlash over animal tests". Reuters. Archived from the original on December 6, 2022. Retrieved December 5, 2022.</ref>

In September 2023, the company was approved to intitiate human trials; the company will conduct a six-year study.<ref>Singh, Maanvi (September 19, 2023). "Elon Musk's Neuralink approved to recruit humans for brain-implant trial". The Guardian. Archived from the original on September 24, 2023. Retrieved September 24, 2023.</ref>

The Boring Company

Main article: The Boring Company

Musk during the 2018 inauguration of the Boring Test Tunnel in Hawthorne, California

In 2017, Musk founded the Boring Company to construct tunnels, and revealed plans for specialized, underground, high-occupancy vehicles that could travel up to 150 miles per hour (240 km/h) and thus circumvent above-ground traffic in major cities.<ref>Petrova, Magdalena (July 20, 2021). "Why Elon Musk's Boring Company is finding that traffic is tough to fix". CNBC. Archived from the original on June 14, 2022. Retrieved June 13, 2022.</ref><ref name="cnndogecoin">McFarland, Matt (July 6, 2022). "Elon Musk's Boring Company will let you pay for a ride with Dogecoin". CNN. Archived from the original on July 26, 2022. Retrieved July 26, 2022.</ref> Early in 2017, the company began discussions with regulatory bodies and initiated construction of a 30-foot (9.1 m) wide, 50-foot (15 m) long, and 15-foot (4.6 m) deep "test trench" on the premises of SpaceX's offices, as that required no permits.<ref name="boring">Heathman, Amelia. "Elon Musk's boring machine has already built a 'test trench' in LA". Wired. Archived from the original on July 18, 2017. Retrieved February 19, 2017.</ref> The Los Angeles tunnel, less than two miles (3.2 km) in length, debuted to journalists in 2018. It used Tesla Model Xs and was reported to be a rough ride while traveling at suboptimal speeds.<ref>Romero, Dennis (December 19, 2018). "Elon Musk unveils his test car tunnel as a fix for traffic in Los Angeles". NBC News. Archived from the original on July 4, 2022. Retrieved July 26, 2022.</ref>

Two tunnel projects announced in 2018, in Chicago and West Los Angeles, have been canceled.<ref>Farivar, Cyrus (June 8, 2021). "Fort Lauderdale officials say Elon Musk's new tunnel to the beach can't come fast enough". NBC News. Archived from the original on July 3, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2022.</ref><ref>Heater, Brian (November 28, 2018). "Elon Musk's Boring Co. drops LA Westside tunnel plan". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on November 28, 2018. Retrieved July 27, 2022.</ref> However, a tunnel beneath the Las Vegas Convention Center was completed in early 2021.<ref>"Boring Co. underground loop to be put to the test". Las Vegas Review-Journal. May 20, 2021. Archived from the original on May 21, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.</ref> Local officials have approved further expansions of the tunnel system.<ref>McBride, Sarah (December 16, 2020). "Elon Musk's Proposed Vegas Strip Transit System Advanced by City Council Vote". Bloomberg L.P. Archived from the original on January 11, 2021. Retrieved January 8, 2021.</ref> In 2021, tunnel construction was approved for Fort Lauderdale, Florida.<ref>McFarland, Matt (July 7, 2021). "Fort Lauderdale accepts proposal for Elon Musk's Tesla beach tunnel". CNN Business. Archived from the original on July 24, 2022. Retrieved July 26, 2022.</ref>

Twitter / X

Further information: Acquisition of Twitter by Elon Musk and Twitter under Elon Musk

Template:Tweet Musk expressed interest in buying Twitter as early as 2017,<ref>Paul, Kari (April 26, 2022). "Chaotic and crass: a brief timeline of Elon Musk's history with Twitter". The Guardian. Archived from the original on April 26, 2022. Retrieved April 26, 2022.</ref> and had questioned the platform's commitment to freedom of speech.<ref>"Elon Musk snaps up $3bn Twitter stake". BBC News. April 4, 2022. Archived from the original on April 4, 2022. Retrieved April 4, 2022.</ref><ref>Jones, Callum. "Elon Musk becomes Twitter's biggest shareholder after taking 9.2% stake". The Times. Archived from the original on April 4, 2022. Retrieved April 4, 2022.</ref> Additionally, his ex-wife Talulah Riley had urged him to buy Twitter to stop the "woke-ism".<ref>Hull, Dana; Fleisher, Lisa (October 4, 2022). "Twitter texts released in court case reveal Elon Musk's ex-wife asked him to 'Please do something to fight woke-ism'". Fortune. Archived from the original on May 30, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.</ref> In January 2022, Musk started purchasing Twitter shares, reaching a 9.2% stake by April,<ref name="elder">Elder, Bryce (April 6, 2022). "Musk and Twitter: the timeline". Financial Times. Archived from the original on May 30, 2022. Retrieved June 4, 2022.</ref> making him the largest shareholder.<ref name="Bloomberg4.14.22">Adler, Maxwell; Turner, Giles (April 14, 2022). "Elon Musk Makes $43 Billion Unsolicited Bid to Take Twitter Private". Bloomberg L.P. Archived from the original on April 14, 2022. Retrieved April 14, 2022.</ref><ref group="lower-alpha"></ref> When this was publicly disclosed, Twitter shares experienced the largest intraday price surge since the company's 2013 IPO.<ref name="Imbert-2022">Imbert, Fred (April 4, 2022). "Twitter shares close up 27% after Elon Musk takes 9% stake in social media company". CNBC. Archived from the original on April 4, 2022. Retrieved April 19, 2022. Twitter shares close up 27% after Elon Musk takes 9% stake in social media company</ref> On April 4, Musk agreed to a deal that would appoint him to Twitter's board of directors and prohibit him from acquiring more than 14.9% of the company.<ref>Corfield, Gareth (April 5, 2022). "Elon Musk to join Twitter board". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on April 5, 2022. Retrieved April 5, 2022.</ref><ref>McLean, Rob (April 11, 2022). "Twitter CEO: Elon Musk will not join Twitter board". CNN. Archived from the original on April 11, 2022. Retrieved April 11, 2022.</ref> However, on April 13, Musk made a $43 billion offer to buy Twitter, launching a takeover bid to buy 100% of Twitter's stock at $54.20 per share.<ref name="Bloomberg4.14.22" /><ref>"Elon Musk launches hostile takeover bid for Twitter". France 24. Agence France-Presse. April 14, 2022. Archived from the original on April 14, 2022. Retrieved April 14, 2022.</ref> In response, Twitter's board adopted a "poison pill" shareholder rights plan to make it more expensive for any single investor to own more than 15% of the company without board approval.<ref>Feiner, Lauren (April 15, 2022). "Twitter board adopts 'poison pill' after Musk's $43 billion bid to buy company". CNBC. Archived from the original on April 17, 2022. Retrieved April 18, 2022.</ref> Nevertheless, by the end of the month Musk had successfully concluded his bid for approximately $44 billion.<ref>Stahl, George. "Musk-Twitter Deal Values Company at Around $44 Billion". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on April 25, 2022. Retrieved April 25, 2022.</ref> This included about $12.5 billion in loans against his Tesla stock and $21 billion in equity financing.<ref>Isaac, Mike; Hirsch, Lauren (April 25, 2022). "With Deal for Twitter, Musk Lands a Prize and Pledges Fewer Limits". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 27, 2022. Retrieved April 26, 2022.</ref><ref>MacMillan, Douglas; Siddiqui, Faiz; Lerman, Rachel; Telford, Taylor (April 25, 2022). "Elon Musk acquires Twitter for roughly $44 billion". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on April 25, 2022. Retrieved April 26, 2022.</ref>

Tesla's stock market value sank by over $100 billion the next day in reaction to the deal.<ref name="Tesla's value dropped Tuesday">Siddiqui, Faiz (April 26, 2022). "Tesla's value dropped Tuesday by more than double the cost of Twitter". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on April 27, 2022. Retrieved April 26, 2022.</ref><ref>Gura, David (April 26, 2022). "Tesla shares sink, wipe out over $125 billion in value, as Musk scores Twitter deal". NPR. Archived from the original on April 27, 2022. Retrieved April 26, 2022.</ref> He subsequently tweeted criticism of Twitter executive Vijaya Gadde's policies to his 86 million followers, which led to some of them engaging in sexist and racist harassment against her.<ref>Woo, Erin; Isaac, Mike (April 27, 2022). "In tweets, Musk takes aim at Twitter executives, creating outrage". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 28, 2022. Retrieved April 27, 2022.</ref> Exactly a month after announcing the takeover, Musk stated that the deal was "on hold" following a report that 5% of Twitter's daily active users were spam accounts.<ref>Balu, Nivedita; Li, Kenneth (May 13, 2022). "Musk says $44 bln Twitter deal on hold over fake account data". Reuters. Archived from the original on May 13, 2022. Retrieved May 13, 2022.</ref> Although he initially affirmed his commitment to the acquisition,<ref>Seal, Dean; Needleman, Sarah E.; Lombardo, Cara (May 13, 2022). "Elon Musk Says His $44 Billion Twitter Deal Is 'On Hold'". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on May 13, 2022. Retrieved May 13, 2022.</ref> he sent notification of his termination of the deal in July; Twitter's Board of Directors responded that they were committed to holding him to the transaction.<ref>Feiner, Lauren (July 8, 2022). "Elon Musk notifies Twitter he is terminating deal". CNBC. Archived from the original on October 24, 2022. Retrieved July 8, 2022.</ref> On July 12, 2022, Twitter formally sued Musk in the Chancery Court of Delaware for breaching a legally binding agreement to purchase Twitter.<ref>Conger, Kate; Hirsch, Lauren (July 12, 2022). "Twitter Sues Musk After He Tries Backing Out of $44 Billion Deal". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 24, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2022.</ref> In October 2022, Musk reversed again, offering to purchase Twitter at $54.20 per share.<ref>Conger, Kate; Hirsch, Lauren; Sorkin, Andrew Ross (October 4, 2022). "Elon Musk Suggests Buying Twitter at His Original Price". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 24, 2022. Retrieved October 8, 2022.</ref> The acquisition was officially completed on October 27.<ref name="deal closed"/>

