Category Archives: Elon Musk

Elon Musk

Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg

Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg

Elon Musks Space Exploration Technologies Corp. is close to finalizing $2 billion in new funding after the company increased the size of the round due to strong demand, according to people familiar with the matter.

Fidelity Investments, an existing investor, is one of the biggest participants in the round, one of the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private.

A representative for Hawthorne, California-based SpaceX didnt immediately respond to a request for comment. A representative for Fidelity declined to comment.

The company had been in discussions to raise about $1 billion at a price of $270 a share, Bloomberg News previously reported. Not including the new funds, that wouldve valued SpaceX at $44 billion.

More from

Hyperdrive

When the transaction is finalized, the company will have an equity value of $46 billion, including the fresh $2 billion in capital. This ranks SpaceX as one of the most valuable U.S. venture-backed companies.

The $2 billion round, which was oversubscribed, would be the largest fundraising so far for SpaceX, according to PitchBook. It also comes just as SpaceX pulled off its most highest-profile mission.

SpaceXs Dragon capsule returned to earth safely this month, the first mission in which U.S. astronauts flew to the International Space Station on American spacecraft since the shuttle program ended in 2011.

For SpaceX, the flight was a signature achievement 18 years after Musk founded the company with the ultimate goal of populating other planets. The mission also cements SpaceXs spot as the most valuable firm in the New Space industry.

SpaceXs previous investors include Peter Thiels Founders Fund, Alphabet Inc., Baillie Gifford and Valor Equity Partners.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration has been a key partner and customer for SpaceX. It said on Friday that it was targeting Oct. 23 for its first operational mission with SpaceX.

With assistance by Annie Massa, and Dana Hull

Before it's here, it's on the Bloomberg Terminal.

Link:

SpaceX Increases Latest Funding Round to $2 Billion - Bloomberg

The mantra of continuous learning vital for success is perhaps why Tesla and SpaceX billionaire CEO Elon Musk hired brain coach Jim Kwik. (Elon Musk) brought me in because he realized, (like) the most successful people on the planet realize, that in order to be successful, you have to always be learning, Kwik told CNBC. He said that Musk hired him after they bonded over science fiction books like Isaac Asimovs Foundation Series and Lord of the Rings. Speed reading and memory trainer Kwik runs Kwik Learning based in New York and has clients including Google, Virgin, Nike, Fox Studios, GE, and more, according to his website.

According to Kwik, Musk already had an incredible memory to start given that he was familiar with multiple memory techniques taught by Kwik. The technology entrepreneur and philanthropist Musk also had Twik teach his techniques to a few researchers and rocket scientists at SpaceX. However, while Musk tweeted that Kwiks ideas sound sensible but he was not my or SpaceXs brain coach. I think he maybe gave a talk once. Neither Tesla nor Kwik hadnt responded to requests for comments.

Also read:From Google to Disney and even Indian Railways, how brands paid tributes to MS Dhoni onretirement

These techniques by Kwik were published in his book Limitless Limitless: Upgrade your brain, learn anything faster, and unlock your exceptional life. The three tips according to Kwik for better learning are, first, eliminate automatic negative thoughts (ANTs) that say one cannot learn anything new by talking back to them and saying I can learn that. Second, Kwik suggested to eat brain foods like Avocados, Blueberries, Broccoli, Eggs etc. to improve muscle control and sensory perception like seeing, hearing, memory etc. And third, he suggested daily reading as its benefits compound over time. The key is consistency, he wrote in the book.

Meanwhile, Musks SpaceX is nearing finalizing $2 billion funding up from earlier discussions of raising $1 billion, Bloomberg reported. The company will have an equity value of $46 billion once the deal is closed, making it among the most valuable US venture-funded companies. Its Dragon capsule had returned to Earth this month after completing the first mission wherein the US astronauts flew to the International Space Station since the shuttle programme ended in 2011.

Get live Stock Prices from BSE, NSE, US Market and latest NAV, portfolio of Mutual Funds, calculate your tax by Income Tax Calculator, know markets Top Gainers, Top Losers & Best Equity Funds. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Financial Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with the latest Biz news and updates.

