Category Archives: Elon Musk

SpaceX owner and Tesla CEO Elon Musk asked Twitter for "skit" ideas for his upcoming gig hosting Saturday Night Live. (Photo: Britta Pedersen-Pool/Getty Images)

As Elon Musk prepares to take the stage as the host of Saturday Night Live on May 8, the Tesla CEO and SpaceX chief engineer asked Twitter for a little bit of input. Naturally, the internet had plenty of opinions, including one from SNL star Chris Redd, who didn't miss the opportunity to jokingly rib Musk.

On Saturday, Musk tweeted his 52 million followers asking for some "skit ideas" for the iconic late-night show. In follow-up tweets, he threw out a couple possibilities, including "Irony Man defeats villains using the power of irony" and "Baby Shark & Shark Tank merge to form Baby Shark Tank." He also suggested "Woke James Bond."

In response, Redd, a cast member since 2017, shot back, "First I'd call 'em sketches," a jab at Musk's use of the word "skit." Redd's response got more than 29,000 likes.

But while other SNL stars have been critical of Musk's hosting gig, Emmy winner Redd suggested that wasn't the case here. In response to Chrissy Teigen feeling "secondhand uncomfortable" about the SNL situation, he replied, "everything is fine LMAO."

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And when another Twitter user jumped to Musk's defense by tweeting, "Whats Elons biggest sin I ask the SNL softies?" Redd set the record straight. "I'm a professional s*** talker you clown," he tweeted. "You sound dumb." Redd told another commenter he was "in roast mode."

Chris Redd (with co-star Aidy Bryant) poked fun at Musk's tweet. (Photo: Will Heath/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)

But last week's news that Musk would host the upcoming episode has stirred up some strong feelings among the cast. While SNL standout Aidy Bryant directly call out Musk by name, she posted a screenshot of a tweet from former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders which criticized how a small group of people "own more wealth than the bottom half of our people." Musk is known as one of the richest individuals in the world.

Aidy Bryant shared this after Musk's casting was announced. (Screenshot: Instagram/Aidy Bryant)

Fellow SNL star Bowen Yang also commented in his Instagram Stories last week, Entertainment Weekly reported. While the post has since expired, the comedian posted Musk's tweet saying Lets find out how live Saturday Night Live really is, adding What the f*** does this even mean? in response.

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Cast member Andrew Dismukes, meanwhile, posted a photo of legendary SNL alum Cheri Oteri with the statement Only CEO I want to do a sketch with is Cher-E Oteri."

SNL cast members who are upset about Musk's hosting gig reportedly have the option of not appearing in the episode, Page Six reported last week. However, it remains unclear if any cast members will sit the episode out.

Miley Cyrus is set to appear as musical guest on the May 8 episode.

In addition to SNL cast members, several other followers of Musk had plenty to say in response to his tweet looking for "skit ideas."

Activist and Parkland survivor Cameron Kasky responded with just a few words, saying "give your money to people who need it."

Another follower said Musk should perform a sketch that plays on his role in championing cryptocurrency Dogecoin, fittingly titled "The Dogefather."

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Elon Musk asked Twitter for 'skit' ideas for 'SNL,' and ...

Elon Musk will host SNL on May 8.

Elon Muskwill host NBC's Saturday Night Live this weekend. The billionaire businessman behindTeslaand SpaceX might seem like a strange choice for the hosting slot, which usually features actors, comedians and other Hollywood celebrities. But if sheer fame is a qualifier, Musk fits right in -- he has more than50 million Twitter followers, frequently makes headlines for his tweets, and is constantly right up there on the list ofrichest people in the world.

Here's a rundown of what to know about Musk's May 8 SNL appearance.

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Musk seems pretty pleased to be hosting the long-running NBC sketch comedy show. He's been tweeting reminders, including one last Tuesday in which he dubs himself the Dogefather. The tweet references the meme-themed cryptocurrencyDogecoin, which Musk has tweeted and talked about before.

For a short tweet, Musk's words may have had a real-world effect. Barrons reported a Dogecoin rally, reporting that the currency was up about 15 percent, to 31 cents, in Wednesday trading.

Musk has also been musing on Twitter about some skits for himself. He proposed a "Woke James Bond" idea, plus a play on Iron Man called "Irony Man - defeats villains using the power of irony." And he tweeted about a sketch in which "Baby Shark & Shark Tank merge to form Baby Shark Tank."