Immediately after the acquisition, Musk fired several top Twitter executives including CEO Parag Agrawal;<ref name="deal closed">Klar, Rebecca (October 27, 2022). "Musk officially closes Twitter deal: reports". The Hill. Archived from the original on October 28, 2022. Retrieved October 27, 2022.</ref><ref>"Musk Said to Begin Firing Twitter's Top Executives". The New York Times. October 27, 2022. Archived from the original on October 28, 2022.</ref> Musk became the CEO instead.<ref>Mehta, Chavi; Dang, Sheila; Ghosh, Sayantani (October 31, 2022). "Elon Musk, who runs four other companies, will now be Twitter CEO". Reuters. Archived from the original on November 1, 2022.</ref> He instituted a $7.99 monthly subscription for a "blue check",<ref>"Elon Musk says $8 monthly fee for Twitter blue tick". BBC. November 2, 2022. Archived from the original on November 2, 2022. Retrieved November 2, 2022.</ref><ref>Korn, Jennifer (November 2, 2022). "Musk says Twitter will charge $8 a month for account verification after criticism for $19.99 plan". CNN. Archived from the original on November 2, 2022. Retrieved November 2, 2022.</ref><ref name=":6">Binoy, Rhea (November 5, 2022). "Musk's Twitter updates app to start charging $8 for blue checkmark". Reuters. Archived from the original on November 5, 2022. Retrieved November 5, 2022.</ref> and laid off a significant portion of the company's staff.<ref>Conger, Kate; Mac, Ryan (November 4, 2022). "Elon Musk Begins Layoffs at Twitter". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 4, 2022. Retrieved November 4, 2022.</ref><ref>Picchi, Aimee (November 4, 2022). "Elon Musk set to fire roughly half of Twitter's workers". CBS News. Archived from the original on November 3, 2022. Retrieved November 4, 2022.</ref> Musk lessened content moderation, including reinstating accounts like the Bee,<ref name="Wapo">Zakrewski, Siddiqui; Faiz, Siddiqui; Menn, Joseph (November 22, 2022). "Musk's 'free speech' agenda dismantles safety work at Twitter, insiders say". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 22, 2022. Retrieved January 19, 2023.</ref><ref>Ecarma, Caleb (November 21, 2022). "We're Officially in the Elon Musk Era of Content Moderation". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on January 10, 2023. Retrieved December 12, 2022.</ref> and in December, Musk released internal documents relating to Twitter's moderation of Hunter Biden's laptop controversy in the leadup to the 2020 presidential election.<ref>Marshall, Aarian; Hoover, Amanda (December 3, 2022). "The Twitter Files Revealed One Thing: Elon Musk Is Trapped". Wired. Archived from the original on December 13, 2022. Retrieved December 3, 2022.</ref>

Comments on these internal documents by journalists, Matt Taibbi, Bari Weiss, Michael Shellenberger and others were posted at Twitter as the Twitter Files. The United States House Committee on the Judiciary held hearings on the Twitter Files on March 9, 2023, at which Taibbi and Shellenberger gave testimony.<ref>Brooks, Emily and Rebecca Klar (2023). 'Weaponization' subcommittee members spar over 'Twitter Files Archived November 22, 2023, at the Wayback Machine' The Hill (March 9).</ref>

The Southern Poverty Law Center noted that Twitter has verified numerous extremists;<ref name=":7">Wilson, Jason (November 16, 2022). "Twitter Blesses Extremists With Paid 'Blue Checks'". Southern Poverty Law Center. Archived from the original on November 27, 2022. Retrieved November 29, 2022.</ref> hate speech also increased on the platform after his takeover.<ref name=":5">Knight, Will (November 25, 2022). "Here's Proof Hate Speech Is More Viral on Elon Musk's Twitter". Wired. Archived from the original on December 13, 2022. Retrieved November 25, 2022.</ref><ref name="independent2023">"Elon Musk promotes transphobic content as hate speech surges on his far-right platform". The Independent. Archived from the original on August 7, 2023. Retrieved August 5, 2023.</ref>

In late 2022, Musk promised to step down as CEO after a Twitter poll posted by Musk found that majority of user wanted him to do so.<ref>Da Silva, Chantal (December 19, 2022). "Twitter users vote for Elon Musk to step down as CEO in poll he launched". NBC News. Archived from the original on September 11, 2023. Retrieved September 24, 2023.</ref><ref>Allyn, Bobby (December 20, 2022). "Elon Musk says he will resign as Twitter CEO once he finds a replacement". NPR. Archived from the original on July 29, 2023. Retrieved September 24, 2023.</ref> Five months later, Musk stepped down from CEO and placed former NBCUniversal executive Linda Yaccarino in the position and transitioned his role to executive chairman and chief technology officer.<ref>Milmo, Dan (May 11, 2023). "Elon Musk announces he has found new Twitter CEO". The Guardian. Archived from the original on May 11, 2023. Retrieved May 11, 2023.</ref>

On November 20, 2023, in a U.S. District Court in Texas, X filed a lawsuit stating that Media Matters "manipulated" the X platform. X stated that Media Matters used accounts that followed accounts for major brands, and "resorted to endlessly scrolling and refreshing" the feed until it found ads next to extremist posts.<ref>Dang, Sheila (2023) "X sues Media Matters after report about ads next to antisemitic content Archived November 21, 2023, at the Wayback Machine." Reuters (November 20).</ref>

Leadership style

Musk giving a speech to SpaceX employees in 2012

Musk is often described as a micromanager and has called himself a "nano-manager".<ref name="cnbc manage">Kolodny, Lora (October 19, 2018). "Elon Musk's extreme micromanagement has wasted time and money at Tesla, insiders say". CNBC. Archived from the original on May 24, 2022. Retrieved July 4, 2022.</ref> The New York Times has characterized his approach as absolutist.<ref name="wingsit" /> Musk does not make formal business plans.<ref name="wingsit">Mac, Ryan; Metz, Cade; Conger, Kate (May 3, 2022). "'I Don't Really Have a Business Plan': How Elon Musk Wings It". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 28, 2022. Retrieved May 3, 2022.</ref> He has forced employees to adopt the company's own jargon and launched ambitious, risky, and costly projects against his advisors' recommendations, such as removing front-facing radar from Tesla Autopilot. His insistence on vertical integration causes his companies to move most production in-house. While this resulted in saved costs for SpaceX's rocket,<ref name="FOOTNOTEBerger202115">Berger (2021), p. 15.</ref> vertical integration has caused many usability problems for Tesla's software.<ref name="cnbc manage" />

Musk's handling of employees—whom he communicates with directly through mass emails—has been characterized as "carrot and stick", rewarding those "who offer constructive criticism" while also being known to impulsively threaten, swear at, and fire his employees.<ref name="FOOTNOTEBerger202125">Berger (2021), p. 25.</ref><ref>Kolodny, Lora (November 19, 2021). "Read the emails Elon Musk sent Tesla employees about music on the job and following directions". CNBC. Archived from the original on July 4, 2022. Retrieved July 4, 2022.</ref><ref name="wired life inside">Duhigg, Charles (December 13, 2018). "Dr. Elon & Mr. Musk: Life Inside Tesla's Production Hell". Wired. Archived from the original on March 21, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.</ref> Musk said he expects his employees to work for long hours, sometimes for 80 hours per week.<ref name="FOOTNOTEBerger202118">Berger (2021), p. 18.</ref> He has his new employees sign strict non-disclosure agreements and often fires in sprees,<ref>"Is the world's richest person the world's worst boss? What it's like working for Elon Musk". Los Angeles Times. November 14, 2022. Archived from the original on November 16, 2022. Retrieved November 16, 2022.</ref><ref name="spree"/> such as during the Model 3 "production hell" in 2018.<ref name="spree">Duhigg, Charles. "Dr. Elon & Mr. Musk: Life Inside Tesla's Production Hell". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Archived from the original on March 21, 2021. Retrieved November 8, 2022.</ref> In 2022, Musk revealed plans to fire 10 percent of Tesla's workforce, due to his concerns about the economy.<ref>"Elon Musk feels 'super bad' about economy, needs to cut 10% of Tesla jobs". CNBC. June 3, 2022. Archived from the original on June 28, 2022. Retrieved July 6, 2022.</ref> That same month, he suspended remote work at SpaceX and Tesla and threatened to fire employees who do not work 40 hours per week in the office.<ref>Mac, Ryan (June 1, 2022). "Elon Musk to Workers: Spend 40 Hours in the Office, or Else". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 1, 2022.</ref>

Musk's leadership has been praised by some, who credit it with the success of Tesla and his other endeavors,<ref name="cnbc manage" /> and criticized by others, who see him as callous and his managerial decisions as "show[ing] a lack of human understanding."<ref name="wired life inside" /><ref>* Bilton, Nick (November 10, 2020). "Elon Musk's Totally Awful, Batshit-Crazy, Completely Bonkers, Most Excellent Year". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on January 29, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.