Read this article:

Meet brain coach hired by Tesla, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and his three tips to speed up memory - The Financial Express

The internet

Musk believed the internet, nascent in the '90s, would "fundamentally change humanity," he said on the podcast.

"I would not regard this as a profound insight but rather an obvious one," Musk said.

He compared the internet to the human nervous system: "If you didn't have a nervous system, you wouldn't know what's going on. Your fingers wouldn't know what's going on. Your toes wouldn't know what's going on. You'd have to do it by diffusion," he said.

"The way information used to work was by diffusion. One human would have to call another human or write them in a letter. [That was] extremely slow diffusion. And if you wanted access to books, and you did not have a library, you don't have it. That's it."

He knew the internet could change all that.

And while Musk only had minimal access to the internet at the time (only to use it for his physics studies, he said), he knew the internet would be a "fundamental and profound change."

"Now, you have access to all books instantly, and you can be in a remote mountaintop location and have access to all of humanity's information if you got a link to the internet," he said on the podcast. "Now suddenly, human organisms anywhere would have access to all the information instantly."

Musk believed "making life multi-planetary and making consciousness multi-planetary" would change the world, he said on the podcast.

As a child, Musk was influenced by a variety of science fiction booksand he believed he'd one day "[build] spaceships to extend the human species's reach," according tothe book"Elon Musk." (Musk previously said that theseven-book "Foundation" science fiction series by scientist and author Isaac Asimov, for example, was "fundamental to the creation of his aerospace company, SpaceX.")

On May 30, SpaceXsuccessfully launched two NASA astronautsinto orbit for the first time. It was a milestone forhuman spaceflightand got Musk one step closer to achievinghis Mars ambitions.

Just as a character in the 1997 movie Gattaca undergoes genetic engineering to pursue his dream of space travel, according to Musk, when he was younger he believed being able to change human genetics could change the world.

And it's happening today, with technology like Crispr, Musk said on the podcast.

"It will become normal, I think, to change the human genome for getting rid of diseases or propensity to various diseases," he said. "That's going to be like the first thing you'd want headed out. If you've got a situation where you're definitely going to die of some cancer at age 55, you'd prefer to have that edited out."

"There's the Gattaca sort-of extreme thing where it's not really edited out but it's edited in for various enhancements and that kind of thing," he said, "which probably will come too."

"I'm not arguing for or against it," Musk said. "I'm just saying it's more likely to come than not down the road."

As a teenager, Musk felt a "personal obligation" for the fate of mankind and felt inspired to create "cleaner energy technology" one day, according to the book"Elon Musk."

So he believed that sustainable energy would change the future.

"Sustainability, actually, was something that I thought was important before the environmental implications became as obvious as they are," he said on the podcast. "If you mine and burn hydrocarbons[compounds that form the basis of natural gas, oil and coal], then you're going to run out of them. It's not like mining metals.... We will never run out of metals, but we will run out of hydrocarbons."

He said the future may bring a carbon taxthat would raisethe cost of burning fossil fuels to mitigate climate change, which is a "no brainer."

In 2004, Musk invested in and became a co-founder ofelectric car companyTesla.Hebecame CEO in 2008. On Wednesday, Tesla became the world's most valuable automakerwhen the electric vehicle company's market capitalization surpassed Toyota's for the first time.

"AI is a really major one" too, Musk said on the podcast.

In 2019,at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai, Musk (who co-founded non-profit AI research lab OpenAIbut laterleft the company's board) said computers will "surpass us in every way," including scary things, likejob disruptionfrom robots or even apotentialAIracethatleadstoa third World War.

AI is "capable of vastly more than almost anyone knows and the rate of improvement is exponential," he saidhe said at the 2018 South by Southwest tech conference.

Musk also founded machine intelligence venture Neuralink, because he believes humans must merge with AI to avoid becoming irrelevant.

"We do want a close coupling between collective human intelligence and digital intelligence,"he said at the SXSW conference, "and Neuralink is trying to help in that regard by trying creating a high bandwidth interface between AI and the human brain."