Others were quick to snark at Musk's skit ideas, with writer Ashley Feinberg tweeting, "Please if you work at SNL just let him do all of his ideas, from the bottom of my heart I beg you."

Naturally, there's been plenty.

Canadian musician Grimes, who shares a son with Musk,defended him on TikTokthis week when commenters attacked Musk over issues involving the environment and women's rights, while admitting he's definitely "been very immature at points on Twitter."

In 2018, Musk became involved in plans to rescue a Thai boys' soccer team trapped in a cave, flying in a team of engineers and proposing using a mini-submarine to save them. But when British cave explorer Vernon Unsworth criticized Musk's idea, Musk called Unsworth a "pedo guy" in a tweet. In 2019,a jury concludedMusk's words did not defame Unsworth.

"I wonder how much Musk paid NBC and Lorene Michaels for the gig," one Twitter user wrote, referring to SNL creator Lorne Michaels. "Bet it's enough to finance SNL's entire 2021-'22 season."

"Elon Musk hosting SNL is huge for guys still making 'that's what she said' jokes who think they'd be great at hosting SNL," wrote comedian and author Josh Gondelman.

Because some consider Musk a controversial figure, SNL reportedly told cast members theywill not be forced to act alongside him. So far none have publicly declined, but several cast members have commented on his coming to their show.

The SNL host has to work with its cast of seasoned comedians and writers, but rarely do those folks say anything about their host in advance. Not so for Musk.

SNL cast member Bowen Yang reacted to a Musk tweet.

On the day the news was announced, Muskconfirmed his appearanceand tweeted, "Let's find out just how live Saturday Night Live really is," with a purple smiling devil-face emoji.

Yang reacted in an Instagram story with a frowning face, and then said, "What the f--- does that even mean?"

Cast member Andrew Dismukes also commented on Musk's hosting in an Instagram story, referring to SNL alum Cheri Oteri, and writing "ONLY CEO I WANT TO DO A SKETCH WITH IS Cher-E Oteri."

Michael Che discussed Musk's appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, joking that he hoped someone would tell Musk it was tradition for hosts to "give, like, a couple million dollars to the cast members."

Cast member Aidy Bryant posted a quote from Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders that says, in part, "the 50 wealthiest people in this country own more wealth than some 165 MILLION Americans. That is a moral obscenity." Musk is regularly listed as either the world's richest person, or among the very richest.

Musk is certainly no stranger to the spotlight (or to cracking a joke). He's had cameos inIron Man 2,The Simpsonsand Rick and Morty --as Elon Tusk. And then there are the viral moments:taking a toke on Joe Rogan's podcast, that could-almost-have-been-a-comedy-routineCybertruck demo. And the tweets -- including the one whereMusk's head was Photoshopped onto the Rock's body. Musk also named hisactually-a-thingtunnel-digging businessThe Boring Company.

And he's not the only non-actor to host the NBC sketch comedy. Athletes such as Nancy Kerrigan and Lance Armstrong have hosted the show, as have politicians such as Rudy Giuliani and Al Gore. Even then-presidential candidate Donald Trump hosted in 2015.

Still, it's fair to say many were shocked when SNL announced Musk would host the May 8 show, with Miley Cyrus returning for her sixth SNL stint as musical guest. It's hard to imagine Musk cracking scripted jokes, and maybe even harder to imagine how he'll be portrayed in sketches.

Saturday Night Live airs Saturdays on NBC at 11:30 pm ET/8:30 pm PT, ending at 1 a.m/11 p.m.. If you don't care to watch live, SNL posts sketches on itsTwitterandYouTube accounts as the show goes on. Can't stay up that late? We'll be rehashing Musk's appearance here on CNET by the time you wake up on Sunday. And there will no doubt be plenty of reaction on social media.

If you do want to watch the show live and you're a cord-cutter, you can watch it with alive-TV streaming service.

Sling TV's $35-a-month Blue plan includes NBC, but only in a few select markets. If you don't live in one of those markets you won't be able to watch NBC or Saturday Night Live on Sling TV. The Blue plan also includes popular cable news channels such as CNN, Fox News and MSNBC.

Read our Sling TV review.

YouTube TV costs $65 a month and includes the four major networks -- NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox -- along with popular cable news channels including CNN, Fox News and MSNBC. Plug in your ZIP code on its welcome page to see which local networks are available in your area.

Read our YouTube TV review.

Hulu with Live TV costs $65 a month and includes the four major networks -- NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox -- along with popular cable news channels including CNN, Fox News and MSNBC. Click the "View channels in your area" link on its welcome page to see which local channels are offered in your ZIP code.