• Vance (2017), p. 340. "Elon's worst trait by far, in my opinion, is a complete lack of loyalty or human connection. Many of us worked tirelessly for him for years and were tossed to the curb like a piece of litter without a second thought. Maybe it was calculated to keep the rest of the workforce on their toes and scared; maybe he was just able to detach from human connection to a remarkable degree. What was clear is that people who worked for him were like ammunition: used for a specific purpose until exhausted and discarded."
• Wong, Julia Carrie (June 13, 2018). "Tesla workers say they pay the price for Elon Musk's big promises". The Guardian. Archived from the original on March 23, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021. The CEO is known for outsized claims and ambitious goals. But numerous factory workers say he doesn't follow through – and that his leadership sets a troubling tone.
• Warzel, Charlie (November 7, 2022). "Elon Musk Is Bad at This" Archived 2022-12-31 at the Wayback Machine. The Atlantic.</ref> The 2021 book Power Play contains anecdotes of Musk berating employees.<ref>Mitchell, Charlie. "Sweary tirades and abrupt firings under Elon Musk, new book claims". The Times. Archived from the original on May 31, 2022. Retrieved August 6, 2021.</ref> The Wall Street Journal reported that, after Musk insisted on branding his vehicles as "self-driving", he faced criticism from his engineers for putting customer "lives at risk", with some employees resigning in consequence.<ref>Dugan, Ianthe Jeanne; Spector, Mike (August 24, 2017). "Tesla's Push to Build a Self-Driving Car Sparked Dissent Among Its Engineers". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on April 16, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.</ref>

Other activities

Musk Foundation

Musk is president of the Musk Foundation he founded in 2001,<ref>"Musk Foundation". ProPublica. May 9, 2013. Archived from the original on February 10, 2022.</ref><ref name="musklandia">Carlson, Kara (December 13, 2022). "Mapping Musklandia: A guide to Elon Musk-related activity in the Austin area". Austin American-Statesman. Archived from the original on December 15, 2022. Musk's private foundation was founded in 2001 and is focused on renewable energy, ...</ref> whose stated purpose is to: provide solar-power energy systems in disaster areas; support research, development, and advocacy (for interests including human space exploration, pediatrics, renewable energy and "safe artificial intelligence"); and support science and engineering educational efforts.<ref name="Harris-2019">Harris, Mark (January 23, 2019). "How Elon Musk's secretive foundation hands out his billions". The Guardian. Archived from the original on July 28, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.</ref>

As of 2020, the foundation has made 350 donations. Around half of them were made to scientific research or education nonprofits. Notable beneficiaries include the Wikimedia Foundation, his alma mater the University of Pennsylvania, and his brother Kimbal's nonprofit Big Green.<ref name="charity">Cuccinello, Hayley C. (September 8, 2020). "Elon Musk Has Promised To Give at Least Half His Fortune To Charity. Here's How Much He's Donated So Far". Forbes. Archived from the original on December 13, 2020. Retrieved December 13, 2020.</ref> From 2002 to 2018, the foundation gave $25 million directly to nonprofit organizations, nearly half of which went to Musk's OpenAI,<ref name="vox">Schleifer, Theodore (January 11, 2021). "The big decision before Elon Musk, now the richest person in the world". Vox. Archived from the original on February 17, 2021. Retrieved February 17, 2021.</ref> which was a nonprofit at the time.<ref>"OpenAI shifts from nonprofit to 'capped-profit' to attract capital". March 11, 2019. Archived from the original on April 25, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.</ref>

In 2012, Musk took the Giving Pledge, thereby committing to give the majority of his wealth to charitable causes either during his lifetime or in his will.<ref>"Pledge Signatories". The Giving Pledge. Archived from the original on January 9, 2022. Retrieved January 30, 2022.</ref> He has endowed prizes at the X Prize Foundation, including $100 million to reward improved carbon capture technology.<ref>Chappell, Bill (February 8, 2021). "Elon Musk Funds $100 Million XPrize For Pursuit Of New Carbon Removal Ideas". NPR. Archived from the original on January 4, 2022. Retrieved February 8, 2022.</ref>

Vox said "the Musk Foundation is almost entertaining in its simplicity and yet is strikingly opaque", noting that its website was only 33 words in plain-text.<ref name="vox" /> The foundation has been criticized for the relatively small amount of wealth donated.<ref>Coren, Michael J. "All the causes Elon Musk's foundation has donated money to since 2002". Quartz. Archived from the original on April 10, 2021. Retrieved April 10, 2021.</ref> In 2020, Forbes gave Musk a philanthropy score of 1, because he had given away less than 1% of his net worth.<ref name="charity" /> In November 2021, Musk donated $5.7 billion of Tesla's shares to charity, according to regulatory filings.<ref>"Elon Musk Makes Biggest Donation in History". Bloomberg L.P. February 15, 2022. Archived from the original on February 15, 2022. Retrieved February 15, 2022.</ref> However, Bloomberg News noted that all of it went to his own foundation, bringing Musk Foundation's assets up to $9.4 billion at the end of 2021. The foundation disbursed $160 million to nonprofits that year.<ref>Alexander, Sophie (December 12, 2022). "Musk's $5.7 Billion Mystery Gift Went to His Own Charity". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on December 12, 2022.</ref>

The Foundation also allocated $100 million of donations to be used to establish a new higher education university,<ref>Salam, Erum (December 14, 2023). "Elon Musk spends $100m to open new university in Texas". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on February 7, 2024. Retrieved December 14, 2023.</ref> which Musk jokingly called the Texas Institute of Technology and Science.<ref>Feuer, Will (October 29, 2021). "Elon Musk proposes Texas Institute of Technology & Science". Archived from the original on May 31, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.</ref>

Hyperloop

Main articles: Hyperloop and Hyperloop pod competition

A tube part of the 2017 Hyperloop pod competition sponsored by SpaceX

In August 2013, Musk announced plans for a version of a vactrain—a vacuum tube train—and assigned a dozen engineers from SpaceX and Tesla to establish the conceptual foundations and create initial designs.<ref>"Hyperloop Update: Elon Musk Will Start Developing It Himself". Forbes. Archived from the original on September 29, 2017. Retrieved March 22, 2016.</ref> Later that year, Musk unveiled the concept, which he dubbed the hyperloop.<ref>Kolawole, Emi (August 12, 2013). "Elon Musk Unveils 'Hyperloop' Plans". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on July 28, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.</ref> The alpha design for the system was published in a whitepaper posted to the Tesla and SpaceX blogs.<ref>Kirschen, Philippe; Burnell, Edward (April 6, 2021). "Hyperloop System Optimization". arXiv:2104.03907 [cs.CE].</ref> The document scoped out the technology and outlined a notional route where such a transport system could be built between the Greater Los Angeles Area and the San Francisco Bay Area, at an estimated cost of $6 billion.<ref>Vance, Ashlee (August 12, 2013). "Revealed: Elon Musk Explains the Hyperloop, the Solar-Powered High-Speed Future of Inter-City Transportation". Bloomberg BusinessWeek. Archived from the original on January 27, 2015. Retrieved April 27, 2016.</ref> The proposal, if technologically feasible at the costs cited, would make Hyperloop travel cheaper than any other mode of transport for such long distances.<ref>Ranger, Steve. "What is Hyperloop? Everything you need to know about the race for super-fast travel". ZDNet. Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved September 19, 2020.</ref>

In 2015, Musk announced a design competition for students and others to build Hyperloop pods, to operate on a SpaceX-sponsored mile-long track, for a 2015–2017 Hyperloop pod competition. The track was used in January 2017, and Musk also announced that the company had started a tunnel project, with Hawthorne Municipal Airport as its destination.<ref>Mazza, Sandy (January 29, 2017). "Hyperloop competition brings new mass-transit technology to life in Hawthorne". Daily Bulletin. Archived from the original on August 16, 2017. Retrieved December 13, 2020.</ref> In July 2017, Musk said that he had received "verbal government approval" to build a hyperloop from New York City to Washington, D.C., with stops in both Philadelphia and Baltimore.<ref>"Elon Musk Says He Has 'Verbal' OK To Build N.Y.-D.C. Hyperloop". NPR. Archived from the original on August 31, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2017.</ref> Mention of the projected DC-to-Baltimore leg was removed from the Boring Company website in 2021.<ref>"Elon Musk's Boring Company removes D.C.-Baltimore tunnel from list of projects on website". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on August 23, 2021. Retrieved August 14, 2021.</ref> The tunnel project to Hawthorne was discontinued in 2022 and is cited to be converted into parking spots for SpaceX workers.<ref>McBride, Sarah. "Musk's SpaceX Dismantles Hyperloop Prototype, Puts Up a Parking Lot". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on November 4, 2022. Retrieved November 5, 2022.</ref>

Biographer Ashlee Vance has noted that Musk hoped Hyperloop would "make the public and legislators rethink the high-speed train" proposal current in California at the time and consider more "creative" ideas.<ref>Sorokanich, Bob (August 11, 2022). "Did Musk Propose Hyperloop to Stop California High-Speed Rail?". Jalopnik. Archived from the original on August 19, 2022. Retrieved May 20, 2023.</ref>

OpenAI and xAI

Main articles: OpenAI and xAI (company)