Check out: The best credit cards of 2020 could earn you over $1,000 in 5 years

Don't miss:

Follow this link:

In college, Elon Musk thought these 5 things would change the world - CNBC

Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted that its time to break up Amazon, calling it a monopoly.

Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk recently made headlines after tweeting, "Take the red pill" since the term "red pill" is sometimes used in reference to Republican politics.

His 36.5 million followers grew even more curious about the phrase's meaning after presidential adviser and first daughter Ivanka Trump replied to the May 17 tweet saying, "Taken!"

WHAT IS ELON MUSK'S NET WORTH?

Musk's tweet came after the engineer made statements on- and offline about his support for plans to start reopening the country amid the coronavirus pandemic and help get Americans back to work, thus aligning his stance with that of President Trump's.

The billionaire thanked the president on Twitter after Trump tweeted, "California should let Tesla &@elonmusk open the plant, NOW. It can be done Fast & Safely!"

WHERE ARE TESLA'S GIGAFACTORIES?

But despite his cryptic tweet, it is unclear whether Musk would label himself as a Republican; in the past, the billionaire has described himself as an "independent" and"halfDemocrat, halfRepublican."

Tesla and SpaceX Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk speaks during a round table discussion with President Donald Trump at Kennedy Space Center. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

"I am somewhere in the middle," Musk said at a 2011 tech conference hosted by The Atlantic and UC San Diego. "Socially liberal and fiscally conservative."

In a 2013interview with the Huffington Post, Musk said he donates heavily to both Democrats and Republicans.

"In order to have your voice be heard in Washington, you have to make some little contribution," Musk told the outlet. "But I have found Washington to be really I guess it depends on what your benchmark is but I havent found Washington to be as corrupt as a lot of people think it is, meaning its not as coin-operated as some people may assume, and Im very, actually, grateful for that, because if it were, we would have zero chance."

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

In a more recent 2018 tweet, Musk said he is a registered independent.

"To be clear, I am not a conservative. Am registered independent & politically moderate. Doesnt mean Im moderate about all issues. Humanitarian issues are extremely important to me & I dont understand why they are not important to everyone," Musk wrote.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS

See the original post:

Is Elon Musk a Republican? - Fox Business

Elon Musk has spoken out after a picture of him and Prince Andrew's former pal Ghislaine Maxwell went viral.

The picture, taken at a Vanity Fair party in 2014, has resurfaced in the wake of Maxwell's arrest in connection with the sex crimes of her ex-boyfriend, convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

SpaceX and Tesla founder Musk has claimed he didn't realise Maxwell was in the shot at the time and said she "photobombed" him.

Now he has appeared to accuse someone of paying for troll accounts to push the picture.

Taking to his Twitter account, Elon, 49, wrote: "Someone is paying for hundreds of bots and trolls to push this lame Vanity Fair photobomb pic. I wonder who..."

On Thursday, Twitter user Justin Horwitz shared the picture of Musk and Maxwell, writing: "This should be a bigger story."

The tweet was then shared by journalist Ken Klippenstein, who retweeted the original, adding sarcastically: "Be a shame if people just replied to all of Elon Musk's tweets with this pic."

Maxwell, 58, was arrested on Thursday at an address in New Hampshire, after she disappeared from the public eye following the death of Jeffrey Epstein in prison in New York in August 2019.

She is alleged to have groomed young girls for Epstein, who was a former friend of Prince Andrew.

Musk has denied ever knowing Maxwell, tweeting early on Friday: "Don't know Ghislaine at all. She photobombed me once at a Vanity Fair party several years ago."

He went on: "Real question is why VF invited her in the first place."

The Vanity Fair party attended by Maxwell and Musk took place six years after Epstein pleaded guilty to procuring an underage girl for prostitution and of soliciting a prostitute in Florida - but before his 2019 arrest on federal charges for the sex-trafficking of minors.

Replying to Musk on Twitter, one user wrote: "They love to use this against you on forums but... it sounds like Epstein was just trying to get his hands on you."

Musk replied: "Pretty much."

