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Is it possible he did a good job with his successful ventures, and a bad job with the unsuccessful ones? I find it difficult to believe both SpaceX and Tesla w

Is it possible he did a good job with his successful ventures, and a bad job with the unsuccessful ones? I find it difficult to believe both SpaceX and Tesla was 100% pure luck and chance. Not even the devil is that lucky.

georgeg23 3y ago
SpaceX (at least) was a government venture, funded by DARPA and the CIA to enable a program that isn't too hard to figure out when you look at the people involved. It's rather political, and debated within the clearance community. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_D._Griffin#Career https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_D._Griffin#Career
- red-iron-pine 3y ago
  > In 2002, Griffin was president and COO of In-Q-Tel, a private enterprise funded by the CIA to identify and invest in companies developing cutting-edge technologies that serve national security interests. During this time, he met entrepreneur Elon Musk and accompanied him on a trip to Russia where they attempted to purchase ICBMs. The unsuccessful trip is credited as directly leading to the formation of SpaceX.[8] Griffin was an early advocate for Musk calling him a potential “Henry Ford for the rocket industry". In-Q-Tel is basically DARPA but for the CIA, btw. It's private mostly to help obfuscate initiatives and cashflows, as that's been the SOP for a lot of US black ops kinda stuff for a while; see also: Blackwater aka Academi aka whatever-they're-called-now, plus other chunks of the contractor sphere. Wagner, the Russian mercs, were an attempt to duplicate that effort.
raphaelj 3y ago
Musk took over Tesla a few months after the Model S got announced. By that time, one could expect that most of the development teams and roadmaps were well in place.
adventured 3y ago
Every single thread where he's the topic, without exception, focuses at least in part on attempting to strip Musk of any accomplishment. He is allowed to have accomplished absolutely nothing. There must be zero redeeming value to his existence. The extreme nature of the focused attacks on him today are fascinating to watch in terms of how angry, irrational mobs form on targets and attack until there's nothing left (and then they keep attacking, because some people are late to the party). They attack his parenting. They attack his business successes. They attack his mental capabilities and rationality. They attack his character. They attack his family and background. They lie about all of the above to whatever extent is necessary. This goes on here, on Reddit, Twitter, wherever a discussion about Musk arises. The only difference between HN and Reddit on this topic is that HN is slightly more highbrow, although the same general attacks get repeated here as they do on Reddit. Someone on Reddit yesterday was proclaiming that he "attached" himself to the SpaceX success and deserved zero credit for it. That rather nicely encompasses what's going on. It's one of the biggest shit shows in the history of the Internet. It's embarrassing - as a human - to watch so many people desperately rolling around in the muck to participate.
- Tainnor 3y ago
  Regardless of whether you think Elon Musk is talented or not, I can't really agree that people hating on one of the richest and most influential people in the world constitutes one of "the biggest shit shows in the history of the internet". We're talking about the same internet in which Facebook's algorithms contributed to violence against the Rohingya. What people think about Elon Musk is simply of no significance by comparison.
- JAM1971 3y ago
  > This goes on here, on Reddit, Twitter, wherever a discussion about Musk arises. The only difference between HN and Reddit on this topic is that HN is slightly more highbrow, although the same general attacks get repeated here as they do on Reddit. My casual observation says that HN has become more "Reddit-Like" in terms of low quality and off-topic posting since the whole Reddit API/MOD debacle. And yes, I see the irony. I get it.
JuanPosadas 3y ago
Except paypal, most of his "successful ventures" are just buying established companies and branding himself all over them.
- mirekrusin 3y ago
  That's what you do once you have money because time is more expensive.

georgeg23 3y ago

SpaceX (at least) was a government venture, funded by DARPA and the CIA to enable a program that isn't too hard to figure out when you look at the people involved. It's rather political, and debated within the clearance community. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_D._Griffin#Career https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_D._Griffin#Career

red-iron-pine 3y ago
> In 2002, Griffin was president and COO of In-Q-Tel, a private enterprise funded by the CIA to identify and invest in companies developing cutting-edge technologies that serve national security interests. During this time, he met entrepreneur Elon Musk and accompanied him on a trip to Russia where they attempted to purchase ICBMs. The unsuccessful trip is credited as directly leading to the formation of SpaceX.[8] Griffin was an early advocate for Musk calling him a potential “Henry Ford for the rocket industry". In-Q-Tel is basically DARPA but for the CIA, btw. It's private mostly to help obfuscate initiatives and cashflows, as that's been the SOP for a lot of US black ops kinda stuff for a while; see also: Blackwater aka Academi aka whatever-they're-called-now, plus other chunks of the contractor sphere. Wagner, the Russian mercs, were an attempt to duplicate that effort.

raphaelj 3y ago

Musk took over Tesla a few months after the Model S got announced. By that time, one could expect that most of the development teams and roadmaps were well in place.

adventured 3y ago

Every single thread where he's the topic, without exception, focuses at least in part on attempting to strip Musk of any accomplishment. He is allowed to have accomplished absolutely nothing. There must be zero redeeming value to his existence. The extreme nature of the focused attacks on him today are fascinating to watch in terms of how angry, irrational mobs form on targets and attack until there's nothing left (and then they keep attacking, because some people are late to the party). They attack his parenting. They attack his business successes. They attack his mental capabilities and rationality. They attack his character. They attack his family and background. They lie about all of the above to whatever extent is necessary. This goes on here, on Reddit, Twitter, wherever a discussion about Musk arises. The only difference between HN and Reddit on this topic is that HN is slightly more highbrow, although the same general attacks get repeated here as they do on Reddit. Someone on Reddit yesterday was proclaiming that he "attached" himself to the SpaceX success and deserved zero credit for it. That rather nicely encompasses what's going on. It's one of the biggest shit shows in the history of the Internet. It's embarrassing - as a human - to watch so many people desperately rolling around in the muck to participate.

Tainnor 3y ago
Regardless of whether you think Elon Musk is talented or not, I can't really agree that people hating on one of the richest and most influential people in the world constitutes one of "the biggest shit shows in the history of the internet". We're talking about the same internet in which Facebook's algorithms contributed to violence against the Rohingya. What people think about Elon Musk is simply of no significance by comparison.
JAM1971 3y ago
> This goes on here, on Reddit, Twitter, wherever a discussion about Musk arises. The only difference between HN and Reddit on this topic is that HN is slightly more highbrow, although the same general attacks get repeated here as they do on Reddit. My casual observation says that HN has become more "Reddit-Like" in terms of low quality and off-topic posting since the whole Reddit API/MOD debacle. And yes, I see the irony. I get it.

JuanPosadas 3y ago

Except paypal, most of his "successful ventures" are just buying established companies and branding himself all over them.

mirekrusin 3y ago
That's what you do once you have money because time is more expensive.