Elon Musk is a lightning rod.
There are those who detest him while others applaud him. He is a noted troll on social media, causing a stir most everywhere he goes. His outspoken approach is something that Wall Street analysts abhor since it doesn't fit the common mold.
Along the way, he became the richest person in the world with a net worth of over $230 billion. Some are projecting that he could end up becoming the first person with a trillion dollars.
An interesting discussion occurred this week on one of the broadcast networks. They were talking about Musk and whether he could be cancelled. Certainly, there are attacks from most of the mainstream media, pushing some to believe he will be silenced.
Of course, Musk's response to the likes of a BOB Iger, CEO of Disney, was to "go f*ck yourself".
So can Elon be cancelled?
Ignore Elon
Before getting to the impact he has, we have to define cancel. For the sake of this article, we will take it to me silence him and push him into a obedience (or out of the way).
From this perspective, the answer is no. To start, Elon purchased Twitter, a move that ensures his account will never be shut down. Hence, he will always have a voice since he is the owner of the platform.
There is, however, a much bigger piece to this puzzle. Moving beyond the simply ability to share his thoughts, the main question is whether Elon will diminish is stature.
The best way to explain this is using an example. Off the top of my head, Rosanne Barr is someone who was cancelled. She said some things that upset a lot of powerful people, especially in her industry. This led to her basically being ostracized from Hollywood. This is something that happened before.
Today, Rosanne can make the rounds on podcasts but that is about it. She was "put in her place" by the establishment, no longer being a major player in Hollywood. This is accompanied by the mainstream media simply ignoring her.
Will this work with Elon?
The answer is no. It is going to be impossible to ignore him simply because he is operating on such a massive scale.
In other words, for better or worse, you aren't going to be able to get away from Elon.
Elon's Impact
The problem that his haters have is the success he is achieving and the position he is placing himself in. Through his companies, he is tackling some of the biggest challenges for humanity, while having varying degrees of success.
It all starts with Tesla. This company is both the leading electric vehicle maker while also ranking third in global stationary battery installations. Do not be surprised to see Tesla leading in that realm in a few years. The company is breaking ground on another Megapack factory, this one in China. It is reported that it will mirror Lathrop which has a ramped capacity of about 20 Megapacks per day. These things are used by utilities and go for about $2 million apiece.
Next up is SpaceX. Starlink is already in operation. Every month, more satellites are launched. This is starting with Internet but will move to mobile phone services in the next few years. Of course, this is just one aspect to the business, with the rocketry becoming a new form of transportation.
With the advancement of rockets, it could be conceivable SpaceX sets up some form of system that allows for travel between places such as Tokyo and New York City. Think of it as the Concorde on steroids. This could be used to shuttle both people and cargo.
We also have a few other companies that are in early stages, but industries that could be vital. There is the entire artificial intelligence spectrum which Musk based companies are fully immersed in. X.ai might become one of his most important ventures.
Finally, there is the Tesla bot (named Optimus). This is years out yet it is something to consider based upon potential. Does this humanoid robot disrupt the labor market? That is what some are forecasting.
Whatever your feelings are about Musk, the reality is he is working on some major stuff. None of this will have a minor impact if successful. Of course, it could all blow up in his face although that is not likely. Based upon the success so far, there is enough to sustain the other endeavors. Another couple years of Tesla advancement could, for example, make the other aspects of his ecosystem even more valuable.
In Conclusion
Hate Musk all you want. Attack him without mercy. However, you best get use to him being around. In fact, there is a good chance your life will be impacted by at least one of his companies.
Just look at these fields:
- energy
- space
- telecommunications
- artificial intelligence
- robotics
- transportation
It cannot be said this guy is playing around the edges. He is in the middle of a lot of areas of transformation that society will undergo due to technology.
Of course, while that is happening, Musk will keep trolling everyone he comes across.
I still wonder if he ever owned any DOGE. My guess is he didn't.