A Conversation with Elon Musk

John Battelle is an entrepreneur, journalist, professor, and author. Currently founder and chairman of Federated Media Publishing, he is also a founder and executive producer of conferences in the media, technology, communications, and entertainment industries and “band manager” with BoingBoing.net. Previously, Battelle was founder, chairman, and CEO of Standard Media International (SMI), publisher of The Industry Standard and TheStandard.com. Prior to founding The Standard, Battelle was a co-founding editor of Wired magazine and Wired Ventures. He is the author of The Search: How Google and Its Rivals Rewrote the Rules of Business and Transformed Our Culture” (Portfolio, 2005).

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Elon Musk has been the primary funding source for Tesla Motors, from when Tesla Motors was just three people and a business plan to present day, having led the Series A, Series B and co-led the Series C. Electric vehicles have long been one of his primary interests, stemming from his days in the early nineties working on high energy density capacitor technology in Silicon Valley.

Mr. Musk is known for co-founding PayPal and Zip2 and founding SpaceX. The latter company is in the business of developing and launching the world’s most advanced rockets for satellite and later human transportation. As Chairman of the Board of Tesla Motors, he helps develop the company’s business and product strategy, and assists with knowledge of composite and metallic structures, domestic manufacturing, and navigating federal regulations.

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