Many hidden corners of the ‘notorious’ tycoon are revealed in journalist Walter Isaacson’s biography ‘Elon Musk’, including his arrogance and controversial behavior.
Elon Musk and Starlink, the satellite Internet system of aerospace company SpaceX – Photo: People’s World
“I created Starlink for people to relax and watch Netflix at high speed, not as a tool to start a nuclear war” – Elon Musk shared in the biography named Elon Musk just published in the US in mid-month 9 recently.
From acts of generosity to nuclear dangerElon Musk (53 years old) is currently the richest person in the world according to Forbes, with a net worth exceeding 256.5 billion USD.
He is a South African-American engineer, tycoon, inventor, technology entrepreneur and philanthropist.
At the same time, he is the founder, CEO and chief engineer, designer of SpaceX, CEO and architect of Tesla; is also the co-founder of OpenAI – the company behind ChatGPT.
According to the book, when the first conflicts in Ukraine broke out, Elon Musk generously deployed Starlink – a network of 3,335 satellites providing high-speed Internet – for free, with the initial purpose of helping Ukraine not lose money. connect with the outside world during the war.
However, this system is also used by the Ukrainian army to serve the war, likened by The Economist as an “Uber service for artillery”.
Elon Musk has influenced important events in recent world history – Photo: Getty Images
Fearing that his system could spark future conflicts, the billionaire refused the Ukrainian government’s request to expand the connection range to the entire Crimean peninsula.
When the Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine contacted the president and pleaded that the Starlink service was a “vital factor” for the Ukrainian army, Elon Musk only replied that he should find a peaceful solution while possible. This action of his caused a lot of controversy.
Elon Musk: Hurt 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥Just with the above event, we can see the reason why many people fear that Elon Musk holds too much power, both in technology, politics, and the military.
So what makes someone like Elon Musk?
With the desire to explain one of the richest and most powerful men in the world today, journalist Walter Isaacson “followed” the billionaire for 2 years.
He was allowed to attend meetings, look through emails and messages, interview people close to him and see how Musk communicated with everyone.
About the author, famous journalist Walter Isaacson, he graduated from Harvard University and Pembroke University – a school of the Oxford university system.
He also worked as editor of Times magazine in 1996 and CEO of CNN from 2001 to 2003.
Elon Musk and his younger brother Kimbal Musk – Photo: Twitter Maye Musk
Vietnamese readers are familiar with him through the works Biography of Leonardo da Vinci and Biography of Steve Jobs.
In an interview with The Washington Posts, the journalist shared that Elon Musk was relentlessly bullied as a 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 in South Africa. Even his father Errol Musk sided with the bullies and called him “stupid” and “weak”.
Musk also admitted to Walter that he has Asperger’s, which makes understanding others and social interactions difficult. This was also confirmed by people close to the billionaire such as his ex-lover Grimes and his secretary.
Childhood trauma has made the boy yearn to control and overcome those who used to bully him.
“Control became his instinct,” writer Walter Isaacson wrote.
Currently, Elon Musk is operating 6 companies, including kind of collapse.”
“If I don’t make these decisions,” Elon Musk said, “then humanity will perish.”
In the eyes of the book’s author, Elon Musk is a character with a complex interior.
“As Shakespeare taught, all heroes are flawed, some tragic, some doomed, but those we cast as villains are much more complex than that,” he wrote.
The Starlink system and the “monster”‘s work to send humans to Mars may remind us of the space race between the US and the Soviet Union during the Cold War, except that the billionaire seems to be running. compete with environmental pollution and climate change.
Many hidden corners of the “notorious” tycoon’s life are revealed in the biography, including Elon Musk’s arrogance and controversial behavior in the media.
“Sometimes the brilliant reformer is just a man with a 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥’s soul looking for risk and challenge” – wrote Walter Isaacson – Photo: Simon & Schuster
Typically, the author opens the book with a statement from Musk on Saturday Night Live: “To anyone who finds my actions offensive, I just want to say, I am the man who revived the electric car, I I’m also the person trying to bring humanity to Mars, do you think I can be normal?”.
The journalist also shared with The Wall Street Journal: “The content in my book is not to denounce or exonerate him.
I find that these negative sides are what make the name Elon Musk special, it is undeniable that this is part of what makes him so successful.”
