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Musk seems more of a marketer than an engineer to me, even though he's always characterized as one.

killjoywashere 6y ago
Musk has degrees in economics and physics. My undergrad is in physics and my dad is an engineer. They are definitely different skillsets. When I decided to build a treehouse for my kids, I came up with a clean sheet design. My dad saw my drift and walked me through a redesign the preserved the core idea. And then my neighbor, a general contractor, supervised the build (and pretty much doubled every safety margin along the way). My other neighbor (a self-employed roofer) did the crazy bits. I would be inclined to credit Musk with broad outlines and I would give him credit for being able to participate in the engineering process by asking some sensible questions. I would not be inclined to credit him with imposing tried-and-true design methods and constraints. Similarly, I would give him credit for broad outline path-to-profitability. I would not give him credit for day-to-day diligence of double-entry accounting that the CFO worries about or the contract negotiations his PMs answer to the CFO's staff for.
kergonath 6y ago
He never got any engineering training. The closest he got was a BA in Physics. But yes, he’s a good marketer and his first product is himself.
xirbeosbwo1234 6y ago
Musk has no engineering training whatsoever.
jiofih 6y ago
Not only he sold two tech companies where he worked as a software engineer early in his career, but he has been the chief engineer for SpaceX for almost twenty years, and the results of that kind of speak for themselves?
- mhh__ 6y ago
  Is his role at SpaceX for his ego or is he actually signing off on engine designs?
  - jiofih 6y ago
    They gave up on patents over a decade ago so we might never really know, but it’s widely reported that he designed the original falcon rocket, has a hand in the engine designs, the dragon capsule, the space suits, and now starship and everything surrounding it. For most people just being a part of one of these projects would be a mark of success...
plutonorm 6y ago
Have you even listened to him talk? Every word that comes out of his mouth is poured over to make sure that it contains truth.
- missedthecue 6y ago
  It's been 311 days since Elon Musk promised to produce ventilators at the SpaceX factory. It's been 546 days since Elon Musk claimed Tesla was increasing production of solar roofs towards one thousand per week by end of 2019 It's been 644 days since Elon Musk said there will be a million fully autonomous Tesla robotaxis in a year It's been 726 days since Elon Musk said Tesla would likely be cash flow positive in all quarters going forward. Tesla lost $702.1 million in Q1 2019 and $408 million in Q2 2019. It's been 747 days since Elon Musk said the new Roadster will use rocket technology that will allow it to fly It's been 761 days since Elon Musk said brake pads on a Tesla would never need to be replaced. It's been 817 days since Elon Musk said Teslas should be able to read and understand parking signage by end of 2019. It's been 902 days since Elon Musk tweeted funding was secured to take Tesla private at $420 a share. It's been 925 days since Elon Musk said he would rescue children stuck in a cave with a custom built mini-sub. It's been 929 days since Elon Musk pledged to fix Flint's lead water crisis. It's been 958 days since Elon Musk promised employees that there would be no more layoffs. They laid off 1000 employees 718 days ago. --- Truth doesn't seem like something he's particularly concerned with
  - leesec 6y ago
    Please do something else with your time.
    - missedthecue 6y ago
      https://elonmusk.today/ https://elonmusk.today/ that comment took me a minute to write.

Musk has degrees in economics and physics. My undergrad is in physics and my dad is an engineer. They are definitely different skillsets. When I decided to build a treehouse for my kids, I came up with a clean sheet design. My dad saw my drift and walked me through a redesign the preserved the core idea. And then my neighbor, a general contractor, supervised the build (and pretty much doubled every safety margin along the way). My other neighbor (a self-employed roofer) did the crazy bits. I would be inclined to credit Musk with broad outlines and I would give him credit for being able to participate in the engineering process by asking some sensible questions. I would not be inclined to credit him with imposing tried-and-true design methods and constraints. Similarly, I would give him credit for broad outline path-to-profitability. I would not give him credit for day-to-day diligence of double-entry accounting that the CFO worries about or the contract negotiations his PMs answer to the CFO's staff for.

kergonath 6y ago

He never got any engineering training. The closest he got was a BA in Physics. But yes, he’s a good marketer and his first product is himself.

xirbeosbwo1234 6y ago

Musk has no engineering training whatsoever.

jiofih 6y ago

Not only he sold two tech companies where he worked as a software engineer early in his career, but he has been the chief engineer for SpaceX for almost twenty years, and the results of that kind of speak for themselves?

mhh__ 6y ago
Is his role at SpaceX for his ego or is he actually signing off on engine designs?
- jiofih 6y ago
  They gave up on patents over a decade ago so we might never really know, but it’s widely reported that he designed the original falcon rocket, has a hand in the engine designs, the dragon capsule, the space suits, and now starship and everything surrounding it. For most people just being a part of one of these projects would be a mark of success...

plutonorm 6y ago

Have you even listened to him talk? Every word that comes out of his mouth is poured over to make sure that it contains truth.

missedthecue 6y ago
It's been 311 days since Elon Musk promised to produce ventilators at the SpaceX factory. It's been 546 days since Elon Musk claimed Tesla was increasing production of solar roofs towards one thousand per week by end of 2019 It's been 644 days since Elon Musk said there will be a million fully autonomous Tesla robotaxis in a year It's been 726 days since Elon Musk said Tesla would likely be cash flow positive in all quarters going forward. Tesla lost $702.1 million in Q1 2019 and $408 million in Q2 2019. It's been 747 days since Elon Musk said the new Roadster will use rocket technology that will allow it to fly It's been 761 days since Elon Musk said brake pads on a Tesla would never need to be replaced. It's been 817 days since Elon Musk said Teslas should be able to read and understand parking signage by end of 2019. It's been 902 days since Elon Musk tweeted funding was secured to take Tesla private at $420 a share. It's been 925 days since Elon Musk said he would rescue children stuck in a cave with a custom built mini-sub. It's been 929 days since Elon Musk pledged to fix Flint's lead water crisis. It's been 958 days since Elon Musk promised employees that there would be no more layoffs. They laid off 1000 employees 718 days ago. --- Truth doesn't seem like something he's particularly concerned with
- leesec 6y ago
  Please do something else with your time.
  - missedthecue 6y ago
    https://elonmusk.today/ https://elonmusk.today/ that comment took me a minute to write.