Elon Musk's Upbringing and Family Dynamics

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This chapter explores the background of Elon Musk, including his family dynamics and the impact of his parents on his upbringing. It discusses his parents' divorce, the influence of his engineer father, and the abusive behavior he experienced growing up. The chapter also touches on Musk's struggle with social cues, empathy, and his avoidance of conscription in South Africa.

Elon Musk wasn't always the influential billionaire he is today. To begin our dive into the myth of Musk, we need to go back to his origins — to find out where he came from, what inspired him, and how he became the man he is today. Those details set the foundation for the three episodes to come. This is episode 1 of Elon Musk Unmasked, a special four-part series from Tech Won’t Save Us.

Tech Won’t Save Us offers a critical perspective on tech, its worldview, and wider society with the goal of inspiring people to demand better tech and a better world. Follow the podcast (@techwontsaveus) and host Paris Marx (@parismarx) on Twitter, and support the show on Patreon.

The podcast is produced by Eric Wickham and part of the Harbinger Media Network.

Also mentioned in this episode:

Insider senior correspondent Linette Lopez, New York Times Johnannesburg bureau chief John Eligon, CBC documentary producer Ira Basen, and science fiction author Annalee Newitz were interviewed for this episode.
Elon Musk by Ashlee Vance, Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson, and The Founders by Jimmy Soni were the books cited.
A full transcript can be found on the show's official website.

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