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I am aware that many people today would work at SpaceX, but that's not my point.

Elon Musk is not a god and his billion dollar ideas would be worthless were it not for thousands of people who have worked tirelessly because they believe in a common goal. SpaceX is nothing without the labor of others - they are the hand that feeds him, not the other way around.

I don't think people who are doing literal rocket science at SpaceX would "go back to designing widgets" if SpaceX folded tomorrow. This implies that they would somehow not be doing meaningful work without Musk's money?



Okay but at the highest level, who directs that work? Who decides what needs doing and how to allocate that human capital? Who's mind is directly responsible for the creation and orchestration of SpaceX?

Labor means nothing if not done for an intelligent purpose. For S0aceX employees, Elon Musk is the source of that intelligent purpose. Of course labor beyond what one man can supply will be necessary for any worthwhile pursuit. What matters is not the labor, but the source of the intelligent purpose that gives the labor a common goal and guides it towards it.


In the case of SpaceX that person is probably actually Gwynne Shotwell.




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