Elon Musk

I recently read Walter Isaacson’s biography of Elon Musk. I truly hesitated before buying this book. I think Elon Musk is deplorable – i dislike what he’s done in support of Donald Trump and I cannot even admire his business successes given what an asshole he seems to be. I found the idea of reading a biography about him so distasteful I would never consider it. Until I did.

I friend, whose opinion I trust, told me that the book was worth reading, to see what made him what he is. The deal was sealed when I realized the work was created by Walter Isaacson, who I think must be the best biographer there is.

To be clear – Musk earned not a penny from this book; it all went to the author. In addition, he had no editorial license (according to Isaacson) and didn’t get to read it before it was published. I went to Daunt Books and sheepishly asked where I could find the book. It’s silly, I know, but I was embarassed to buy it. I almost wanted to say “I really don’t like the guy, I just want to see what the book is like cuz a friend told me to.”

My friend was right. It’s an exceptional book. I found I couldn’t stop once I started reading – almost like watching a car crash (which I swear I don’t really do) whereby we read about the developmet of a complete asshole, and learn what made him what he is. A few interesting points from Isaacson’s book:

“I’ve come to put him in the same category as Steve Jobs, which is that some people are just assholes, but they accomplish so much that I just have to sit back and say, “that seems to be a package.””
“Asperger’s makes you a very difficult person. He’s not good at reading the room. His emotional comprehension is just very different from the average human….if someone has depression or anxiety we sympathize. But if they have Aspergers we say he’s an asshole.”

Does he have Aspergers? I have no idea and Isaacson does not pretend to know; he simply reports what people have said. The book does explore his awful childhood, his awful father and some of the influences that made Musk what he is. …an asshole.

Isaacson makes no excuses for him. Indeed near the end of the book he asks the key question – do his business successes mean he is excused from his behavior? The answer is no, and the author confirms that he agrees.

Musk is a risk junky. He drove people in many unreasonable ways. He created and became CEO of Paypal, Tesla, SpaceX, Twitter, Starlink, The Boring Company, x.AI and Neuralink…so far. You can (and should) argue about the successes of these endeavors…clearly he has ruined Twitter. Nonetheless, he has created.

It also seems clear that he believes he is contributing mightily to humanity and the future of our world(s). He thinks that SpaceX will help us get to Mars and create a new society there, given how we are ruining our planet. He believes he gave birth to the electronic vehicle market (he is probably right) and will also create self driving vehicle leadership (less clear).

I cannot fathom how he has migrated his political views, however. It is clear that he considered Trump a buffoon and a carnival barker at best, yet he contorted his opinions over time. Why? That does not come clear in the book, just that he did. It might have been his distaste for “woke” after his trans daughter left their relationship in the dust. He has made kids named X and Y. I shake my head at his judgment, his family life, and how he treats his employees.

Nonetheless, the story is remarkable, and worth studying. Thank you, Mr Isaacson.