[SgtBastard]

So when you say “his” companies, do you mean:

PayPal (not founded by Musk) Tesla (not founded by Musk) The Boring Company (only existed to de-rail a planned road development that annoyed Musk) SpaceX (I’ll give you this one)

[influxmoment]

Yea this is a fail. Honestly be more interesting if people made more genuine arguments. He clearly paid a major role in Tesla. This is answer above is a whole lot of LARPing

[SgtBastard]

Yes. He definitely did “paid” his way into a role at Tesla… Freud would be proud.

The Tesla roadster was shipping to customers before Musk became CEO.

[influxmoment]

Is there more to his story that matches exactly Elons version? He was largest shareholder and then CEO. Yes more LARPing by insecure haters. And then he slept for 7 years, right? And Tesla builds a million cars a year... somehow

[SgtBastard]

Friend, your English is so poor I don’t understand what you’re saying: who are you referring to when you say “his story” besides Musk.

Pointing out that Musk has had his greatest successes working at other peoples companies (with the exception of SpaceX, which I’ll grant you) doesn’t make anyone an “LARPing insecure hater”.

[danieljacksonno]

Tesla was nothing before Musk. It's disingenuous to say he didn't found it, just because he bought the name, logo and a prototype from someone else

[fhd2]

From what I've read, he bought in as an investor and forced the actual founders out.

He could just as well have founded his own company, then he'd be a founder, because that's what that word means. I don't see how you should be called a founder if you aren't, well, a founder.

Not that I see anything inherently bad or unimpressive with not being a founder.

[SgtBastard]

And by nothing, you mean shipping the Tesla Roadster to customers before he became CEO.

Don’t rewrite history… it’s beneath HN. Do better.

[Cipater]

Musk became Chairman of Tesla and largest shareholder in February 2004. He oversaw Roadster production.

The first Roadster was delivered in February 2008. To Elon, by the way.

[SgtBastard]

>largest individual shareholder.

FTFY.

The rest of your comment neither refutes my point nor reinforces the earlier comment that Tesla was nothing but a name, brand and prototype: Chairmen oversee board meetings, not gnarly technical challenges on the production floors. No doubt once he became CEO (after the roadster was shipping) he became more involved in the day to day.