Read our Hulu with Live TV review.

FuboTV costs $65 a month and includes the four major networks -- NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox -- along with popular cable news channels including Fox News and MSNBC but not CNN. Click here to see which local channels you get.

Read our FuboTV review.

AT&T Now's basic $70-a-month Plus package includes the four major networks -- NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox -- along with popular cable news channels including CNN, Fox News and MSNBC. You can use itschannel lookup tool to see which local channels are available where you live.

Read our AT&T TV Now review.

CNET's Edward Moyer contributed to this report.

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Elon Musk hosting SNL this Saturday: What to know and how to watch - CNET

Neuralink President Max Hodak tweeted Saturday that he has left the company he co-founded with Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. Hodak didnt elaborate on why he left the company or elaborate on the circumstance for his departure. I am no longer at Neuralink (as of a few weeks ago), he tweeted. I learned a ton there and remain a huge cheerleader for the company! Onward to new things.

Neuralink is focused on developing brain-machine interfaces. Last month, the company posted a video to YouTube that appeared to show a monkey with a Neuralink implant in its brain moving a cursor on a computer screen using only its mind.

Musk and Hodak founded Neuralink along with several other people in 2016, and Musk has invested millions of dollars of his own money into the venture. Last year, Stat News reported that some former employees described a chaotic internal culture at Neuralink, saying that its scientists werent always given enough time to complete projects.

While Neuralink didnt invent brain-machine interfaces, its technology includes thin, flexible wires and more electrodes than other devices, potentially providing more data. Musk has stated that Neuralinks technology could one day be used to allow paraplegics to walk again and allow humans to achieve AI symbiosis, merging the human brain with an artificial intelligence.

But some in the scientific and medical communities have criticized Neuralink and are skeptical of its scientific claims; after an August 2020 demonstration of a pig that had a Neuralink device implanted in its brain, MIT Technology Review called the company neuroscience theater, and said most of the companys medical claims remain highly speculative.

And as The Verges Nicole Wetsman wrote last year, fixing the brain isnt an engineering problem. Scientists need to learn much more about how the brain works before any of the concepts Musk describes can come to pass, she added. The brain is still mysterious, and the neurological causes of things like anxiety and addiction are still unclear, Wetsman wrote.

Hodak didnt immediately reply to a request for comment Sunday.

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President of Elon Musks Neuralink venture tweets that hes left the company - The Verge

Elon Musk, Founder and Chief Engineer of SpaceX, speaks during the Satellite 2020 Conference in Washington, DC, United States on March 9, 2020.

Yasin Ozturk | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images

Dogecoin is on another frenzied run higher, this time briefly helping to break Robinhood's trading app in the process, and one analyst credits Elon Musk's upcoming "Saturday Night Live" appearance on May 8 for the latest spike.

The meme-inspired token is up nearly 30% on Tuesday and more than 11,000% this year.

Dogecoin's rally first began in February, thanks to a series of tweets from Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, and one analyst suggests that he's also responsible for the current move.

"Dogecoin is surging because many cryptocurrency traders do not want to miss out on any buzz that stems from Elon Musk's hosting of Saturday Night Live," wrote Edward Moya, senior market analyst at Oanda.

Although it started as a joke in 2013, Dogecoin has since gained a following that has helped to propel the token's value higher, driven in part by celebrity endorsements like those from Musk, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, Snoop Dogg and Kiss bassist Gene Simmons.

"If there becomes enough of a community around an asset, and that community decides to effectively create long-term value through some form of declining supply cap over time, that could actually equate to a valuable currency," said Mike Bucella, BlockTower Capital general partner.

"The real value is in today's meme-driven culture and doge represents the network value of memetics, which may prove to be enormous. If at some point, the DOGE community decides to implement a burn or new supply mechanism, via a protocol hard fork, then this value will have a higher likelihood of being retained long-term."

Dogecoin critics note that even proponents of the currency refuse to claim it has any inherent value, unlike promoters of currencies like bitcoin and ether. Moya writes that the dogecoin bubble should have popped by now, "but institutional interest is trying to take advantage of this momentum and that could support another push higher."

Some members of the SNL cast have grumbled via social media about the mercurial executive's appearance on the show.

Disclosure: "Saturday Night Live" is a TV show of NBCUniversal, the parent company of CNBC.

Disclosure: CNBC owns the exclusive off-network cable rights to "Shark Tank," which features Mark Cuban as a panelist.

