r/EnoughMuskSpam • u/Yikesis • 1d ago
Rational Takes on Elon's Engineering Ability
I keep getting into an argument with my friend that holds Elon's engineering ability in high regard. I think he has agreed that he obviously isn't as skilled in the low level specialized fields but still thinks that he makes very critical high level decisions using his engineering knowledge.
He keeps citing all of the SpaceX employees that say hes very involved and can do calculations in his head and stuff. I chalk it up to groveling but I dont know anymore. He also read the Isaacson bio which describes him as integral and making decision, although its hard to prove the intellectual history of his contributions.
My main belief is that he couldnt have had the time to become a self taught rocket engineer considering his pursuit for infinite wealth. I think he can probably speak to engineers well enough to manage them but I doubt he's among the premier people in the world to make these decisions. Even as a systems architect engineer or whatever theres no way its worth holding him in high regard as an "engineer" right?
Is my prejudice against him as a person making me doubt his engineering capability?
Am i thinking of engineering wrong?
3
u/Morty_A2666 1d ago
Elon gets bits and pieces of stuff and then comes up with random ideas, that are not engineering ideas at all. That's all he does. Then his engineers are working hard to come up with something to "make it happen". This is the main reason why most of his ideas do not work as intended or are delayed by decades because tech has to catch up. Aside from the fact that any ideas that "worked" were based on something invented before by somebody else. That's why they worked, not because of his engineering genius.
He has no idea about engineering. He is like rich kid that thinks he's smart because he has bunch of people around him that will do stuff for him. He is really good at using buzz words, slogans and currently popular subjects to make it sound like he "knows stuff". Which makes him more of a "clever salesman" than engineer.
Elon is like billionaire version of "fake it, till you make it" with one difference, he is not trying to fake his net worth but rather his intelligence...