In December 2015, Musk co-founded OpenAI, a not-for-profit artificial intelligence (AI) research company aiming to develop artificial general intelligence intended to be safe and beneficial to humanity.<ref name="NYT_AI">Markoff, John (December 11, 2015). "Artificial-Intelligence Research Center Is Founded by Silicon Valley Investors". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 30, 2020. Retrieved December 15, 2015.</ref> A particular focus of the company is to democratize artificial superintelligence systems, against governments and corporations.<ref name="rollingstone20171115" /> Musk pledged $1 billion of funding to OpenAI.<ref>Vincent, James (March 24, 2023). "Elon Musk reportedly tried and failed to take over OpenAI in 2018". The Verge. Archived from the original on June 19, 2023. Retrieved June 19, 2023.</ref> In 2023, Musk tweeted that he had ended up giving a total of $100 million to OpenAI. TechCrunch later reported that, according to its own investigation of public records, "only $15 million" of OpenAI's funding could be definitively traced to Musk. Musk subsequently stated that he had donated about $50 million.<ref>"Why Elon Musk's $100 million donation claim to ChatGPT maker OpenAI may be wrong". The Times of India. May 18, 2023. Archived from the original on June 19, 2023. Retrieved June 19, 2023.</ref>

In 2018, Musk left the OpenAI board to avoid possible future conflicts with his role as CEO of Tesla as the latter company increasingly became involved in AI through Tesla Autopilot.<ref>Novet, Jordan (February 2, 2018). "Elon Musk, who has sounded the alarm on AI, leaves the organization he co-founded to make it safer". CNBC. Archived from the original on August 30, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.</ref> Since then, OpenAI has made significant advances in machine learning, producing neural networks such as GPT-3 (producing human-like text),<ref>Johnson, Steven; Iziev, Nikita (April 15, 2022). "A.I. Is Mastering Language. Should We Trust What It Says?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 24, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.</ref> and DALL-E (generating digital images from natural language descriptions).<ref>Metz, Cade (April 6, 2022). "Meet DALL-E, the A.I. That Draws Anything at Your Command". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 20, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.</ref>

On July 12, 2023, Elon Musk launched an artificial intelligence company called xAI, which aims to develop a generative AI program that competes with existing offerings like ChatGPT. The company has reportedly hired engineers from Google and OpenAI.<ref>Zahn, Max. "Elon Musk launches his own AI company to compete with ChatGPT". ABC News. Archived from the original on July 15, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.</ref> The company, which is incorporated in Nevada, purchased 10,000 graphics processing units. Musk was reportedly obtaining funding from investors in SpaceX and Tesla.<ref>Henshall, Will (July 12, 2023). "What to Know About Elon Musk's New AI Company, xAI". Time. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 24, 2023.</ref>

Tham Luang cave rescue and defamation case

Further information: Tham Luang cave rescue

In July 2018, Musk arranged for his employees to build a mini-submarine to assist the rescue of children trapped in a flooded cavern in Thailand.<ref name=ArsTechSubmarine /> Richard Stanton, leader of the international rescue diving team, urged Musk to facilitate the construction of the vehicle as a back-up, in case flooding worsened.<ref>Wong, Julia Carrie (December 5, 2019). "Elon Musk trial: Vernon Unsworth says entrepreneur's tweets 'humiliated' him". The Guardian. Archived from the original on May 13, 2022. Retrieved May 13, 2022.</ref> Engineers at SpaceX and the Boring Company built the mini-submarine from a Falcon 9 liquid oxygen transfer tube in eight hours and personally delivered it to Thailand.<ref>Ferris, Robert (July 10, 2018). "Elon Musk says his 'mini-submarine' can be used for other things". CNBC. Archived from the original on July 13, 2018. Retrieved July 13, 2018.</ref><ref name="auto5">"Tested for Thailand, SpaceX's makeshift mini-sub could serve as space escape pod". GeekWire.com. July 8, 2018. Archived from the original on December 7, 2019. Retrieved December 7, 2019.</ref> By this time, however, eight of the 12 children, had already been rescued, the rescuers employing full face masks, oxygen, and anesthesia; consequently, Thai authorities declined to use the submarine.<ref name=ArsTechSubmarine>Lee, Timothy B. (July 10, 2018). "Thai official: Elon Musk's submarine "not practical for this mission" [Updated]". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on September 19, 2020. Retrieved September 13, 2020.</ref> In March 2019, Musk was later one of the 187 people who received various honors conferred by the King of Thailand for involvement in the rescue effort.<ref>"Thai king confers awards on two Australian divers for rescue of cave boys". Reuters. April 19, 2019. Archived from the original on April 6, 2020. Retrieved September 23, 2019.</ref>

Soon after the rescue, Vernon Unsworth, a British recreational caver who had been exploring the cave for the previous six years and played a key advisory role in the operation, criticized the submarine on CNN as amounting to nothing more than a public relations effort with no chance of success, maintaining that Musk "had no conception of what the cave passage was like" and "can stick his submarine where it hurts". Musk asserted on Twitter that the device would have worked and referred to Unsworth as a "pedo guy".<ref name="Levin18">Levin, Sam (July 15, 2018). "Elon Musk calls British diver in Thai cave rescue a 'pedo' in baseless attack". The Guardian. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved July 15, 2018.</ref> He deleted the tweets,<ref name="Levin18" /> and apologized,<ref>Browne, Ryan (July 18, 2020). "Elon Musk apologizes to British cave diver following baseless 'pedo guy' claim". CNBC. Archived from the original on August 5, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.</ref> and he deleted his responses to critical tweets from Cher Scarlett, a software engineer, which had caused his followers to harass her.<ref>Klepper, David (April 27, 2022). "What Elon Musk's own tweets reveal about Twitter's next owner—and his plans for the company". Fortune. Archived from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved May 31, 2022.</ref> In an email to BuzzFeed News, Musk later called Unsworth a "child rapist" and said that he had married a child.<ref name="Smith-2022">Smith, Adam (April 4, 2022). "The strangest things Elon Musk has ever done on Twitter". The Independent. Archived from the original on May 21, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022.</ref><ref>Paul, Kari (October 9, 2019). "Elon Musk claims his investigator tricked him about diver he called a 'pedo'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on May 15, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022.</ref>

In September, Unsworth filed a defamation suit in the District Court for the Central District of California.<ref>"Elon Musk sued for libel by British Thai cave rescuer". BBC News. September 17, 2018. Archived from the original on May 26, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.</ref><ref>Rawlinson, Kevin (September 17, 2018). "British diver sues Elon Musk for $75,000 over 'pedo' claim". The Guardian. Archived from the original on July 2, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.</ref> In his defense, Musk argued that Template:" 'pedo guy' was a common insult used in South Africa when I was growing up ... synonymous with 'creepy old man' and is used to insult a person's appearance and demeanor".<ref name="slate20191204"/> The defamation case began in December 2019, with Unsworth seeking $190 million in damages.<ref>Wong, Julia Carrie (December 4, 2019). "Elon Musk: pedo guy insult was 'not classy' but not meant literally". The Guardian. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020.</ref> During the trial Musk apologized to Unsworth again for the tweet. On December 6, the jury found in favor of Musk and ruled he was not liable.<ref>Kolodny, Lora (May 10, 2019). "Elon Musk found not liable in 'pedo guy' defamation trial". CNBC. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2019.</ref><ref>Groom, Nichola; Parsons, Rachel (December 6, 2019). "Tesla boss Elon Musk wins defamation trial over his 'pedo guy' tweet". Reuters. Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved September 14, 2020.</ref>

2018 cannabis incident

In September 2018, Musk was interviewed on an episode of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, during which he sampled a cigar laced with cannabis.<ref>Aimee Picchi (September 7, 2018). "Tesla's Elon Musk appears to smoke weed in Joe Rogan live interview". CBS News. Archived from the original on April 9, 2023. Retrieved November 14, 2023.</ref> In 2022, Musk said that he and other SpaceX employees had subsequently been required to undergo random drug tests for about a year following the incident, as required by the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 for Federal contractors.<ref>Grace Dean; Huileng Tan (August 2022). "Elon Musk said he and the 'whole of SpaceX' had to be drug tested for a year after he smoked weed on Joe Rogan's podcast". Business Insider. Archived from the original on November 21, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.</ref> In a 2019 60 Minutes interview, Musk had said, "I do not smoke pot. As anybody who watched that podcast could tell, I have no idea how to smoke pot."<ref>Gottsegen, Gordon (December 7, 2018). "Despite infamous hit, Elon Musk says he has 'no idea how to smoke pot'". CNET. Archived from the original on November 19, 2019. Retrieved September 15, 2020.</ref>

Music

In April 2019, Musk, through Emo G Records, released a rap track, "RIP Harambe", on SoundCloud.<ref>Arcand, Rob (March 31, 2019). "Elon Musk Drops Surprise Rap Single 'RIP Harambe'". Spin. Archived from the original on April 1, 2019. Retrieved April 1, 2019.</ref> The track, which refers to the killing of Harambe the gorilla and the subsequent Internet sensationalism surrounding the event, was performed by Yung Jake, written by Yung Jake and Caroline Polachek, and produced by BloodPop.<ref name="Fitzgerald">Fitzgerald, Trent (March 31, 2019). "Elon Musk Randomly Shares Rap Song Dedicated to Harambe". XXL. Archived from the original on April 3, 2019. Retrieved April 10, 2019.</ref> The following year, Musk released an EDM track, "Don't Doubt Ur Vibe", featuring his own lyrics and vocals.<ref name="Etherington">Etherington, Darrell. "Elon Musk just dropped an EDM track on SoundCloud". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved February 3, 2020.</ref> While Guardian critic Alexi Petridis described it as "indistinguishable... from umpteen competent but unthrilling bits of bedroom electronica posted elsewhere on SoundCloud",<ref>Petridis, Alexis (January 31, 2020). "Elon Musk's new EDM single reviewed – 'Bringing erectile dysfunction to the masses!'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved February 3, 2020.</ref> TechCrunch said it was "not a bad representation of the genre".<ref name="Etherington" />

