8 Main Takeaways Concerning the Man Behind Tesla, SpaceX, and Neuralink

Elon Musk has dominated headlines for years, however a brand new ebook demonstrates that there’s nonetheless a lot to study in regards to the world’s wealthiest man.

After three years of shadowing Musk, Walter Isaacson’s biography on the Tesla CEO affords a peek backstage into the lifetime of one of many world’s strongest males.

The ebook was launched on September 12 and contained some stunning truths in regards to the entrepreneur, starting from main revelations about his relationship with Ukraine and the beginning of his eleventh child to details about Musk’s strict work ethic and emotional swings.

Listed here are eight issues we found whereas studying the biography

Musk’s temper swings are excessive, and folks near him are frightened of his ‘devil mode.’

Musk’s moods can swing wildly, in keeping with the ebook.

“He has numerous minds and many fairly distinct personalities,” Grimes informed Isaacson. “He moves between them at a breakneck pace.” You simply really feel the air within the room change, after which your entire state of affairs shifts to his different state.”

Throughout his time with Musk, Isaacson skilled the billionaire’s emotional volatility, describing him as “light and dark, intense and goofy, detached and emotional.”

“When we hang out, I double-check to make sure I’m with the right Elon,” Grimes defined. “There are some guys in that head who don’t like me, and I don’t like them.” These embrace the model of him “who’s down for Burning Man and will sleep on a couch, eat canned soup, and be chill” and his “demon mode” — “when he goes dark and retreats inside the storm in his brain.”

In response to Isaacson, throughout these instances, Musk is liable to lash out at colleagues or order a piece surge. Regardless of the gloom related to “demon mode,” Grimes claims additionally it is the mode by which he “gets shit done.”

Elon Musk’s relationship together with his father had a big influence on his character and worldview.

Elon Musk’s father, Errol Musk, is a determine that seems often all through the novel.

The biography comprises descriptions of incidents by which Elon Musk claims his father bullied and demeaned him (one thing Errol Musk denies), in addition to feedback from Elon Musk’s former girlfriends and wives about how Errol Musk in the end influenced his son’s character and outlook on the world.

Elon Musk initially lived together with his mom after his mother and father divorced, earlier than spending round seven years in Pretoria together with his father from the age of ten.

“It turned out to be a really bad idea,” Elon Musk stated of the challenge. “I had no idea how horrible he was.”

Kimbal Musk, his youthful brother, informed Isaacson that their father had “zero compassion” and ceaselessly “went ballistic.”

“It was mental torture,” Elon Musk stated of the expertise. “He sure knew how to make anything terrible.”

Maye Musk, Elon Musk’s mom, expressed concern that her son “might become his father.”

Elon and Kimbal Musk not talk with their father, in keeping with Isaacson.

Elon Musk initially lived together with his mom after his mother and father divorced, earlier than spending round seven years in Pretoria together with his father from the age of ten.

In response to the ebook, Elon Musk’s character was fashioned by the years he spent together with his father.

“I think he got conditioned in childhood that life is pain,” Grimes, Elon Musk’s ex-girlfriend, informed Isaacson. She additional acknowledged that due of his father’s upbringing, Musk sometimes permits himself to be mistreated and “associates love with being mean or abusive.”

Elon Musk’s first spouse, Justine Musk, informed Isaacson that in their disputes, Elon would ridicule and abuse her, calling her a “moron,” “idiot,” or “stupid and crazy.”

“When I spent some time with Errol, I realized that’s where he’d gotten the vocabulary,” Justine Musk defined to Isaacson.

Talulah Riley, Errol Musk’s ex-wife, additionally informed Isaacson that Errol Musk’s remedy of his son “had a profound effect on how he operates.”

“Inside the man, he’s still there as a child, a child standing in front of his dad,” she defined.

Musk has all the time been identified for his ‘hardcore’ work ethic.

Musk is well-known for his “hardcore” work ethic, which included sleeping and consuming within the office in some instances. His late-night habits seem to have stemmed from his upbringing, when he would stay up till 6 a.m. studying, in keeping with Isaacson.

