Elon Musk

Tesla, SpaceX

Contemporary influential 126 sayings

Sayings by Elon Musk

The problem with humanity is that it's just so damn hard to get rid of.

2013 (approx) — Interview with The Wall Street Journal (paraphrased, exact quote not found, but sentiment expressed)
Controversial Unverifiable

I hope you don’t think I’m trying to be manipulative. I’m not. I’m just trying to make sure that humanity has a future.

2017 — Interview with Rolling Stone
Controversial Unverifiable

Actually, I'm an alien.

2018 — Tweet
Controversial Unverifiable

The DNA of a company is the people that it hires.

2012 — Interview with Bloomberg
Controversial Unverifiable

You can't create a culture of excellence by tolerating mediocrity.

Undated — Interview (general sentiment, exact quote hard to pinpoint)
Controversial Unverifiable

If something is important enough, even if the odds are against you, you should still do it.

2011 — Interview with Kevin Rose
Controversial Unverifiable

I think it's important to have a feedback loop, where you're constantly thinking about what you've done and how you could be doing it better. I think that's the single best piece of advice: constantly think about how you could be doing things better and questioning yourself.

2011 — Interview with Kevin Rose
Controversial Unverifiable

The rumor that I’m building a spaceship to get back to my home planet is totally untrue.

2015 — Tweet
Controversial Unverifiable

I think the goal of humanity should be to become a multi-planet species.

2015 — Interview with Stephen Colbert
Controversial Unverifiable

If you go back a few hundred years, what we take for granted today would seem like magic—being able to talk to people over long distances, to transmit images, flying, accessing vast amounts of information from anywhere in the world. These are all things that would have been considered magic a few hundred years ago.

2013 — Interview with The Guardian
Controversial Unverifiable

I could either watch it happen or be a part of it.

2012 — Interview with Bloomberg
Controversial Unverifiable

My proceeds from the PayPal acquisition were $180 million. I put $100 million in SpaceX, $70 million in Tesla, and $10 million in SolarCity. I had to borrow money for rent.

2012 — Interview with Esquire
Controversial Unverifiable

You're going to get some pretty intense experiences if you try to make something happen.

Undated — Interview (general sentiment, exact quote hard to pinpoint)
Controversial Unverifiable

The future of humanity is fundamentally going to diverge in one of two directions: Either we're going to become a multi-planet species and a spacefaring civilization, or we're going to be stuck on one planet until some extinction event, natural or man-made, takes us out.

2020 — Joe Rogan Experience podcast
Controversial Unverifiable

I think the most important thing is to make sure that we have a path to a sustainable energy future, and to become a multi-planet species.

2018 — Interview with The New York Times
Controversial Unverifiable

The reality is that we're a very small, fragile planet and we're not going to be here forever.

Undated — Interview (general sentiment, exact quote hard to pinpoint)
Controversial Unverifiable

Let that sink in.

Frequent use — Tweet, often used provocatively
Controversial Unverifiable

Go woke, go broke.

2022 — Tweet, in response to various corporate actions
Controversial Unverifiable

My pronouns are Prosecute/Fauci.

2022 — Tweet, referencing Dr. Anthony Fauci
Controversial Unverifiable

Cancel culture needs to be canceled.

2020 — Tweet
Controversial Unverifiable