Private jet

Main articles: ElonJet and 2022 Twitter suspensions

In 2003, Musk said his favorite plane he owned was an L-39 Albatros.<ref>"Which jets do Jeff Bezos and other tech billionaires own?". South China Morning Post. March 15, 2019. Archived from the original on October 22, 2022. Retrieved November 7, 2021.</ref> He uses a private jet owned by Falcon Landing LLC, a SpaceX-linked company, and acquired a second jet in August 2020.<ref name="flight">Geuss, Megan (January 30, 2019). "Elon Musk's private jet appears to make frivolous flights, per Washington Post". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on April 14, 2021. Retrieved April 14, 2021.</ref><ref>Pierce, David (August 25, 2020). "Elon Musk's new plane". Politico. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved June 8, 2022.</ref> His heavy use of the jet—which flew over 150,000 miles in 2018 alone—and the consequent fossil fuel usage has received criticism.<ref name="flight" /><ref>Harwell, Drew (January 29, 2019). "Elon Musk's highflying 2018: What 150,000 miles in a private jet reveal about his 'excruciating' year". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on May 4, 2021. Retrieved May 14, 2021.</ref>

His flight usage is tracked on social media through ElonJet. The Twitter version of the account was blocked in December 2022, after Musk said that his son X AE A-XII had been harassed by a stalker after the account posted the airport at which his jet had landed.<ref>Template:Cite tweet</ref><ref name="WP">"Musk bans Twitter account tracking his jet, threatens to sue creator". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on December 15, 2022. Retrieved December 15, 2022.</ref><ref name="Sky">"'Crazy stalker' attacks Elon Musk's car as Twitter boss threatens legal action against account tracking his private jet". Sky News. December 15, 2022. Archived from the original on December 28, 2022. Retrieved January 11, 2023.</ref> This led to Musk banning the ElonJet account on Twitter, as well as the accounts of journalists that posted stories regarding the incident, including Donie O'Sullivan, Keith Olbermann, and journalists from The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, and The Intercept.<ref name="Taylor-2022">Taylor, Josh (December 17, 2022). "Elon Musk reinstates Twitter accounts of suspended journalists". The Guardian. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 24, 2023.</ref> Musk equated the reporting to doxxing.<ref>"Twitter suspends account tracking Elon Musk's jet after 'stalker' follows his child – National". Global News. Archived from the original on December 17, 2022. Retrieved December 18, 2022.</ref> Police do not believe there is a link between the account and alleged stalker.<ref>Harwell, Drew; Lorenz, Taylor (December 18, 2022). "Musk blamed a Twitter account for an alleged stalker. Police see no link". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on December 26, 2022. Retrieved January 11, 2023.</ref> Musk later took a Twitter poll on whether the journalists' accounts should be reinstated, which resulted in reinstating the accounts.<ref>Darcy, Oliver (December 17, 2022). "Elon Musk offers journalists he banned from Twitter ability to return under certain condition". CNN. Archived from the original on January 27, 2023. Retrieved January 24, 2023.</ref>

Wealth

Net worth

Main article: Wealth of Elon Musk

Musk made $175.8 million when PayPal was sold to eBay in October 2002.<ref>Klebnikov, Sergei (August 8, 2017). "8 Innovative Ways Elon Musk Made Money Before He Was a Billionaire". Money. Archived from the original on August 9, 2020. Retrieved April 13, 2021.</ref> He was first listed on the Forbes Billionaires List in 2012, with a net worth of $2 billion.<ref>Melby, Caleb (March 12, 2012). "How Elon Musk Became A Billionaire Twice Over". Forbes. Archived from the original on July 11, 2022. Retrieved February 17, 2021.</ref>

Personal views and Twitter usage

Main article: Views of Elon Musk

Since joining Twitter (now known as X) in 2009,<ref>Paul, Kari (April 26, 2022). "Chaotic and crass: a brief timeline of Elon Musk's history with Twitter". The Guardian. Archived from the original on April 26, 2022. Retrieved June 13, 2022.</ref> Musk has been an active user and has over 163 million followers as of November 2023.<ref>Dwoskin, Elizabeth; Lorenz, Taylor; Nix, Naomi; Menn, Joseph (November 19, 2023). "Antisemitism was rising online. Then Elon Musk's X supercharged it". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 19, 2023.</ref> He posts memes, promotes business interests, and comments on contemporary political and cultural issues.<ref>Horowitz, Julia (August 7, 2018). "Elon Musk tweets a lot. This time was different". CNN Business. Archived from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved June 4, 2022.</ref> Musk's statements have provoked controversy, such as for mocking preferred gender pronouns<ref>O'Connor, Roisin (July 25, 2020). "Grimes tells Elon Musk 'turn off your phone' after Tesla CEO's gender pronouns tweet". The Independent. Archived from the original on January 7, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.</ref><ref>Migdon, Brooke (April 25, 2022). "LGBTQ+ Twitter users contemplate exit amid Elon Musk takeover". The Hill. Archived from the original on April 25, 2022. Retrieved May 18, 2022.</ref> and comparing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to Adolf Hitler.<ref>"Elon Musk tweets, then deletes, meme comparing Trudeau to Hitler". Reuters. February 17, 2022. Archived from the original on February 17, 2022. Retrieved December 12, 2022.</ref> The New York Times describes his contributions to international relations as "chaotic", and critics of Musk argue that there is a lack of separation between his opinions and his business interests.<ref>Metz, Cade; Satariano, Adam; Che, Chang (October 26, 2022). "How Elon Musk Became a Geopolitical Chaos Agent". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 29, 2022. Retrieved October 26, 2022.</ref> As CEO of Twitter, Musk emerged as a source of misinformation and right-wing conspiracy theories, for example by suggesting online details about mass murderer Mauricio Garcia's apparent interest in Nazism could have been planted as part of a psyop.<ref>"Elon Musk's tweets about Texas mall gunman spread misleading claims, question shooter's background". The Associated Press. May 10, 2023. Archived from the original on May 11, 2023. Retrieved May 11, 2023.</ref> Allegations of him being transphobic appeared as well in response to actions taken by Twitter under his guidance.<ref>Garofoli, Joe (December 13, 2022). "Elon Musk is leaning into transphobia". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on June 28, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2023.</ref><ref>"Elon Musk's response to anti-trans video sparked day of chaos at Twitter". NBC News. June 2, 2023. Archived from the original on June 7, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2023.</ref>

Finance

Musk said that the U.S. government should not provide subsidies to companies, but impose a carbon tax to discourage poor behavior.<ref>Kolodny, Lora (October 8, 2021). "Elon Musk endorses a carbon tax, downplays concerns about methane". CNBC. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.</ref><ref>Clifford, Catherine (February 12, 2021). "Elon Musk: 'My top recommendation' for reducing greenhouse gas emissions is a carbon tax". CNBC. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.</ref> The free market, in his view, would achieve the best solution, and producing environmentally unfriendly vehicles should have consequences.<ref>Werber, Cassie. "Elon Musk says tax-free carbon is "the dumbest experiment in history"". Quartz. Archived from the original on August 26, 2020. Retrieved August 30, 2016.</ref> Tesla has received billions of dollars in subsidies.<ref>"Taxpayer Subsidies Helped Tesla Motors, So Why Does Elon Musk Slam Them?". Mother Jones. Archived from the original on June 16, 2020. Retrieved April 19, 2015.</ref> In addition, Tesla made large sums from government-initiated systems of zero-emissions credits offered in California and at the United States federal level, which facilitated initial consumer adoption of Tesla vehicles, as the tax credits given by governments enabled Tesla's battery electric vehicles to be price-competitive, in comparison with existing lower-priced internal combustion engine vehicles.<ref>Plumer, Brad (July 8, 2017). "When Will Electric Cars Go Mainstream? It May Be Sooner Than You Think". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 8, 2017. Retrieved December 22, 2021.</ref> Tesla generates some of its revenue from its sales of carbon credits granted to the company, by both the European Union Emissions Trading System and the Chinese national carbon trading scheme.<ref>Kharpal, Arjun (May 18, 2021). "What 'regulatory credits' are – and why they're so important to Tesla". CNBC. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.</ref><ref>"In struggle to meet EU rule, automakers turn to Tesla for credits". Nikkei Asia. Archived from the original on December 14, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.</ref><ref>"Fiat Chrysler to pay Tesla for CO2 emissions credits". euractiv.com. April 8, 2019. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.</ref><ref>"Volkswagen to buy CO2 credits from Tesla in China". electrive.com. April 5, 2021. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.</ref>

