Ask entrepreneurs and innovators who they most admire and one name invariably rises toward the top of the list.
Elon Reeve Musk
Elon Musk is a South African – Canadian – American billionaire technology entrepreneur. He is currently riding a wave of successes at his three main companies. If his form continues, he may well be remembered as one of the great figures of the 21st century.
- At Tesla, Musk is disrupting the motor industry by making electric cars that are actually usable and desired by consumers. He has traditional automakers playing catch up.
- SolarCity is making solar roof tiles and home battery storage solutions with the aim of eliminating our dependence on fossil fuels.
- At SpaceX, Musk has dramatically cut the cost of sending satellites, and soon humans, to space by making reusable rockets a reality. He ultimately aims to make mankind an interplanetary species and establish a colony on Mars.
Not content to simultaneously revolutionise 3 industries, he has also found time to form companies to promote various other ideas, causes and concepts.
- Supersonic intercity travel in vacuum tubes (HyperLoop)
- Saving the world from rogue Artificial Intelligences (OpenAI)
- Building a network of tunnels under Los Angeles to alleviate traffic congestion (TheBoringCompany)
- Melding the capabilities of man and computer with brain-machine interfaces (Neuralink)
And he still has had time to father 6 children and inspire Robert Downey Junior’s portrayal of Tony Stark in the recent Marvel Iron Man and Avenger films…
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In fact it is difficult to write about Musk without feeling like a large man crush is being revealed to the world.
Musk also his his critics. He has been called a hyperactive, attention seeking, exaggerater. Former employees and colleagues will often describe a demanding and sometimes bullying darker side.
Such was my fascination with this figure that I recently read Ashley Vance’s biography of Musk.
I have tried to digest the information and distill some lessons relevant to my life/role as a GP interested in organisational development and technology… They may be of interest to you too…