A Q&A With Elon Musk’s Biographer

For two years, Walter Isaacson embedded himself with Elon Musk to analysis his biography of the world’s richest man. Revelations from the guide, which can be launched on Tuesday, have already generated headlines: the psychological scars Mr. Musk carries from the way in which his father handled him as a toddler; his choice to restrict Ukrainian entry to the Starlink satellite tv for pc community to stop navy operations; and his last-minute transfer to fireside Twitter’s prime executives earlier than their inventory choices might vest.

Mr. Isaacson wrestles with Mr. Musk’s competing character traits: He is a remarkably proficient, tenacious entrepreneur who has led among the most transformative firms of our age. But he additionally lacks empathy for a lot of round him, and his impetuous conduct has raised questions on how he manages his extraordinary energy.

Mr. Isaacson spoke to DealBook forward of publication. This dialog has been edited and condensed for readability.

Has Musk learn the guide but?

I don’t know. He didn’t ask for a replica and I didn’t ship him one.

Have you heard from him since some excerpts have been revealed?

Yeah, however he’s not given me any sturdy reactions. He appears remarkably sanguine.

What did you consider him earlier than you started engaged on the guide?

It started earlier than his Twitter journey — as anyone who had turn out to be Time journal’s “Person of the Year,” and had made an electrical automobile firm that was price greater than all different automobile firms mixed and had gotten astronauts into orbit. Obviously, it grew to become way more fascinating and provocative when he began shopping for Twitter.

How did your view of him change?

I knew he was mercurial. I knew he had an impulsiveness. But seeing it up shut, particularly after he swerved into the Twitter lane, made for a way more thrilling curler coaster.

How does he take into consideration the ability and affect he has collected from the success of Tesla, SpaceX, Starlink and the large megaphone that’s X, the corporate previously often known as Twitter?

He has an epic sense of himself, nearly as if he’s a comic book guide character carrying his underpants on the surface, attempting to save lots of the world. But I used to be shocked as he all of a sudden realizes the problem of getting a lot energy — resembling management over the place Starlink can be utilized by Ukraine.

Do you assume that he senses the enormity of the ability and, due to this fact, the accountability?

I don’t assume he understands it relating to X. He’s impulsive and typically contradictory in how he offers with the moderation points. On the opposite hand, I do assume that he’s absolutely conscious of the ability and accountability that comes from being the one entity that may get U.S. astronauts and navy satellites into orbit.

Does he relish that energy or think about it a weight?

There’s nobody Elon Musk. He has a number of moods. There’s instances when he sees himself in epic phrases, and there’s instances when he says, “All right, I have to be more careful.”

Given how a lot time you’ve spent with him, do you assume you now perceive what drives him?

We all have some demons in our heads from childhood, and he’s obtained two orders of magnitude greater than most of us. He’s been in a position to harness these demons into drive. “I have to make humans get to Mars, and I’ve got to bring us into the era of electric vehicles, and I’ve gotta make sure A.I. is safe.” These are three grand missions that I assumed was simply him spouting off, however he actually will get motivated by that. He additionally simply so craves pleasure, drama and danger that every time issues are going effectively, he can’t go away effectively sufficient alone or savor it. He’s obtained to push all of his chips again on the desk, which implies you possibly can both go into orbit or you possibly can soften down.

You write so much about his curiosity in getting consideration, together with an anecdote early in his profession when he was pushed out of the C.E.O. position at PayPal and the one factor he requested to do was stay the face of the corporate. What’s behind that?

He does have this epic hero advanced that he jokes about and is self-aware about. I don’t assume he would have let me journey by his aspect for 2 years if he didn’t crave to have the story of his life — warts and all — on the market.

Was there ever a second the place you thought, “He’s going to push me out of the room” or “I’m going to lose access to him” in the midst of the undertaking?

I saved ready for that and was genuinely shocked when it by no means occurred. I saved ready for him to say, “You’ve got to go now.” It occurred solely at moments round questions involving SpaceX and labeled info. He would say, “Can you leave the room for this? You don’t have the security clearance.”

You noticed a number of headlines get created from the within. How conscious had been you of the magnitude of the news being made?

There was one Friday night time after I had simply spent a number of time with him, and I went again dwelling to New Orleans. I used to be at a soccer recreation at my previous highschool, and my cellphone began vibrating. It was the night time that Musk was coping with the Starlink and Crimea points with Ukraine. I keep in mind standing behind the bleachers being considerably amazed that every one this was occurring in actual time. Then he confirmed me the encrypted textual content messages that he was exchanging with Mykhailo Fedorov, the Ukrainian vice premier.

But I used to be additionally simply as amazed after I sat by means of a number of conferences every week, the place they might talk about how, as soon as that they had colonized Mars, what the federal government would appear like, how selections could be made, how and the place folks would stay, who would management the robots. And I’m saying, “This is insane.” You know, right here I’m a traditional particular person, and these persons are speaking about how you can do governance in communities on Mars.

You describe Musk as being nearly gleeful when he fired the C.E.O. of Twitter and his lieutenants to stop them from accumulating compensation when the deal closed. This is now the topic of court docket circumstances. What did you assume as you had been watching this play out?

He thought that they had misled him. And like a child going to wilderness camp, he realized, “I’ve gotta punch people in the nose when they do that.” He’s an individual who’s gleeful in loving fight, whether or not it’s enjoying Elden Ring on his cellphone, or participating in combative battles on Twitter. Disrupters are usually actually disruptive. And it doesn’t excuse the truth that they do issues like that, however it’s half and parcel of who they’re.

Musk is among the richest folks on the planet. He has informed me he doesn’t actually care about cash — that to the extent he has cash, he needs to make use of it to get folks to Mars. Do you imagine that?

I do know that sounds bizarre, however he stated it to you and he stated it to me, and I truly imagine it. That’s why he has gotten rid of all of his homes. That’s why he places all of his chips again on the desk. And why it so pained him that his transgender daughter, Vivian Jenna Wilson, rejected him as a result of he was a billionaire and he or she had turn out to be a socialist.

When you consider Musk 20, 30, 40 years from now, how would you anticipate he would possibly change?

I don’t assume he’s going to alter. He’s not anyone who says, “I’m getting older, I’m going to be more cautious.” At a sure level, he’ll in all probability chunk off greater than he can chew.

You’ve written about numerous folks — Benjamin Franklin, Leonardo da Vinci, Steve Jobs amongst them — who’ve, in somehow, modified the world. Where does Musk rank amongst that forged?

There have been three individuals who have deeply affected our age that I’ve written about. One is Steve Jobs, who brings us into the digital age with human-friendly computer systems and a thousand songs in our pocket and smartphones. Another is Jennifer Doudna, who helped uncover the software known as CRISPR that enables us to edit our personal genes. And now Musk. I believe he may have an enduring influence by, having greater than anyone else, moved us into an period of electrical autos, when the most important automobile firms had given up on that, and into area. But within the meantime, I additionally assume he has some downsides. I believe in 10, 20 years, he can be seen as anyone who was each consequential and controversial.