Every season of capitalist transition, of model change, has its own corresponding opportunists. Musk is one of them. Under different conditions—say, twentieth-century capitalism—he would have ended up in jail or selling pocket tissues at traffic lights. But the 4th Industrial Revolution needs its “heroes,” even if only for a short while; even if what they’re “selling” is bound to become obsolete as a commodity very quickly.
Musk looks like the owner of Tesla. A car manufacturer that sprang out of nowhere, launching electric/automatic passenger cars. Tesla’s models are indeed well-designed, and their promotion through the persona of the “visionary” works (no one even knows the names of the CEOs of other car manufacturers!). But while Musk “sells” large orders to keep Tesla’s stock high (and thus his own wealth), the company’s productive capacity is much smaller, and its costs are much higher than those of its competitors.
Musk himself speaks of a “manufacturing hell.” According to Business Insider on 6/1, although Tesla sold over 100,000 units in 2017—a record in its 14-year history—it “burns” the same amount of money to build them as General Motors, which has vastly higher production. Moreover, while G.M. turns the money invested in it into net profit, Tesla posted huge losses in Q3 of 2017—the biggest in its history. Finally (Business Insider), throwing yet another poisonous barb, observes: “The Model 3” (the jewel in Musk’s crown) “is basically an electric Honda Accord. But Honda, without much fuss, makes and sells 100,000 units every year in the U.S. alone.”
The “pioneering” Musk is recognized for his ambition to be seen as the leader of yet another industrial revolution in car manufacturing. Henry Ford was the leader of the first, with the introduction of the assembly line and mass production; Toyota was the leader of the second, with its “production cycles” and just-in-time organization.
O Musk “gives away money” while having fun, recently by launching a Tesla into space. “I really like the thought of a car wandering endlessly through space and maybe one day, millions of years in the future, being discovered by an alien race,” he said.
Hmmm… It could be considered an “aggressive sales policy.” But maybe this hustler is simply “laundering”? (it would fit the core of 21st-century capitalist accumulation…)