Elon Musk
Elon Musk
Elon Reeve Muskis a South African-born Canadian-American business magnate, engineer and inventor...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionEntrepreneur
Date of Birth28 June 1971
CityPretoria, South Africa
CountryUnited States of America
technology space three
It is despairing to consider that the cost and reliability of access to space have barely changed since the Apollo era over three decades ago. Yet in virtually every other field of technology, we have made great strides in reducing cost and increasing capability,
thinking people trying
Most people can learn a lot more than they think they can. They sell themselves short without trying.
moving mean trying
I always had an existential crisis, trying to figure out ‘what does it all mean?’ I came to the conclusion that if we can advance the knowledge of the world, if we can expand the scope and scale of consciousness, then, we’re better able to ask the right questions and become more enlightened. That’s the only way to move forward.
thinking ideas company
I don't think it's a good idea to plan to sell a company.
humanity problem problem-solving
For me it was never about money, but solving problems for the future of humanity.
mistake technology people
People often mistake technology for a static picture. It's less like a picture and more like a movie. It's the velocity of technology innovation that matters. It's the acceleration.
oxygen rockets achieve
I realized that a methane-oxygen rocket engine could achieve a specific impulse greater than 380.
sky sun fusion
We have this handy fusion reactor in the sky called the sun, you don't have to do anything, it just works. It shows up every day.
expectations
I started SpaceX with the expectation of failure.
inspirational kids engineering
To make an embarrassing admission, I like video games. That's what got me into software engineering when I was a kid. I wanted to make money so I could buy a better computer to play better video games. Nothing like saving the world.
morning thinking get-up
If you get up in the morning and think the future is going to be better, it is a bright day. Otherwise, it’s not.
mean fire giving
We have a strict 'no a-hole policy' at SpaceX. And we fire people they are. I mean, we give them a little bit of warning. But if they continue to be an a-hole, then they're fired.
thinking fundamentals analogies
Don’t just follow the trend. You may have heard me say that it’s good to think in terms of the physics approach of first principles. Which is, rather than reasoning by analogy, you boil things down to the most fundamental truths you can imagine and you reason up from there.
moon thinking agents
It's really incumbent upon us as life's agents to extend life to another planet. I think that being a multi-planet species will significantly increase the richness and scope of the human experience.