Musk, a longtime opponent of short-selling, has repeatedly criticized the practice and argued it should be illegal.<ref>Stewart, Jack (October 6, 2018). "What Are Shorts and Why Does Elon Hate Them?". Wired. Archived from the original on January 29, 2021. Retrieved March 6, 2021.</ref><ref>Graziosi, Graig (January 29, 2021). "Elon Musk lashes out at short sellers during GameStop market war". The Independent. Archived from the original on January 29, 2021. Retrieved March 6, 2021.</ref> Wired magazine speculated that Musk's opposition to short-selling stems from how short sellers have an incentive to find and promote unfavorable information about his companies.<ref>"What Are Shorts and Why Does Elon Musk Hate Them?". Wired. Archived from the original on January 29, 2021. Retrieved May 19, 2021.</ref> In early 2021, he encouraged the GameStop short squeeze.<ref>Levine, Matt (February 4, 2021). "Who's Winning the GameStop Game?". Bloomberg L.P. Archived from the original on February 5, 2021. Retrieved February 4, 2021.</ref><ref>Gelles, David (January 29, 2021). "Elon Musk Becomes Unlikely Anti-Establishment Hero in GameStop Saga". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 4, 2021. Retrieved February 4, 2021.</ref>

In December 2022, Musk sold $3.6 billion of his stock in Tesla, equal to 22 million shares in the company,<ref>Ponnezhath, Maria; Jin, Hyunjoo (December 15, 2022). "Musk cashes out another $3.6 bln in Tesla stock". Reuters. Archived from the original on January 11, 2023. Retrieved December 15, 2022.</ref> despite pledging earlier in the year that he would not sell any additional shares.<ref>Merced, Michael J. de la; Eavis, Peter (December 15, 2022). "Elon Musk Sells Another Big Chunk of Tesla Stock". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 4, 2023. Retrieved January 30, 2023.</ref>

Technology

Musk has promoted cryptocurrencies and supports them over traditional government-issued fiat currencies.<ref>"Musk says he supports crypto in battle with fiat money". Reuters. May 22, 2021. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2021.</ref> Given the influence of Musk's tweets in moving cryptocurrency markets,<ref>Template:Cite SSRN</ref> his statements about cryptocurrencies have been viewed as market manipulation by some, such as economist Nouriel Roubini.<ref>"SEC Should Monitor Tesla's Elon Musk for Market Manipulation: Roubini". Yahoo. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2021.</ref> Musk's social media praising of Bitcoin and Dogecoin was credited for increasing their prices. Consequently, Tesla's 2021 announcement, against the backdrop of Musk's social media behavior, that it bought $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin, raised questions.<ref>Kovach, Steve (February 8, 2021). "Tesla buys $1.5 billion in bitcoin, plans to accept it as payment". CNBC. Archived from the original on June 1, 2022. Retrieved June 7, 2022.</ref> Tesla's announcement that it would accept Bitcoin for payment was criticized by environmentalists and investors, due to the environmental impact of cryptocurrency mining. A few months later, in response to the criticism, Musk announced on Twitter that Tesla would no longer accept payments in Bitcoin and would not engage in any Bitcoin transactions until the environmental issues are solved.<ref>Hoskins, Peter (May 13, 2021). "Tesla will no longer accept Bitcoin over climate concerns, says Musk". BBC News. Archived from the original on May 31, 2022. Retrieved June 7, 2022.</ref><ref>Smith, Adam (May 13, 2021). "Bitcoin crashes as Elon Musk announces Tesla cars can no longer be bought with cryptocurrency". The Independent. Archived from the original on June 5, 2022. Retrieved June 7, 2022.</ref>

Despite the Boring Company's involvement in building mass transit infrastructure, Musk has criticized public transport and promoted individualized transport (private vehicles).<ref name="Wired:transit">Marshall, Aarian (December 14, 2017). "Elon Musk Really Doesn't Like Mass Transit Systems He's Trying to Build". Wired. Archived from the original on December 14, 2017. Retrieved December 22, 2021.</ref><ref name="qz:transit">Sampson, Rich (December 26, 2017). "What Elon Musk doesn't understand about public transit hurts everyone". Quartz. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.</ref><ref name="guardian54">Hunt, Elle (December 21, 2017). "'I met my wife on a train platform': Twitter responds to Elon Musk with positive public transport stories". The Guardian. Archived from the original on March 14, 2018. Retrieved December 23, 2017.</ref> His comments have been called "elitist" and have sparked widespread criticism from both transportation and urban planning experts, who have pointed out that public transportation in dense urban areas is more economical, more energy efficient, and requires much less space than private cars.<ref name="qz:transit" /><ref>LeVine, Steve (December 28, 2017). "Elon Musk's mean Twitter persona". Axios. Archived from the original on December 29, 2017. Retrieved October 17, 2020.</ref><ref name="guardian54" />

Existential threats

Musk giving details about Falcon 9 and Dragon spacecraft at the 2006 Mars Society Conference

Musk has been described as believing in longtermism, emphasizing the needs of future populations.<ref>O'Leary, Lizzie (October 6, 2022). "Can Longtermism Save Us All?". Slate. Archived from the original on December 24, 2022. Retrieved December 24, 2022.</ref> Accordingly, Musk has stated that artificial intelligence poses the greatest existential threat to humanity.<ref name="guardianAI">Gibbs, Samuel (October 27, 2014). "Elon Musk: artificial intelligence is our biggest existential threat". The Guardian. Archived from the original on October 30, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2015.</ref><ref name="wp2015">"Elon Musk and Stephen Hawking think we should ban killer robots". The Washington Post. July 28, 2015. Archived from the original on March 8, 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2017.</ref> He has warned of a "Terminator-like" AI apocalypse and suggested that the government should regulate its safe development.<ref>Gomez, Brandon (August 24, 2021). "Elon Musk warned of a 'Terminator'-like AI apocalypse – now he's building a Tesla robot". CNBC. Archived from the original on June 17, 2022. Retrieved June 30, 2022.</ref><ref>Kakaes, Konstantin (April 26, 2022). "Elon Musk's biggest worry". Politico. Archived from the original on May 27, 2022. Retrieved June 30, 2022.</ref> In 2015, Musk was a cosignatory, along with Stephen Hawking and hundreds of others, of the Open Letter on Artificial Intelligence, which called for the ban of autonomous weapons.<ref></ref> Musk's AI stances have been called alarmist and sensationalist by critics such as computer scientist Yann LeCun and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg,<ref></ref><ref></ref> and led the think tank Information Technology and Innovation Foundation to award Musk its Annual Luddite Award in 2016.<ref></ref>

Musk has described climate change as the greatest threat to humanity after AI,<ref></ref> and has advocated for a carbon tax.<ref></ref> Musk was a critic of President Donald Trump's stance on climate change,<ref></ref><ref></ref> and resigned from two presidential business advisory councils following Trump's 2017 decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement.<ref></ref>

Musk has long promoted the colonization of Mars and argues that humanity should become a "multiplanetary species".<ref></ref> He has suggested the use of nuclear weapons to terraform Mars.<ref></ref><ref></ref> He envisioned establishing a direct democracy on Mars, with a system in which more votes would be required to create laws than remove them.<ref name="Grush-2020"></ref> Musk has also voiced concerns about human population decline,<ref></ref><ref></ref> saying that "Mars has zero human population. We need a lot of people to become a multiplanet civilization."<ref></ref> Speaking at The Wall Street Journal's CEO Council session in 2021, Musk stated that a declining birth rate, and consequent population decline, is one of the biggest risks to human civilization.<ref></ref>

Politics

While often described as libertarian, Musk has called himself "politically moderate" and was a registered independent voter when he lived in California. The New York Times wrote that Musk "expresses views that don't fit neatly into [the American] binary, left-right political framework".<ref name="muskpolitics"></ref> Historically, Musk has donated to both Democrats and Republicans,<ref name="huffingtonpost.com"></ref> many of whom are in states in which he has a vested interest.<ref name="muskpolitics" /> Beginning in the late 2010s, Musk's political contributions have shifted almost entirely to supporting Republicans.<ref></ref>

Musk voted for Hillary Clinton in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.<ref></ref> In the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries, Musk endorsed candidate Andrew Yang and expressed support for his proposed universal basic income.<ref name="bloomberg.com"></ref> He also endorsed Kanye West's 2020 presidential campaign.<ref></ref> He said he voted for Joe Biden in the 2020 U.S. presidential election.<ref></ref> In 2022, Musk said that he could "no longer support" the Democrats because they are the "party of division & hate",<ref></ref><ref></ref> and wrote a tweet encouraging "independent-minded voters" to vote Republican in the 2022 U.S. elections, which was an outlier among social media executives who typically avoid partisan political advocacy.<ref></ref><ref></ref> He has supported Republican Ron DeSantis for the 2024 U.S. presidential election, and Twitter hosted DeSantis's campaign announcement on a Twitter Spaces event.<ref></ref><ref name="WaPoDesantis"></ref><ref></ref> In August 2023, Musk hosted Vivek Ramaswamy on Twitter Spaces, and shared his support.<ref></ref> As of May 2023, Musk was declining to endorse any specific candidate.<ref name="WaPoDesantis" />

Meeting of Musk and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New York City, June 20, 2023

Musk opposes a "billionaire's tax",<ref></ref> and has argued on Twitter with more left-leaning Democratic politicians such as Bernie Sanders,<ref></ref><ref></ref> Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez,<ref></ref> and Elizabeth Warren.<ref></ref> He has raised questions about the Black Lives Matter protests, partially based on the fact that the phrase "Hands up, don't shoot" was made up.<ref></ref><ref></ref> Musk also promoted a baseless theory relating to the attack of Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband, but Musk deleted his tweet.<ref></ref> In May 2022, Musk traveled to Brazil to discuss projects to protect the Amazon rainforest with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.<ref></ref><ref></ref>

