Born in South Africa on June 28, 1971, Elon Musk is a revolutionary entrepreneur and the founder of Tesla Motors and SpaceX. He became a multimillionaire in his late 20s, when a young Elon Musk sold his first company, Zip2, to one of the divisions of Compaq Computers. He was also the founder of X.com which was later named PayPal.
Being an inspirational figure throughout his life, Musk founded SpaceX in 2002 and Tesla Motors in 2003, two of the most indomitable business ventures.
Childhood
During his childhood, Musk was obsessed with new inventions. His parents would often find him lost in dreams. Worried, they took him to the doctors who ordered a checkup to make sure his hearing ability was intact. When Elon was just 10 years old, his parents separated. It was when he started to develop keen interest in computers. He learned to write computer programs on his own, and at 12 years of age, he sold his first software, a game called Blaster.
Since childhood, Musk was an introvert and spent most of his time reading books. His childhood was very rough, as he was bullied by his classmates. As a result, he experienced growth issues and learned to defend himself by attending karate classes.
Educational background
Elon Musk attended Queen’s University in Canada. When he was 17, he moved to Canada to avoid mandatory military training in South Africa. He first obtained Canadian citizenship to pave his way for acquiring American nationality. Elon left Canada in 1992 to pursue an education in business and physics from the University of Pennsylvania. He graduated in economics and physics. He then moved to Stanford University to pursue a Ph.D. in energy physics.
Companies founded by Elon Musk
Zip2
Zip2 Corporation was the first company founded by Elon Musk in 1995 with his brother, Kimbal Musk. It was an online city guide that soon started delivering content to some of the best websites in the world such as, The Chicago Tribune and The New York Times. The company was sold to one of the divisions of Compaq Computer Corporation in 1999 for a whopping $307 million.
PayPal
In 1999, after selling their first business venture, both brothers used the money to find X.com, which later went on to become PayPal. It is one of the most commonly used online platforms for making financial transactions. In October 2002, Musk sold PayPal to eBay for $1.5 billion.
SpaceX
Elon Musk had bigger ambitions that led him to successfully launch SpaceX in 2002. The idea behind SpaceX was to commercialize space travel. In 2008, SpaceX won a NASA contract to foresee cargo transport for the International Space Station.
Falcon 9 Rockets
In 2012, SpaceX launched its first rocket, Falcon 9 into space. The rocket was used to send supplies to the astronauts at the International Space Station. It was the first time that a private company had sent a spacecraft to the International Space Station.
In addition to all the aforementioned achievements, Elon Musk is also working to send cargo missions to Mars in 2022. His aim is to help colonize the Red Planet. To accomplish this mission, Elon Musk’s team is currently designing an upgraded version of the Falcon Rocket, called Big Falcon Rocket. It is a 31-engine marvel that will carry at least 100 people to the space.
Tesla Motors
Tesla Motors was launched in 2003 with an objective to produce affordable electric cars, battery products, and solar roofs. In 2008, the company unveiled its first sports car, Roadster. The car has the capacity to accelerate from 0 to 60 miles per hour in merely 3.7 seconds.
The mercurial entrepreneur’s journey from young Elon Musk to a business prodigy has been an inspiration for everyone. His life and his success story is a testament to the fact that when you have big dreams with an indomitable determination, you can achieve anything you want to. All you need is strong will power and discipline.