Maxwell is now awaiting transfer to New York to face charges of procuring girls as young as 14 for Epstein to sexually abuse.

She could even be held in the same Manhattan jail where her ex-boyfriend was found dead in his cell last year.

If convicted on all counts, Maxwell faces at least 35 years behind bars.

Read this article:

Elon Musk hits out over Ghislaine Maxwell picture - 'someone is pushing this' - Daily Star

On Wednesday, Kanye West tweeted a photo of himself and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, presumably hanging out at Musk's house. The two have been friends for a while Musk wrote West's Time 100 blurb in 2015, saying his friend "does think. Constantly. About everything."

Despite the ongoing friendship, the photo generated waves online, racking up more than 273,000 likes in just a few hours. Its engagement outpaced some of West's tweets from earlier in the week, like the one in which he congratulated his wife, Kim Kardashian West, on "becoming a billionaire" with a photo of some vegetables.

The photo of West and Musk bore a simple caption: "When you go to your boys house and you're both wearing orange," followed by the orange emoji.

There's a lot to unpack in this photo, and Business Insider's Avery Hartman did so, breaking down everything from Musk's shoe choice to the scenery. Still who took the photo?

Grimes? @kanyewest/Twitter

Grimes' reflection appears visible in the surface behind Musk and West, holding up a phone in a way that suggests that she was the one who shot it (it should be noted that she does not appear to be wearing orange).

Musk and his girlfriend Grimes, whose real name is Claire Boucher, recently had a child together named X AE A-Xii. The name was first announced to be X A-12, but the couple apparently had to change it because California law allows only standard English characters on a birth certificate.

More here:

A reflection in a photo of Elon Musk and Kanye West appears to show Grimes taking the picture - Insider - INSIDER

Musk's Quarter-End Email

Electrek is reporting on a leaked email from Elon Musk to all Tesla employees on Monday afternoon as Tesla approaches the end of their second quarter on June 30th.

For many reasons, a great deal of Tesla execution worldwide is packed intothe final week of the quarter. It is very important that we go all out throughend of June 30 to ensure a good outcome. Wouldnt bring this up if not veryimportant.

Thanks Elon [sic] - Elon Musk

The more bullish faction of Tesla observers seem to believe Musk's email points to efforts to post a positive GAAP profit in Q2, the last remaining hurdle to Tesla's eligibility for inclusion in the S&P 500. However, Musk has recently expressed his belief that TSLA's stock price is too high, so investor excitement over potential share price upside as a result of S&P 500 inclusion is likely not all that important to Musk. If Tesla does not meet the requirements with their second quarter results, they are likely to qualify after Q3. Nevertheless, GAAP profitability in a quarter containing a global pandemic and lengthy factory downtime would be a significant and highly-motivating achievement to pursue regardless of the S&P 500 implications.

Before assuming Musk's email is bullish, it's also important to consider previously leaked quarter-end emails. InQ1 of 2019, a leaked Musk emaildiscussing quarter-end execution preceded tough delivery and production numbers, poor earnings, and a significant decline in TSLA's share price.

For the last ten days of the quarter, please consider your primary priority to be helping with vehicle deliveries. This applies to everyone. As challenges go, this is a good one to have, as we've built the cars and people have bought the cars, so we just need to get the cars to their new owners! - Elon Musk, Q1-2019

Though Tesla did face unprecedented delivery challenges with the international rollout of the Model 3 that quarter, deliveries were not the only pain point at the time. Teslas production in Q1 of 2019 was down roughly 9,400 vehicles compared to the prior quarter. Historically, Tesla's production has grown quarter-over-quarter with the previous largest quarter-over-quarter production decline being just ~1,600 vehicles back in Q3 of 2014.

That's not to say the email is necessarily a bearish signal. Leaked Musk emails have preceded plenty of strong quarterly results. Both points of view are important to consider for TSLA investors or, more precisely, traders.

Firmware 2020.24.6 Rollout

Tesla firmware version 2020.24.6 has begun rolling out as an over-the-air update. With the update,Tesla's "Traffic Light and Stop Sign Control" functionality no longer requires driver confirmation to continue straight through intersections with a green light, as long as there is the presence of a lead vehicle.