Musk has praised China and has been described as having a close relationship with the Chinese government, allowing access to its markets for Tesla.<ref></ref> After Gigafactory Shanghai produced its first batch of vehicles, Musk thanked the Chinese government and Chinese people while criticizing the United States and its people.<ref name=":9"></ref> In 2022, Musk wrote an article for China Cyberspace, the official publication of Cyberspace Administration of China, which enforces Internet censorship in China. His writing the article was described as conflicting with his advocacy for free speech.<ref></ref><ref></ref> Musk later advocated for Taiwan to become a "special administrative zone" of China which drew cross-party criticism from Taiwanese lawmakers.<ref></ref><ref></ref><ref></ref>

In October 2022, Musk posted a Twitter poll and "peace plan" to resolve the Russian invasion of Ukraine by allowing Russia to keep the Crimea Peninsula, while Ukraine would adopt a neutral status and drop the bid to join NATO.<ref></ref><ref name="NPR-2022"></ref> It was reported that Musk allegedly spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin prior to the proposal, which Musk denied.<ref></ref><ref></ref><ref></ref> Musk has repeatedly expressed concern that a protracted war between Russia and Ukraine could lead to the use of nuclear weapons and the outbreak of World War III.<ref></ref><ref></ref><ref></ref><ref></ref>

Musk with Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Jerusalem, Israel, November 27, 2023

In a YouTube podcast interview on November 10, 2023, Musk criticized Israel's retaliatory actions in the Gaza Strip during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war, saying that Hamas "wanted to commit the worst atrocities that they could in order to provoke the most aggressive response possible from Israel." He added that "if you kill somebody's child in Gaza, you have made at least a few Hamas members who will die just to kill an Israeli."<ref></ref> On November 17, 2023, Musk announced a policy change on the X platform, stating that X users who use terms such as "decolonization" and "from the river to the sea," or similar expressions that imply genocide of the Jewish people in Israel, will be suspended.<ref></ref> Several weeks later, Musk traveled to Israel by visiting the kibbutz Kfar Aza with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which had been part of the aftermath of the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, and described it as "jarring."<ref></ref>

Accusations of antisemitism

The Israeli government and several media outlets accused Musk of sowing antisemitism due to his promotion of George Soros conspiracy theories,<ref name="Isidore 2023"></ref> although some Israeli officials defended Musk and denied his criticism of Soros was antisemitic.<ref name="Rubin 2023"></ref>

On November 15, 2023, Twitter user Charles Weber, who identifies as a Jewish conservative, posted a video from StopJewishHate.org condemning the phrase "Hitler was right"; Weber captioned the video: "To the cowards hiding behind the anonymity of the internet and posting 'Hitler was right': You got something you want to say? Why don't you say it to our faces".<ref name="Goldberg"></ref><ref name="foxbiz"></ref> In response, a second user posted "Okay. Jewish communities have been pushing the exact kind of dialectical hatred against whites that they claim to want people to stop using against them. I'm deeply disinterested in giving the tiniest shit now about western Jewish populations coming to the disturbing realization that those hordes of minorities that support flooding their country don't exactly like them too much. You want truth said to your face, there it is." To this second user, Musk replied "You have said the actual truth."<ref name="Goldberg"/><ref name="foxbiz"/>

The tweet was widely regarded as echoing white nationalist sentiments<ref></ref> and affirmed another antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews push "hatred against Whites."<ref></ref><ref></ref> The following day, Musk made a tweet which critics regarded as supporting white pride.<ref></ref><ref></ref> Advertisers distanced themselves from his tweets.<ref></ref> Musk wrote that he doesn't believe that "all Jewish communities" hate white people, but specifically took aim at the Anti-Defamation League.<ref></ref> He also tweeted that his criticism of Jews applies to more groups than just the ADL, "You [sic] right that this does not extend to all Jewish communities, but it is also not just limited to ADL".<ref></ref>

At the DealBook Summit on November 29, 2023, after comments from Disney CEO Bob Iger explaining his decision to stop advertising on X after Musk's recent post, journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin questioned Musk about the withdrawal of advertisers. Musk responded, "I hope they stop. Don't advertise" and "If somebody is going to try to blackmail me with advertising, blackmail me with money, go fuck yourself. Go fuck yourself. Is that clear? I hope it is."; Musk singled out Iger, saying "Hey Bob, if you're in the audience."<ref name="verge-29nov2023"></ref><ref name="guard-29nov2023"></ref> Musk acknowledged to Sorkin that one of his tweets—the one affirming an antisemitic conspiracy theory—was a mistake, saying "I handed a loaded gun to those who hate me and to those who are antisemitic and for that I am quite sorry."<ref></ref> Musk described his tweet as "one of the most foolish, if not the most foolish, thing I've done."<ref name=apology></ref><ref></ref>

In January 2024, Elon Musk visited the Auschwitz concentration camp with European Jewish Association Chairman Rabbi, conservative political commentator Ben Shapiro and Holocaust survivor Gidon Lev.<ref></ref> He also spoke on a conference about rising antisemitism.<ref></ref> The New York Times described the trip as a part of an image "rehabilitation tour."<ref></ref>

COVID-19

Musk wearing a bandana as a face mask during the COVID-19 pandemic

Musk was criticized for his public comments and conduct related to the COVID-19 pandemic.<ref name="Kolodny-2020"></ref><ref name="Koren-2020"></ref> He spread misinformation about the virus, including promoting a widely discredited paper on the benefits of chloroquine and claiming that COVID-19 death statistics were inflated.<ref></ref>

In March 2020, Musk stated, "The coronavirus panic is dumb."<ref></ref><ref></ref> In an email to Tesla employees, Musk referred to COVID-19 as a "specific form of the common cold" and predicted that confirmed COVID-19 cases would not exceed 0.1% of the U.S. population.<ref name="Kolodny-2020"/> On March 19, 2020, Musk predicted that there would be "probably close to zero new cases in [the U.S.] by end of April".<ref name="Koren-2020" /> Politico labeled this statement one of "the most audacious, confident, and spectacularly incorrect prognostications [of 2020]".<ref></ref> Musk also falsely stated that children "are essentially immune" to COVID-19.<ref></ref><ref></ref>

Musk condemned COVID-19 lockdowns and initially refused to close the Tesla Fremont Factory in March 2020, defying the local shelter-in-place order.<ref name="Kolodny-2020"/><ref></ref><ref></ref> In May 2020, he reopened the Tesla factory, defying the local stay-at-home order,<ref></ref><ref name="guardian-pandemic-tesla-reopen"/> and warned workers that they would be unpaid, and their unemployment benefits might be jeopardized, if they did not report to work.<ref name="guardian-pandemic-tesla-reopen"></ref> In December 2022, Musk called for prosecution of former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Anthony Fauci.<ref></ref><ref></ref>

In March 2020, Musk promised that Tesla would make ventilators for COVID-19 patients if there were a shortage.<ref name="wapo ventilators"></ref> After figures like New York City mayor Bill de Blasio responded to Musk's offer,<ref></ref> Musk offered to donate ventilators which Tesla would build or buy from a third party.<ref name="wapo ventilators"/> However, Musk ended up buying and donating BiPAP and CPAP machines, which are devices that support respirations of someone able to breathe on their own, rather than the much more expensive and sought-after mechanical ventilator machines that are able to breathe for a patient entirely.<ref></ref><ref></ref>

In September 2020, Musk stated that he would not get the COVID-19 vaccine, because he and his children were "not at risk for COVID".<ref></ref><ref></ref> Two months later, Musk contracted COVID-19 but suggested his COVID-19 rapid antigen test results were dubious, as he had been tested four times on the same device with the same nurse but had received equal numbers of positive and negative results.<ref name=Andrews2023></ref> Following this, a postdoctoral fellow at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto explained in a Tweet why this result does not undermine the value of the test, referring to Musk as "Space Karen", which then trended on Twitter.<ref name=Andrews2023/><ref></ref> In December 2021, Musk said that he and his eligible children had received the vaccine, saying that the science behind the COVID vaccines was "unequivocal" but expressing his opposition to COVID vaccine mandates.<ref></ref>

Personal life

From the early 2000s until late 2020, Musk resided in California, where both Tesla and SpaceX were founded.<ref name="bloomberg20201208"></ref> He then relocated to Texas, saying that California had become "complacent" about its economic success.<ref name="bloomberg20201208" /><ref></ref> While hosting Saturday Night Live in 2021, Musk stated that he has Asperger syndrome, although he has never been medically diagnosed.<ref></ref><ref>Isaacson (2023), p. 18.</ref> Musk trained in Brazilian jiu-jitsu while preparing for the proposed fight between himself and Mark Zuckerberg.<ref></ref> In his leisure time, he plays video games including Quake, Diablo IV, Elden Ring, and Polytopia.<ref></ref><ref></ref>

Relationships and children

Musk has 10 surviving children.<ref></ref> He met his first wife, Canadian author Justine Wilson, while attending Queen's University in Ontario, Canada; they married in 2000.<ref name="Streisand-2015"></ref> In 2002, their first child died of sudden infant death syndrome at the age of 10 weeks.<ref name="sids">Vance (2017), p. 117.</ref> After his death, the couple used IVF to continue their family;<ref name=holywoodlife2021></ref> they had twins in 2004 followed by triplets in 2006.<ref name=holywoodlife2021 /> The couple divorced in 2008 and shared custody.<ref></ref><ref></ref> In 2022, the eldest twin officially changed her name to reflect her gender identity as a trans woman and to use Wilson as her last name because she no longer wished to be associated with Musk.<ref></ref> Musk blamed the estrangement of his daughter on what the Financial Times characterized as "the supposed takeover of elite schools and universities by neo-Marxists."<ref></ref>