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Elon Musk's upcoming SNL appearance is fueling dogecoin's rise, says analyst - CNBC

Bill Maher detested this years Oscars, from the films especially Best Picture to last Sundays low-rated telecast that he said dared you to be entertained.It used to get Super Bowl numbers, said the host ofReal Time With Bill MaherFriday. Its like the winner who thanks everyone, says Go to bed kids and the babysitter texts back, They already did.

No jokes, no songs, not even any clips of when we used to have fun, he said.

Mincing no words, his New Rules segment pitched Nomadland the series. Move overThat Girl,Mary Tyler MooreandAlice. Theres a new girl in town and shes sh-tting in a bucket, he said. We loves that she drifts around in a van, but can she be 19 and hot? Maybe give her a different supporting cast. A handsome guy, a funny guy, a lesbian best friend and a dog? They can solve mysteries. Call me,

His full ire, however, was directed elsewhere. Nothing with crypto in the title ever turned out good. There is a mania rising in the nation these days. He mocked cryptocurrencies as pointless, arbitrary, impossible to understandable, a Ponzi scheme, a game and a massive drain on the planets energy. Bitcoins are created through a process called mining that uses massive supercomputing power and he said backers like Tesla CEO Elon Musk who care about the climate should know better.

I fully understand that our financial system isnt perfect, but at least its real. Apple stock is worth money because Apple makes thousand dollar phones that everyone buys and drops in the toilet.

Capitalism does let you make money in the existing field of money. But we knew money had to originate from and be generated by something real, somewhere. To which cryptocurrency says, No, it doesnt.

Nothing is ever actually being accomplished and no actual product made or service rendered. Its like Tinker Bells light. Its power source is based solely on enough children believing in it, he said. Our problem is not economic but psychological. People who have been raised in a virtual world are starting to believe they can really live in it.

Otherwise the comedian was pretty pleased with the state of things, mainly Joe Biden, his speech before Congress on Wednesday and his solid polls that are driving Fox News nuts. To keep its base fired up, he said, the network had to resort to headlines claiming Biden plans to cut 90% of red meat from Americans diets one burger a month and to cancel Fourth of July.

That was last week. He offered Fox a few new headlines for the week ahead: Trump border wall to be melted down for giant statue of Colin Kaepernick; Fauci: Babies in the womb must wear masks and, In all depictions of Jesus, the Crown of Thorns to be replaced by a P-ssy Hat.

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Bill Maher Flays The Oscars -It Was Like, We Dare You To Be Entertained; Calls Out Elon Musk On Bitcoin - Deadline

Oh, Elon. You weren't satisfied with only tweeting about your upcoming Saturday Night Live appearance today so you decided to take another dig at former Tesla employee and current Lucid Motors CEO and CTO, Peter Rawlinson. We guess you just couldn't help yourself and had to tell the world that Rawlinson was never the Chief Engineer at Tesla.

The problem is, it appears as Elon isn't remembering it the same way Rawlinson does. But since that could be a simple case of he said, he said, we took the time to dig up some old Tesla Blog posts, videos, and even a screenshot of the Tesla website when Rawlinson worked there, courtesy of the Wayback Machine.

Rawlinson and I have spoken about this exact topic in the past, and luckily I still have the recording of our conversation. Here's how the man behind the Lucid Air explains what went on when Musk hired him to save and deliver the Model S.

"Elon reached out to me and said, look, I've got a bloody disaster on my hands, will you come and join us? I joined the company and I checked out where they were at. I remember it vividly. After the first few days at Tesla, I went to see Elon at Space-X on a Friday and he asked me: What do you think? I said Elon, it's a disaster. You're going to have to start again. He asked everything? I said yes, look, I know how to do this, let me design Model S from scratch. Elon asked: What, you mean nothing (can be saved)? I said if you want the best car, then trust me, it's from scratch. I thought well, he can only fire me, but he didn't, he said do it - and he meant it. He actually trusted me and empowered me to do it and we did do it." - Lucid Motors CEO and CTO Peter Rawlinson on how he was tasked by Elon Musk to engineer the Tesla Model S.

We found these two videos in which Rawlinson explains Model S engineering. These identify Rawlinson as the "VP of Engineering", not specifically the Chief Engineer, as he is described in other places on the Tesla website.

Part 1:

And here's Part 2:

Below is the announcement that Rawlinson had joined the Tesla team as Chief Vehicle Engineer. You can find the full post on the Tesla blog from April 20th, 2010.

