Elon Musk

Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future

De: Ashlee Vance

Narrado por: Fred Sanders

In the spirit of Steve Jobs and Moneyball, Elon Musk is both an illuminating and authorized look at the extraordinary life of one of Silicon Valley's most exciting, unpredictable, and ambitious entrepreneurs - a real-life Tony Stark - and a fascinating exploration of the renewal of American invention and its new makers.

Elon Musk spotlights the technology and vision of Elon Musk, the renowned entrepreneur and innovator behind SpaceX, Tesla, and SolarCity, who sold one of his Internet companies, PayPal, for $1.5 billion. Ashlee Vance captures the full spectacle and arc of the genius' life and work, from his tumultuous upbringing in South Africa and flight to the United States to his dramatic technical innovations and entrepreneurial pursuits.

Vance uses Musk's story to explore one of the pressing questions of our age: Can the nation of inventors and creators who led the modern world for a century still compete in an age of fierce global competition? He argues that Musk - one of the most unusual and striking figures in American business history - is a contemporary, visionary amalgam of legendary inventors and industrialists, including Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Howard Hughes, and Steve Jobs. More than any other entrepreneur today, Musk has dedicated his energies and his own vast fortune to inventing a future that is as rich and far reaching as the visionaries of the golden age of science-fiction fantasy.

©2015 Ashlee Vance (P)2015 HarperCollins Publishers

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Fred Sanders narrates this smartly written biography with the right balance of gravitas and entertainment value, providing accents for some of the major characters including a convincing South African accent for the story's star.... The combination of great narration, well-written and well-researched content, and a bigger-than-life subject propels this nuanced work into the upper atmosphere of audiobook biographies." (AudioFile)

Interesting and Informative

The best overview of the Elon empire I've come across. Makes you excited for the future. I did like how the author was highly skeptical of many key aspects of Elon's life and companies - added to the authenticity of the biography. Worth a listen.

Never knew what the guy did before this

I knew of the companies he runs, the product of his thoughts, but never knew the mastermind behind them. I left the book fully aware of the man most likely to change the world in the very near future. Very well written biography of a very interesting man.

A Visionary's Visionary!

Forget what you've read about Elon Musk--here you'll find it ALL.
While the text can focus on his endeavors to a huuuuge extent, it's all fascinating and inspiring, mostly because so much of what he's attempted has gone extremely FUBAR. Yet the man has picked himself up, picked up those around him, and has gone on until success has been met.
The man has single-handedly changed the way games have been played by switching up the way things are tackled in business and in the way we think. Who else would get together with friends to play a game of: "I think we can," instead of, "Wouldn't it be nice if"?
Here you'll find blow by blow accounts of starting and running Tesla, Space X, X.com, plus a plethora of other small companies that he has dipped his toes into, inspiring hard workers all along the way.
From a crappy kiddy-hood to being a domineering force (and I do mean "domineering"--sometimes he admits he can be kind of a jerk, but he tries not to expect as much from others as he does from himself), from a man willing to devote what, maybe 10 hrs. a week to a relationship to a father of five boys, everything is covered.
This is a truly engaging bio with really good narration that'll have you taking deep breaths and will have your toes curling as Tesla nearly goes under, as the Falcon rockets wobble and descend to the sea.
This is a book that'll have you thinking big and wanting to see beyond the borders of whatever little, oh so little box, you might've set up for yourself.
Recommended 'cause it's just so darned neat what he's done.

Genius and all the complications that come with it

He is said to be one of the most polarizing people in the technology industry to date. When asked, most people either love him, or they loathe him. Who is this man with simple roots who later grew up to lead the digital payment industry (Paypal), reinvent the automotive industry (Tesla), disrupt the space industry (SpaceX) and make the solar industry (Solar City) as common as the household telephone? That honor goes to none other than Elon Musk. I’m not a big fan of listening to biographies, but I will say that I found the book titled “Elon Musk”, written by Ashlee Vance and narrated by Fred Sanders, to be a fascinating journey into the life and actions of this brilliant and at time eccentric man. In many ways, because of all his accomplishments, he has been called more of a machine than a man. He rarely sleeps, demands precision, and dedication. And, as this book reveals, you do not want to get in the way while as this machine will steamroll you without question. Sadly, this often impacted his personal relationships and his marriage. If you enjoy books covering the technology industry or the people who make it up, I would highly recommend you listen to this book.

What I found fascinating was, from the beginning of Mr. Musk life, he thought differently from those around him. As a child, he was that one kid who was always picked on because he was different. He loved reading and learning things, and once he ingested a piece of knowledge, it stuck with him because he is said to have perfect recall; both a curse and a blessing. Yet, these are the type of people who do not conform to the pressures or norms of society, but instead think outside of the box and reinvent it. As with most other inventors, Elon Musk did not simply take existing ideas and make them better. Not at all. In most cases he would take an industry and turn it upside down no matter the road blocks, he would move forward until he succeeded. Life for those who were not onboard was often difficult and such people did not last long in any of his companies. One was either on board or thrown overboard.

He often would upset entire industries that have always done it a specific way for nearly a century, just because that is how it was said to be done. He instead would see the weaknesses and failures of an existing industry and try to recreate it from the foundation up. When he saw the inefficiencies of the space industry (NASA), he said to himself that he could do it cheaper, safer, and better than anyone else. He was able to analyze the people, process, and technologies required to launch a space craft, and in his mind, evaluate the many options what would condense the activity to it fundamental parts. Similarly, when he helped to create Paypal, he was not frightened away by all the government regulations or requirements. He just plowed on with his goal and we see how he upset the payment industry with his new way of doing things. One really begins to see how this genius of a man does not confirm to norms, but instead focuses on how to change the world by way of his technology. He does not want to be one of the better providers in a given industry, instead he wants to be the best and by being the best he knows it will ultimately impact the whole world.

I thought the narration by Fred Sanders was professional and the right fit for the book. For material that at times could be dry and slow, Mr. Sanders did a good job of keeping the listener engaged and entertained. From an audio perspective, the quality was excellent, the volume levels were consistent, and I do not recall any audio artifacts would listening. This is my first listen to this narrator, and I was not surprised to see that nearly all of his other works on Audible have between four and five star ratings.

If you enjoy stories of both success and failure, I think you will really enjoy this book. It does not pull any punches and during my listen I found that my opinions of this man would go between genius and crazy idiot. It is a fascinating story and one that is both worth your Audible credit and the nearly fourteen hours of audio.

Great!

Great book, inspiring, interesting, and well worth the time.
Great for driving, exercising, or just listening.

you need to hear this

loved the way Musk think and how different he can see the world. Hard works gets results always. I hope i can own my Tesla model S.

The importance of having a vision and working.

Excellent story that motivates you to acheive greater things, work harder, and ask your self if what you are doing is happing a positive impact on the world. Elon Musk's Biography sounds like a science fiction story but when you witness his accomplishments in the news you realize that it is lots of hard work and critical thinking that can achieve these things.

Inside look, and I’m torn

So much to like about Elon Musk’s drive and so much not to like about his manner of getting things done and the way he treats others. This is a keen look inside - a bit heavy on the science during the SpaceX section for me. Overall, a solid if not spectacular performance by Fred Sanders.

Powerful story; well written and narrated.

Loved this book from start to finish. "History" is being created in real time. This is a story that really matters. Inspiring.

Excellent for every listener

I came into the book being quite negative on Musk. After listening I’m now somewhere in the middle. I think this is the right place to be.

It’s very well written and you don’t need to be a fan going in. What you’ll leave with is a better overview on his good and bad points and an insight into modern business.

Highly recommended.