Elon Musk Biography: Walter Isaacson's New Book

A New Biography of Elon Musk is Underway

Walter Isaacson, renowned for his biographies of figures like Steve Jobs, Benjamin Franklin, and Leonardo da Vinci, is now focusing on the life and professional journey of Elon Musk. The announcement of this project was made by the Tesla CEO via a post on Twitter on Wednesday.

Isaacson's Approach to the Project

Musk indicated that Isaacson has been observing him closely for “several days” as part of the research process. He also suggested the possibility of authoring his own autobiography at some point in the future. The timeline for the book’s release and the current stage of Isaacson’s work remain unknown.

His previous biography of Steve Jobs, appropriately named “Steve Jobs,” required over two years of work and involved interviews with more than 100 individuals who knew Jobs.

Isaacson's Background and Previous Works

While several books have already been written about Musk, Isaacson represents the most prominent biographer to date to undertake this task. Currently, the author holds a professorship at Tulane University.

Prior to this, Isaacson served as the CEO of both the Aspen Institute and CNN. He also participated as a speaker at TechCrunch’s Disrupt conference in 2014.

Existing Literature on Elon Musk

Other published works detailing Musk’s life and career include Ashlee Vance’s 2015 biography, “Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future,” which Musk actively contributed to.

Additional titles are Ed Niedermeyer’s “Ludicrous: The Unvarnished Story of Tesla Motors” and Tim Higgins’ recently released “Power Play: Tesla, Elon Musk, and the Bet of the Century.”

Dispute Over a Reported Conversation with Tim Cook

A brief exchange occurred between Musk and Higgins regarding a passage in “Power Play” that described a contentious phone conversation between Musk and Apple CEO Tim Cook.

According to Higgins, the discussion centered on Cook’s alleged interest in acquiring Tesla in 2016. Musk reportedly expressed interest, but only if he were appointed CEO of Apple, to which Cook allegedly responded with a profanity.

Musk's Response and Verification of the Account

Musk asserted via Twitter that he has never had any direct communication, either spoken or written, with Cook.

Higgins responded by stating that the anecdote originated from individuals who reported hearing Musk recount the conversation at the time, and that Musk was given ample opportunity to provide comment on the matter, but declined to do so.