InsideEVs did reach out to Lucid Motors for comment, but it appears the company doesn't want to give this story any more oxygen than it already has. A company spokesperson replied:We have no comment to make at this time. As you will already be aware, Peters focus is on putting the worlds best EV into production, a car with over 500 miles of range that delivers new benchmarks in efficiency, power, range, performance, charge rate and luxury.

There's also this piece from the Tesla website that also names Rawlinson as the Chief Engineer for Vehicle Engineering.

Personally, I do love much of Elon's colorful personality. Sure, I think Elon (and Tesla) would be better off without some of his more outrageous statements, but overall, I believe his confident swagger was needed to get Tesla to where they are today.

That said, it appears that Elon misremembers Rawlinson's history with Tesla, or, even worse, he's guilty of creating some revisionist history. If what we've shown above isn't enough, check out this video of Rawlinson from the 2011 Detroit Auto Show. Additionally, we discovered this list of patents that Rawlinson and members of his team filed for, related to his work at Tesla.

We certainly don't mind some competitive banter between rival EV companies, but it's important to point out misinformation, which, after reviewing the information we found, seems to be the case. Take a look at the above information and let us know what you think in the comment section below.

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Elon Tweets That Rawlinson Was Never Chief Engineer At Tesla, Except He Was - InsideEVs

Elon Musks SpaceX is aiming to take a giant leap in human spaceflight with its next mission.

The private rocket company is scheduled to send the first ever all-civilian crew into space as part of a flight scheduled for September.

America is changing faster than ever! Add Changing America to your Facebook or Twitter feed to stay on top of the news.

The Inspiration4 missionwill launch the four civilians into space where they will travel across a low Earth orbit on a multi-day journey that will continually eclipse more than 90% of the Earths population.

The civilian crew members include Jared Isaacman, an accomplished jet pilot and founder and CEO of Shift4 Payments; Hayley Arceneaux, a physician assistant; Sian Proctor, a teacher and communicator; and Chris Sembroski, an engineer at Lockheed Martin.

Isaacman, who will be commanding the mission, is funding the flight and arranged the mission as a fundraiser for St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital.

In fulfilling a personal and lifelong dream, I recognize the tremendous responsibility that comes with commanding this mission. While a historic journey awaits us in space, I hope this mission reinforces how far inspiration can take us and the extraordinary achievements it leads to here on Earth, Isaacman said.

On Sunday, SpaceXs Crew Dragon successfully carried NASA astronauts Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover and Shannon Walker, along with Japan Aerospace Agency astronaut Soichi Noguchi, back to Earth from the International Space Station.

The astronauts splashed down into the Gulf of Mexico just south of Panama City. The NASA Crew-1 astronauts had spent nearly six months in the International Space Stations (ISS) microgravity laboratory. The mission was the longest-ever duration for a crew launched in an American-built spacecraft.

SpaceX launched the crew to the ISS in November.

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Elon Musk's next SpaceX flight will have private citizens as the crew | TheHill - The Hill

Billionaire Microsoft founder Mr Gates and his wife, Melinda, are set to get divorced after 27 years. Announcing the news online, the couple said they made the decision after "a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, but will continue to work together on their foundation. Mr Gates, the fourth richest man in the world, married Melinda in January 1994, but stated that we no longer believe we can grow together as a couple in this next phase of our lives.

The 65-year-old is surpassed in wealth by only a handful of people in the world, including Mr Musk, but the pair have not always seen eye-to-eye.

They have both helped in the fight against COVID-19, with Mr Gates pledging $10million (7.21million) via the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Musk redirecting Tesla resources to source and produce ventilators and teaming up with the German biotech firm CureVac of which Mr Gates is an investor.

Since last March, Mr Musk has appeared to downplay the severity of the virus, criticised stay-at-home orders and seemed to question death data.

In an interview on CNBC's "Squawk Box" last July, Mr Gates appeared to question his involvement.

He said: "Elon's positioning is to maintain a high level of outrageous comments.

"He's not much involved in vaccines. He makes a great electric car. And his rockets work well. So he's allowed to say these things.

I hope he doesn't confuse areas he's not involved in too much."

And that seemed to ruffle Mr Musk, who responded by posting multiple tweets, including "Billy G is not my lover" and "the rumour that Bill Gates and I are lovers is completely untrue.

During a podcast interview with the New York Times, his tone seemed more serious.