Teslascope has shared the full release noteswhich include "Traffic Light and Stop Sign Control" for Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Additionally, some variants of Model S/X vehicles will have their maximum charging rate increased to 225 kW.

Significant updates to camera functionality are included in this update as well. Drivers can now view the side repeater cameras on screen in addition to the rear-view camera for added scope of visibility. Interestingly, Tesla has also finally enabled some functionality from the interior cabin camera on Model 3 and Model Y vehicles.

Help Tesla continue to develop safer vehicles by sharing camera data from your vehicle. This update will allow you to enable the built-in cabin camera above the rearview mirror. If enabled, Tesla will automatically capture images and a short video clip just prior to a collision or safety event to help engineers develop safety features and enhancements in the future. As usual, you can adjust your data sharing preferences by tapping Controls > Safety & Security > DATA SHARING > Allow Cabin Camera Analytics. Note: Cabin camera images and video clips will not be associated with your VIN to protect your privacy. - Tesla

The primary purpose of this camera is to allow monitoring for a future Tesla Network robotaxi scenario, but Tesla has decided to put the camera to use in the meantime to help improve the safety of their vehicles.

Progress on Texas Gigafactory Proposal

Travis County held a hearing today with Tesla representatives, local officials, and the general public to discuss Tesla's factory and tax break proposal. Tesla explained their request for property tax relief was due to Texas including equipment in their property tax calculations. As a vehicle manufacturer, Tesla's equipment is some of the most expensive in the world, and Tesla feels the taxes on that equipment would be prohibitive to operating successfully in the Texas location. Tesla pointed more significant incentive offers from other states, but expressed their interest in Travis County for three main reasons.

As should be expected, public feedback was mixed with varying levels of enthusiasm. Another hearing is scheduled for next week and will be followed by further deliberation.

Writing assistance by Pranshu Agarwal

Read more:

Leaked Elon Musk Email, Plus Tesla Firmware 2020.24.6 and Texas Gigafactory Hearing - TheStreet

SpaceXsuccessfully launched two NASA astronautsinto orbit for the first time on May 30 and in doing so, CEO Elon Musk reached a milestone inhuman spaceflightandis one step closer to achievinghis Mars ambitions.

Six of the SpaceX software team members who helped "develop and deploy software that flew Dragon," aka the Crew Dragon capsule used to launch the astronauts,held a Reddit"Ask Me Anything" sessionon June 6.

"We are here to answer any questions you might have about Dragon, software and working at SpaceX," the team wrote on Reddit.

The job of each team member varied from managing software development for the Crew Dragon Demo-2 launch torunning flight software and cybersecurity and each shared a bit of advice on how to get a job at SpaceX.

Here are the team's best tips on getting a software job at SpaceX.

During the AMA, a Reddit user who identified as a high school student asked, "What can I do if I want to get a software job at SpaceX sometime in the future?"

"Get your CS [computer science] degree or something similar" to "really make sure you know how things work,"Jeff Dexter, who runs flight software and cybersecurity at SpaceX, said.

"[E]ngineers who do well at SpaceX are meticulous in their understanding of how their code works, how the network works, how Linux works, how the hardware works, etc.," he explained.

Plus, many of theopenengineeringandsoftware job listingsat SpaceXinclude a bachelor's degree or higher education as a basic requirement.

In addition to a degree, "get real world experience building things and solving hard problems, either through hobby projects or in internships (at SpaceX!)," Dexter advised.

For instance, SpaceX has "noticed particularly good crossover between video game development and what we do,"John Dietrick, leader of the software development effort for Demo-2, said on Reddit."There are a lot of similar math-heavy and performance-centric problems in the two spaces."

In fact, Musk has said his own love of video games inspired him to start programming when he was 12, hecoded a video game called "Blastar," which he latersold for $500to trade publication PC and Office Technology magazine.

While a degree or experience can help, neither is the end all, be all.

