Like most CEOs, Musk’s job isn’t really to do things. His job is to weedle tax incentives, private investment, and low interest loans out of his network of rich friends.
He’s been incredibly successful at it. And that’s what makes Tesla valuable as a brand. The US government will pay you a cool $7500 to buy a brand new $80k cybertruck. Meanwhile, Chinese EVs are taxed at 100% of their sticker price.
Musk is abso-fucking-lutely NOT responsible for the tax incentives, private investment or low interest loans that Tesla got, he’s only been good as an eccentric personality to convince investors that he’s the best and full self driving will be a thing the following year… For the past 7 years.
Musk is abso-fucking-lutely NOT responsible for the tax incentives, private investment or low interest loans that Tesla got
He has wormed his way into a number of national economic advisory boards under both Barack Obama and Donald Trump. His close relationship with Peter Thiel and Catherine Duddy Wood has afforded him a number of opportunities to access investor cash at below-market rates. And he’s spent a fortune on lobbyists at both the state and federal level to influence public tax incentives, grants, loans, and bailouts.
he’s only been good as an eccentric personality
The reason he’s in the public eye is thanks to his extensive investment in PR and advertising. He’s one of the original Silicon Valley moneyballers, having determined that a small kickback to the tech media can reap enormous windfalls of retail investment cash and publicly approved state spending.