In response to the ebook, Musk and his brother slept on the workplace, washed on the YMCA, and principally ate at Jack within the Field whereas working at Zip2, his first startup. In response to Isaacson, one early Zip2 worker needed to persuade Musk to go dwelling and bathe earlier than buyer conferences.

“At Zip2 and every subsequent company, he drove himself relentlessly all day and through much of the night, without vacations, and he expected others to do the same,” Isaacson wrote. “His only indulgence was allowing himself breaks for intense video-game binges.”

Musk has utilized the identical zeal to different components of his life, equivalent to studying to fly planes. “I have a tendency to do things very intensely,” he stated to Isaacson.

Musk expects his staff to be workaholics as effectively. At X.com, which later merged to develop into PayPal, he informed staff that the positioning would go public on Thanksgiving weekend and “prowled the office each day, including Thanksgiving, in a nervous and nervous-making frenzy and slept under his desk most nights,” Isaacson wrote.

When he purchased Twitter greater than twenty years later, he informed its staff they wanted to decide to a “extremely hardcore” work schedule with “long hours at a high intensity” in the event that they wished to maintain their employment.

Learn Extra: Elon Musk Says X Reaches ‘New High’ With 540 Million Month-to-month Customers

He’s been troublesome to work with for the reason that starting.

Working with Elon Musk has lengthy been related to horror tales — from abruptly chopping off greater than half of Twitter’s workforce to forcing some Tesla staff to work via Thanksgiving — working for one among his companies has develop into the stuff of city legend. And it seems that tensions had been ceaselessly near a boil, even at Musk’s first agency.

In response to Isaacson, Musk’s brother allegedly “tore off a hunk of flesh” from Musk’s hand whereas the brothers wrestled on the ground in Zip2’s office again within the Nineteen Nineties. In response to the biographer, the 2 males would grapple at instances of “intense stress.”

In response to the ebook, Musk’s undergraduate dormmate stopped working at Zip2 six weeks after beginning there as a result of he couldn’t stand working with Musk.

“I knew I could either work with him or be his friend, but not both,” Navaid Farooq, Musk’s longtime good friend and former dormmate, informed Isaacson.

Musk later defined his rage after chewing off a SpaceX worker who had misplaced his baby the week earlier than.

“I give people hardcore feedback that is mostly accurate, and I try not to do it in an ad hominem way,” Musk informed Isaacson. “I try to criticize the action rather than the person.” Everybody makes errors. What counts is whether or not an individual has a wholesome suggestions loop, can settle for criticism, and may enhance. Physics is unconcerned about feelings. It solely cares if you happen to acquired the rocket proper.”

Musk bodily reacts to emphasize, however it additionally motivates him. He can’t stand the peace.

Musk would keep awake at evening and vomit throughout hectic durations at work and in his private life, in keeping with Isaacson.

In response to the biographer, Musk’s abdomen issues had a physician checking for appendicitis at one time.

When Tesla was going through chapter in 2008, Musk’s spouse, Talulah Riley, informed Isaacson she was terrified the stress would drive Musk to endure a coronary heart assault.

“He was having night terrors and just screaming in his sleep and clawing at me,” she defined. “It would go straight to his gut, and he’d start screaming and retching.” I’d stand by the bathroom and help his head.”

Musk’s ex-girlfriend Grimes claims she had related sleepless nights with the billionaire all through their relationship.

In response to some, Musk seems to hunt out these instances of utmost stress.

“You don’t have to be in a state of war at all times,” Shivon Zilis, the mom of two of Musk’s youngsters and a director at Neuralink, warned Musk as he ready to purchase Twitter. “Or is it that you find more comfort during times of war?”

Musk defined to Zilis that it’s one among his “default settings.”

“I guess I’ve always wanted to push my chips back on the table or play the next level of the game.”

Musk has admitted to Isaacson that his depth has taken a bodily toll on him.

“It’s been nonstop pain since 2007, maybe until last year.” Make Tesla function, pull a rabbit out of your hat, then pull one other rabbit out of your hat,” Musk informed Isaacson in 2021.

