10 Things to Know About Today's Birthday Boy, Elon Musk

Elon Musk is one of the most famous and wealthiest people in the world, with him being the face of electric vehicles thanks to his Tesla models, and the reusable rockets from its SpaceX programs. 

Now on his 51st year on Earth, Tesla and SpaceX's CEO has clearly left a legacy people will remember him by, but like most people, he came from humble beginnings. 

Here are ten things you may or may not know about Elon Musk:

Elon Musk 43rd Goldenes Lenkrad

(Photo : JORG CARSTENSEN/dpa/AFP via Getty Images)
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, poses with his award during the 43rd "Goldenes Lenkrad" (Golden Steering Wheel) awards on November 12, 2019 in Berlin. - - Germany OUT

He Parents Divorced

Elon Musk, formally known as Elon Reeve Musk, was born in June 28, 1971 in Pretoria, South Africa, and the oldest of three children, per Investopedia. His mother, Maye Musk, is a Canadian model and nutritionist. Meanwhile, his father, Errol Musk, was a South African engineer. 

However, in 1980, Musk's parents filed for divorce, which led to him living with his father, whom he described as someone who had done almost every evil thing that could be done.

He Has Asperger's Syndrome

Musk was born with Asperger's Syndrome, which is an autism spectrum disorder that prevents those with it to relate to others socially, while their behavior and thinking patterns can be rigid and repetitive, according to Nationwide Children's

Musk admitted he had it during his appearance on Saturday Night Live when he hosted it. 

He Developed and Sold a Video Game When He Was 12

Musk made his first step into the tech industry when he was 10, when he see a computer in a store, per Biography. He then studied programming and eventually developed a code for a shooting game called "Blastar," which was sold to a computer magazine for $500. 

He later devised plans to open an arcade with his brother, Kimbal, near their school, but wound up selling chocolates to classmates instead when their parents didn't give them their legal consent to do so.

He Was a Bookworm During His Early years

Musk wasn't the most sociable during his formative years, choosing the company of books instead of his classmates at the private schools he attended during that time. 

He would later recount that bullies would beat him up because of it and that the bullying he suffered was just as bad as the experience he had when he was home.

He Stayed at Stanford University For Only Two Days

Scroll Droll mentioned that Musk would eventually find his way to Stanford University after receiving a bachelor's degree from the University of Pennsylvania - one for physics and one for economics. He also studied for two years at Kingston University in Kingston, Ontario.

However, he only managed to stay inside the university for two days before we dropped out to start Zip2 Corporation, which provides licensed online city guides for newspaper publishers.

Read More: Tesla Megapacks To Replace Hawaii's Last Coal Plant; State Aims to Go Green by 2045

Musk Used to Own PayPal

Believe it or not, Paypal was once owned by the Tesla CEO, though not in the form we know it now.

Paypal's former name is X.com, which Musk co-founded in 1999. It was later purchased by Ebay for $1.5 billion, giving Elon $180 million.

He is The Richest Man in the World

Forbes' real-time billionaire tracker reports that SpaceX CEO is the wealthiest man int he world with a net worth $234 billion, just $100 billion above Bernard Arnault & his family. 

Jeff Bezos, the owner of e-commerce platform Amazon, has a networth of $138.9 billion.

He Owns a James Bond Car

To really put Musk's wealth into perspective, he owns the Lotus Esprit from the 1977 James Bond film "The Spy Who Loved Me," which turns into a submarine at some point in the movie. 

However, Musk was disappointed after buying the car in 2013 as the car didn't actually turn into a submarine. 

He then swore to make it transform into a submarine for real and upgrade it with a Tesla electric powertrain.

He is the Inspiration for MCU's Tony Stark

When Disney's Marvel Cinematic Universe came out, Jon Favreau, the director of the first two "Iron Man" movies, was looking for ways to humanize Tony Stark. During this time, actor Robert Downey Jr. suggested that he take inspiration from Elon Musk. 

Thanks to the event, Musk found a way to design rocket parts on a computer screen by waving his hands across a sensor, much like Tony Stark does when he was developing his Iron man suits.

He Appeared in TV Shows and Movies

Musk is one of the many billionaries who is also popular. He appeared and voiced his character in the TV show "The Simpsons,"in 2015, during the episode "The Musk Who Fell to Earth."

He also appeared in an episode on "The Big Bang Theory" as well in the same year as himself. 

Related Article: The Best Reddit AMAs of Celebrities in the Tech Industry

© 2024 iTech Post All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.

Company from iTechPost

More from iTechPost