READ MORE:Dogecoin warning: Musk just flexing power muscles as DOGE tipped for turbulent twist

He said what Mr Musk has accomplished with Tesla is one of the greatest contributions to climate change anyone's ever made and added that underestimating Elon is not a good idea.

Since Mr Gates met his wife at his company, their organisation has spent billions fighting causes such as infectious diseases and encouraging vaccinations in children.

The pair, along with investor Warren Buffett, are also behind the Giving Pledge, which calls on billionaires to commit to giving away the majority of their wealth to good causes.

Mr Gates stepped down from Microsoft's board last year to focus on his philanthropic activities.

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Elon Musk's fury with 'knucklehead' Bill Gates after shutting down 'lovers' claim - Daily Express

Originally posted onEVANNEX.

Formany kids after college, getting a job isnt so easy. Even if youre Elon Musk. It turns out that Musk had failed in his efforts to land a job in the internetindustryback in 1995.

According toNews18, Musk, now known for revolutionizing the electric vehicle market, in fact had failed to get a job at Netscape Communications, the company that created the first web browser, when he first reached Silicon Valley in the 90s.

A Twitter user with the handle Pranay Pathole wrote that when Musk applied at Netscape, he went to their office but was so shy that he didnt talk to anyone and later wasnt able to get a job anywhere.

The last part of the tweet drew Musks attention and he promptlyreplied to correct his admirer. I could get a job, just not at an Internet company (werent many back then), Musk replied.

Did this setback stop Elon Musk? Obviously not. Its reported that, A year after failing at Netscape, Musk launched his own company, Zip2, which [was] aimed at helping media companies come online. Compaq bought the company in 1999 and Musk co-founded PayPal, which eBay acquired for $1.5 billion in July 2002.

After helping media outlets enter the online arena and birthing the first successful online payment system, Musk could have easily stopped there, counted his money, and retired young. Instead, he decided to take on the auto, energy, and aerospace establishment with Tesla, SolarCity, and SpaceX.

Musks audacity doesnt stop there either. Now hes trying to end soul-crushing traffic with The Boring Company. Hes also trying to help create a safe, symbiotic future with AI via Neuralink. And it all started because a young Elon was too shy in the front lobby at his dream job.

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Elon Musk Couldnt Get the Job He Wanted, So He Got Busy Changing the World - CleanTechnica

Yet Virgin Galactic forges ahead. It plans to resume its rocket-powered flight test program in May, and its new chief executive, Michael Colglazier, the former head of Disneys international theme park division, appears intent on dealing with past difficulties. It recently unveiled a spaceship that includes metallic fasteners that help prevent disbonding, and a stability augmentation system that automates an aspect of the flight and allows for a smoother ride.

While these changes could address some of Virgin Galactics problems, its DNA as a rocket plane company remains the same a DNA that may present its greatest challenge, according to Luke Colby, a propulsion engineer who worked on Virgin Galactics spaceship program for nearly a decade and has also consulted for SpaceX and Blue Origin. If you want a space vehicle to be fully reusable for airline-like traffic, it doesnt have to look like an airplane, Mr. Colby said. It just has to function like one. And the physics really drive you toward a two-stage, vertical-take-off-and-vertical-landing rocket.

He accepted that Virgin Galactic is likely to be remembered as one of the first but not necessarily the most successful of the first new space companies a sobering admission. Its problem, he said, was that the company was driven by nostalgia for aeronautical flight. Blue Origin and SpaceX, on the other hand? They have been driven by the physics of spaceflight, he said.

Physics presented one challenge; human nature posed another. Put simply, Virgin Galactic has set a standard of perfection for itself that is noble but nave. As one test pilot said, Ninety-nine percent isnt good enough. An accident rate of less than 1 percent on an experimental rocket ship? Near impossible. Those are the hard realities of romance.

Perhaps thats what made this company so fascinating to watch: its hope, in spite of the odds. I wanted to see it succeed not because I cared who won the private space race but because I admired the passion and optimism shared by the techs and engineers and test pilots on the project. We can only hope when we fear failure, and that was one thing algorithms couldnt yet do: hope. The human factor had worked its magic on me.

My kids felt it, too. They still talk about watching that ship blast off and then later standing at the foot of the stage while Beth Moses, elated at what shed just witnessed, struggled to find the words to articulate her experience, while her husband and her own children gazed up at her in awe.

That, she said, is an indescribable ride.

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Opinion | Why Virgin Galactic Couldn't Beat Elon Musk to Space - The New York Times