Elon Musk's Origin Story Nobody Knows

Before Tesla, SpaceX, or any of it Elon Musk was sleeping on a beanbag in a Palo Alto office and eating Jack in the Box four times a day. In the mid-1990s, Musk and his brother Kimbal were building Zip2, their first startup, with almost no money. They had no apartment. They stored their clothes in an office closet and showered at a nearby YMCA. Their go-to meal was Jack in the Box cheap, open around the clock, and convenient enough for two founders working brutal hours. Kimbal Musk recalled the experience in both Ashlee Vance's 2015 biography "Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future" and Walter Isaacson's 2023 biography "Elon Musk." In Vance's book, Kimbal said: "Sometimes we ate four meals a day at Jack in the Box. It was open 24 hours, which suited our work schedule." In Isaacson's, he added: "I can still tell you every single menu item. It's just seared into my brain." Elon later addressed the choice on X, writing that Jack in the Box "was affordable due to some food hygiene issues (subsequently corrected!)" a reference to the chain's 1993 E. coli outbreak, which had damaged its reputation and helped keep prices down. In 1999, Compaq acquired Zip2 for roughly $307 million. The beanbag paid off. Video contains image from Shutterstock via photographer Alessia Pierdomenico. --- #ElonMusk #Startup #Entrepreneurship 🌐 Find more market-moving insights at https://www.benzinga.com — your one-stop destination for the latest financial news, data, and expert analysis to stay ahead of the markets. 🖥️ Want the same tools the pros use—without the $10K Bloomberg terminal? Benzinga Edge gives you real-time portfolio alerts, weekly stock picks, and pro-grade research in one command center. 👉 https://bit.ly/4unSKiB ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 📲 Follow us on socials @benzinga 🔔 Subscribe To The Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Benzinga ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ⚠️ Disclaimer: Investing in financial markets carries risk, and there are no guaranteed returns. All information is for educational purposes only and should not be taken as financial advice. Always do your own research and speak with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. Only invest what you can afford to lose. Past performance does not guarantee future outcomes.