Elon Musk

Engineering South African-Canadian-American 1971 280 quotes

A visionary engineer and entrepreneur who founded SpaceX, co-founded Tesla, Inc., and has made significant contributions to electric vehicles and space exploration.

Most quoted

"If you go back a few hundred years, what we take for granted today would be considered magic—being able to talk to people instantly across vast distances, to see pictures and hear sounds from anywhere, to fly, to access immense amounts of information from a small device. These are things that would have been considered magic a short time ago."

— from TED Talk, 2017

"If you go back a few hundred years, what we take for granted today would seem like magic - being able to talk to people over long distances, to transmit images, flying, accessing vast amounts of data like an oracle. These are all things that would have been considered magic a few hundred years ago."

— from TED Talk

"I think it's very important to have a feedback loop, where you're constantly thinking about what you've done and how you could be doing it better. I think that's the single best piece of advice: constantly think about how you could be doing things better and questioning yourself."

— from Interview with Kevin Rose, 2013

All quotes by Elon Musk (280)

Don't confuse schooling with education. I didn't go to Harvard but the people who work for me did.

Various interviews

I would like to die on Mars. Just not on impact.

Interview with Aeon 2013

The value of a company is no more than the sum of the solutions to the problems it creates.

Various interviews

I think it's important to have a good reason to be alive.

TED Talk 2017

We're not going to have a future if we don't have a future that's inspiring.

TED Talk 2017

Starting a company is like staring into the abyss and eating glass.

Various interviews

I'm interested in things that change the world or that affect the future and wondrous, new technology, and things like that.

Interview with Kevin Rose 2013

I think the internet is the greatest invention in human history, apart from language.

Various interviews

The rumor that I'm building a spaceship to get back to my home planet is true.

Twitter 2015

We need to make sure that we're not creating a dystopian future.

World Government Summit 2017

The future of humanity is going to be an increasingly integrated human-AI symbiosis.

Neuralink Presentation 2020

I think it's important to have a good reason to be alive, and for me, that's to understand the universe.

TED Talk 2017

You have to be pretty extreme to make a dent in the world.

Interview with Kevin Rose 2013

We're going to make electric cars that are better than gasoline cars.

The Secret Tesla Motors Master Plan 2006

It's important to have a good feedback loop, and it's important to be constantly thinking about what you've done and how you could be doing it better.

Interview with Kevin Rose 2013

I think there are too many smart people working on finance and law and not enough on science and engineering.

Various interviews

If something is important enough, you should try, even if the probable outcome is failure.

Interview with Kevin Rose 2013

I think the future is going to be far more interesting and exciting if we are a multi-planet species.

TED Talk 2017

The problem is that as you get older, you get more conservative. You don't want to take risks.

Interview with Kevin Rose 2013

I'm not a big fan of the idea of 'work-life balance.' I think it's more about 'work-life integration.'

Various interviews