It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Musk is concerned about getting his fill of: 1) "hardcore" engineers, who I suspect aren't necessarily h1

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Musk is concerned about getting his fill of: 1) "hardcore" engineers, who I suspect aren't necessarily h1bs, but h1bs are the cudgel to motivate his workforce, and a safety net if they all tell Musk to go fly a rocket and quit. 2) inexpensive engineers; Musk is notoriously cost-conscious. I remember a humorous story about his left-wing anti-establishment wife who complained that she had to eat peanut butter sandwiches in a modest home. I guess she figured if she was selling out she deserved a palace and caviar. But to the point, Musk is incredibly frugal and cost-oriented. H1b satisfies his need for cheap talent, provides a safety net (point 1) and downward cost pressure (point 2) for non-h1b engineers. Now if we could only start out-sourcing our CEOs....