In 2008, Musk began dating English actress Talulah Riley.<ref>Vance (2017), pp. 193–195.</ref> They married two years later at Dornoch Cathedral in Scotland.<ref name=marriage></ref><ref></ref> In 2012, the couple divorced, before remarrying the following year.<ref name="talulah"/> After briefly filing for divorce in 2014,<ref name="talulah"></ref> Musk finalized a second divorce from Riley in 2016.<ref>Vance (2017), p. 372.</ref> Musk then dated Amber Heard for several months in 2017;<ref></ref> he had reportedly been pursuing her since 2012.<ref name="hollywood"></ref>

In 2018, Musk and Canadian musician Grimes said that they were dating.<ref></ref> Grimes gave birth to their son in May 2020.<ref></ref><ref></ref> According to Musk and Grimes, his name was "X Æ A-12" (); however, the name would have violated California regulations as it contained characters that are not in the modern English alphabet,<ref></ref><ref></ref> and was then changed to "X Æ A-Xii". This drew more confusion, as Æ is not a letter in the modern English alphabet.<ref></ref> The child was eventually named X AE A-XII Musk, with "X" as a first name, "AE A-XII" as a middle name, and "Musk" as surname.<ref name="xaea-xii.cnet"></ref>

In December 2021, Grimes and Musk had a second child, a daughter named Exa Dark Sideræl Musk (nicknamed "Y"), born via surrogacy.<ref name="GrimesVanityFair2022"></ref> Despite the pregnancy, Musk confirmed reports that the couple were "semi-separated" in September 2021; in an interview with Time in December 2021, he said he was single.<ref></ref><ref></ref> In March 2022, Grimes said of her relationship with Musk: "I would probably refer to him as my boyfriend, but we're very fluid."<ref name="GrimesVanityFair2022"/> Later that month, Grimes tweeted that she and Musk had broken up again.<ref></ref> In September 2023 it was reported that the pair had a third child, a son named Techno Mechanicus "Tau" Musk.<ref name=NYTTAU></ref> In October 2023, Grimes sued Musk over parental rights and custody of their eldest son.<ref></ref><ref></ref><ref></ref>

In July 2022, Insider published court documents revealing that Musk had had twins with Shivon Zilis, director of operations and special projects at Neuralink, in November 2021.<ref></ref> They were born weeks before Musk and Grimes had their second child via surrogate in December. The news "raise[d] questions about workplace ethics", given that Zilis directly reported to Musk.<ref></ref> Also in July 2022, The Wall Street Journal reported that Musk allegedly had an affair with Nicole Shanahan, the wife of Google co-founder Sergey Brin, in 2021, leading to their divorce the following year.<ref></ref> Musk denied the report.<ref></ref>

Musk also had a relationship with Australian actress Natasha Bassett, who has been described as "an occasional girlfriend."<ref>Isaacson (2023), pp. 7, 265.</ref>

Legal matters

In May 2022, Business Insider cited an anonymous friend of an unnamed SpaceX contract flight attendant, alleging that Musk engaged in sexual misconduct in 2016. The source stated that in November 2018, Musk, SpaceX, and the former flight attendant entered into a severance agreement granting the attendant a $250,000 payment in exchange for a promise not to sue over the claims.<ref></ref> Musk responded, "If I were inclined to engage in sexual harassment, this is unlikely to be the first time in my entire 30-year career that it comes to light". He accused the article from Business Insider of being a "politically motivated hit piece".<ref></ref><ref></ref> After the release of the article, Tesla's stock fell by more than 6%,<ref name="stocks falling post article"></ref> decreasing Musk's net worth by $10 billion.<ref name="fortune fluctuation"></ref> Barron's wrote "...some investors considered key-man risk – the danger that a company could be badly hurt by the loss of one individual."<ref name="Barron's"></ref>

In April 2023, the government of the U.S. Virgin Islands sought to subpoena Musk for documents in a lawsuit alleging that JPMorgan Chase profited from Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking operation.<ref name=":0" /> In May, a judge granted the U.S. Virgin Islands' request to serve Musk electronically through Tesla after the U.S. territory had difficulty locating him.<ref name=":0" /> The efforts to subpoena Musk for documents do not implicate him in any wrongdoing and do not seek to have Musk testify under oath.<ref name=":0"></ref>

Musk's former girlfriend Grimes filed a parental relationship petition in late September 2023 as part of a custody dispute. The petition came a month after Grimes openly accused him in a social media post of blocking her access to the youngest of their three children.<ref></ref><ref></ref>

Ben Brody, a 22-year-old Los Angeles-based college graduate, initiated a lawsuit in October 2023 against Musk for over $1 million. He alleged Musk had falsely identified him as a participant "in a violent street brawl on behalf of a neo-Nazi extremist group" near Portland, Oregon.<ref name=":1"></ref><ref name=":2"></ref><ref></ref> According to Brody's complaint, one of Musk's X posts promoted conspiracy theories that "Ben Brody's alleged participation in the extremist brawl meant the incident was probably a 'false flag' operation to deceive the American public".<ref name=":1" /> The complaint also alleged that Musk's accusations led to Brody and his family being subjected to harassment and threats.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /><ref></ref>

In October 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued Musk, alleging that he was refusing to testify in an investigation into whether he violated federal law by purchasing Twitter stock in 2022.<ref name=":3"></ref><ref></ref><ref name=":4"></ref> According to the lawsuit, Musk testified twice in 2022 but refused to testify a third time in 2023, claiming the SEC was harassing him.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" /> In February 2024, Judge Laurel Beeler ruled that Musk must testify again.<ref></ref>

In January 2024, Judge Kathaleen McCormick ruled in Tornetta, et al. v. Musk, et al. that Musk's $55 billion pay package from Tesla be rescinded.<ref></ref> McCormick called the compensation granted by the company's board "an unfathomable sum" that was unfair to shareholders. The lawsuit had been brought in 2018 in Delaware by Tesla shareholder Richard Tornetta. In response to the ruling, Musk posted on X: "Never incorporate your company in the state of Delaware."<ref></ref>

Public perception

Musk (right) and then President Barack Obama at the Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex 40, launch site of the SpaceX Falcon 9, 2010

Though his ventures were influential within their own industries in the 2000s, Musk only became a public figure in the early 2010s. He has been described as an eccentric who makes spontaneous and controversial statements, contrary to other billionaires who prefer reclusiveness to protect their businesses. Vance described people's opinions of Musk as polarized due to his "part philosopher, part troll" role on Twitter.<ref name="celebrity"></ref>

Musk was a partial inspiration for the characterization of Tony Stark in the Marvel film Iron Man (2008).<ref></ref> Musk also had a cameo appearance in the film's 2010 sequel, Iron Man 2.<ref></ref> Musk has made cameos and appearances in other films such as Machete Kills (2013),<ref></ref> Why Him? (2016),<ref></ref> and Men in Black: International (2019).<ref></ref> Television series in which he has appeared include The Simpsons ("The Musk Who Fell to Earth", 2015),<ref></ref> The Big Bang Theory ("The Platonic Permutation", 2015),<ref></ref> South Park ("Members Only", 2016),<ref></ref><ref></ref> Young Sheldon ("A Patch, a Modem, and a Zantac®", 2017),<ref></ref> Rick and Morty ("One Crew over the Crewcoo's Morty", 2019),<ref></ref><ref></ref> and Saturday Night Live (2021).<ref></ref> He contributed interviews to the documentaries Racing Extinction (2015) and the Werner Herzog-directed Lo and Behold (2016).<ref></ref><ref></ref>

Musk was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 2018.<ref></ref> In 2015, he received an honorary doctorate in engineering and technology from Yale University<ref></ref> and IEEE Honorary Membership.<ref></ref> Awards for his contributions to the development of the Falcon rockets include the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics George Low Transportation Award in 2008,<ref></ref> the Gold Space Medal in 2010,<ref></ref> and the Royal Aeronautical Society Gold Medal in 2012.<ref></ref> Time has listed Musk as one of the most influential people in the world on four occasions in 2010,<ref></ref> 2013,<ref></ref> 2018,<ref></ref> and 2021.<ref></ref> Musk was selected as Time's "Person of the Year" for 2021. Then Time editor-in-chief Edward Felsenthal wrote that "Person of the Year is a marker of influence, and few individuals have had more influence than Musk on life on Earth, and potentially life off Earth too".<ref></ref><ref></ref> In February 2022, Musk was elected to the National Academy of Engineering.<ref name="lat20141214"></ref> Following a tumultuous year of changes and controversies at X, The New Republic labeled Musk its 2023 Scoundrel of the Year.<ref></ref>

Further reading

• Tarnoff, Ben, "Ultra Hardcore" (subscription required) (review of Walter Isaacson, Elon Musk, Simon and Schuster, 2023, 670 pp.), The New York Review of Books, vol. LXXI, no. 1 (18 January 2024), pp. 6, 8, 10. "There is an anti-modern impulse to Musk, a craving for lordship that can't be entirely satisfied within the confines of a capitalist economy. A king doesn't have advertisers or shareholders or customers, and Musk, if he continues on his current trajectory, may very well be abandoned by all three. Aristotle says a good ending should be surprising but inevitable. It's possible to imagine multiple finales for Musk that meet these criteria, but the story always begins the same way. Once upon a time in Pretoria, there was a boy who wanted to be a man." (p. 10.)

External links

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