“You can’t be in constant survival mode, always on adrenaline, and not get hurt.” However I’ve found one thing else this 12 months. Preventing for survival is what retains you going for a very long time. “It’s not easy to stay motivated every day when you’re no longer in a survival mode,” he added.

Musk is perhaps a difficult particular person thus far.

Most of the women Musk used thus far or marry had been interviewed by Isaacson. Musk is clearly a troublesome man thus far because of quite a lot of traits, together with his laser give attention to his companies and his lack of empathy and social understanding.

“Elon and I were used to having big arguments in public,” Justine Musk defined to Isaacson. “I don’t think you can be in a relationship with Elon and not argue.”

Musk delayed his honeymoon with Justine by months in order that he might finalize X.com’s merger with PayPal, and so they needed to lower it quick because of firm upheaval.

Justine informed Isaacson that Elon Musk inspired her to bleach her hair blonder and that she felt like a “trophy wife.”

“I met him when he didn’t have much at all,” Isaacson stated. “The accumulation of wealth and fame changed the dynamic.”

“The strong will and emotional distance that makes him difficult as a husband may be reasons for his success in running a business,” she added.

In the meantime, Grimes informed Isaacson that his emotional volatility and incapacity to understand different individuals’s emotions could be troublesome to cope with at instances.

In response to Isaacson, Musk emailed a photograph of his then-girlfriend Grimes having a C-section when she was pregnant with X to their associates and family, together with her father and brothers. Grimes acknowledged he had “no idea” why she was sad about it.

However he has a gentle facet as effectively.

Although the ebook exposes Musk’s tumultuous relationships with a variety of individuals, together with family, associates, companions, and enterprise associates, it additionally reveals how tender he could be at instances. Isaacson, particularly, portrays Musk as a faithful father to X AE A-XII, usually referred to as “baby X,” his first child with Grimes.

“X had an otherworldly sweetness that calmed and beguiled Musk, who craved his presence,” Isaacson wrote. He carried X in every single place.”

Musk additionally moved in together with his father when he was 10 years outdated as a result of he didn’t need him to be lonely, in keeping with Isaacson. Musk’s cousin Peter Rive informed Isaacson that taking part in “Dungeons and Dragons” with Musk as a toddler introduced out the “incredibly patient” and “beautiful” sides of Musk.

When Musk’s ex-wife Talulah Riley’s shut good friend died in 2021, he rushed to England to be together with her, “and he just made me laugh instead of cry,” she informed Isaacson.

Musk’s politics are starting to resemble these of his father.

Whereas Musk has lower off contact together with his father, Errol Musk, Isaacson believes the billionaire’s political angle is rising to resemble his father’s.

Errol’s sons, in keeping with Isaacson, had been generally delay by their father’s political rants. In 2022, for instance, Errol despatched Musk an e-mail by which he labeled the COVID-19 epidemic “a lie” and referred to President Joe Biden as a “freak, criminal, pedophile president” who was out to destroy all of the US stood for, “including you.” Isaacson penned.

In response to the biography, Musk started to exhibit the same proclivity, which was sparked partially by his daughter Vivian Jenna Wilson’s option to terminate connections with him. Musk, in keeping with Isaacson, blamed the disconnect on the “woke mind virus.”

Musk has gone from publicly supporting the Democratic Celebration to publicly criticizing President Joe Biden, repeating anti-transgender content material on X, and advocating conspiracy theories lately.

“Musk’s tweet showed his growing tendency (like his father) to read wacky fake-news sites purveying conspiracy theories, a problem that Twitter had writ large,” Isaacson wrote of Musk’s determination to put in writing a few conspiracy concept tied to Nancy Pelosi’s husband’s assassination.

And, like his father, a lot of Musk’s household is against his political beliefs.

Kimbal Musk warned his brother, “It’s not okay,” after he tweeted, “My pronouns are Prosecute/Fauci.” “It’s not amusing. You’re not going to be able to do that.”