[maxharris]

Please don't start on that, because it's very misleading. Everyone involved settled that dispute years ago (2009): http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-10357665-54.html?tag=mncol

Others had crucial roles as well, but without Musk providing the funding and management, Tesla would have just been another dead electric car company.

[foobarqux]

No, saying he is a founder is misleading. He played a critical role in Tesla and it surely would have failed if he were not involved but his initial involvement was as an investor in an existing enterprise.

There was a settlement that allows Musk to call himself "founder" in exchange for, I presume, some compensation. There was no legal ruling on facts only a private agreement between parties.