"Having different people with different backgrounds (education, experience, and culturally) is a big plus on the team," Matt Monson, who used to work on Dragon and now leads Starlink software, said. "Not much of the team, for example, comes from an aerospace background. Different points of view help us see problems from different angles, and that quite often helps us see solutions we wouldn't have otherwise seen."

When it comes down to it, "we're really looking for a couple things: talent (potential) and the right attitude (desire for self improvement, serving the team over being selfish)," Monson says. "These are more important than specific experience, and we expect to be investing in people to help them grow."

As Musk himself tweetedin February, in order to work at SpaceX, "A super hardcore work ethic, talent for building things, common sense & trustworthiness are required, the rest we can train."

Check out: The best credit cards of 2020 could earn you over $1,000 in 5 years

Don't miss:

More:

How to land a job at Elon Musk's SpaceX, according to the rocket company's software team - CNBC

Elon Musk Is Attempting to Revolutionize HVAC Systems | 2020-06-19 | ACHR News This website requires certain cookies to work and uses other cookies to help you have the best experience. By visiting this website, certain cookies have already been set, which you may delete and block. By closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to the use of cookies. Visit our updated privacy and cookie policy to learn more. This Website Uses CookiesBy closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Learn MoreThis website requires certain cookies to work and uses other cookies to help you have the best experience. By visiting this website, certain cookies have already been set, which you may delete and block. By closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to the use of cookies. Visit our updated privacy and cookie policy to learn more.

Read more from the original source:

Elon Musk Is Attempting to Revolutionize HVAC Systems - ACHR NEWS

By: Trends Desk | New Delhi | Updated: June 18, 2020 11:44:43 am The artistic interpretation of Elon Musks tweets has been turned into a colouring book for all. (Source: @_ill_ink/Twitter)

SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk loves Twitter and has posted everything from cryptic tweets to memes, that have created buzz and controversy. One woman has now come up with artistic interpretations of these tweets and theyre part of a colouring book that costs $30 (Rs 2284).

Titled The Illuminated Tweets of Elon Musk, the 52-page colouring book has sketches based on the billionaire entrepreneurs tweets from July 2016 to May 2020. Colorado-based artist Salina Gomez, who is popularly known as Ill Ink online, has come up with the sketches that are arranged in a chronological order in the book. This is expected to allow people to understand the changes in Musks vision and development.

Musks Twitter feed, once I had found it, brought me a lot of joy, Gomez wrote on her Kickstarter page. I decided to take on the role of a gonzo editorial cartoonist reading the Musk Twitter Headlines, subjectively interpreting them in a whimsical, positive manner, all the while immersing myself in the Twitterverse experience.

I wanted to keep the book light-hearted. There is a page dedicated to a Jupiter is big tweet, which is literally just a huge drawing of Jupiter. Another image show group of people sitting around a huge table, with the planets sketched at the foreground based on Musks poll for Make the Mars technocracy real where over 92 per cent people voted for yes.

Another picture captures the excitement of Musks tweet which mentioned the first private passenger for a voyage around the moon, Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa.

Saying that mostly editorial cartoons focus on societal ills and corruption, the young illustrator said she wanted to set herself apart.

I wanted (and needed) to counterbalance the worlds problems with positive and hopeful content. Not only was Elon Musk the perfect person to focus the projects energy on, I wouldnt have even come up with the project if it werent for him. Musk is a once in a lifetime entrepreneur, engineer and visionary and I think it is right to say that this book is a byproduct of his profound determination to dream big, she added.

The crowdfunding campaign has created some buzz online already and the artist said she was overwhelmed with support.

(Source: illink/kickstarter)Promising rewards to fellow Musk followers, the artist has also created a special poster just for a campaign. Based on one of her favourite pages, the Cyborg Dragon poster is basically a whimsically coloured version of the April 2018 tweet: Oh btw Im building a cyborg dragon.

People who have backed the project and pledged to buy the book will receive their orders in time for Christmas. Gomez said she planned to send out 200 signed copies of her book starting October.

The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines

For all the latest Trending News, download Indian Express App.

IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd

Read the rest here:

Artist turns Elon Musks viral tweets into illustrations that are now part of a colouring book - The Indian Express