The Advice Elon Musk Refused From His Mother Before Tesla, SpaceX and More

Maye Musk says she told her son Elon to stick to one company after PayPal. He ignored her, and those bets now make up a fortune Forbes puts at $929 billion.

The 78-year-old model shared the story with Fox Business host Stuart Varney while promoting her new memoir, Timeless, which HarperCollins published on September 15.

What Maye Musk Told Elon After PayPal

After PayPal, Elon asked his mother whether he should build electric cars, rockets, or solar energy. Her reply came from watching how hard he already worked.

“And I say, you work so hard you just do one,” she said.

He did not listen. Instead, he launched several ventures at once, including rocket maker SpaceX and carmaker Tesla. Maye said everyone expected all of them to fail.

Why Maye Musk Says the Fortune Is Not Cash

Forbes ranks Musk as the world’s richest person. It says he became the first trillionaire on June 12, when SpaceX went public.

Maye pushed back on the headline number. She said the wealth is stock in his companies, not money in the bank.

Forbes data supports that split. Musk owns about 38% of SpaceX and nearly 11% of Tesla, so his net worth rises and falls with SpaceX stock price moves.

Grok, a Garage, and a Deep-Thinking 3-Year-Old

Maye said Elon wants her on Grok, the chatbot from his company xAI. She uses it constantly. When Varney asked whether AI should slow down, she told him to ask Elon on X (Twitter).

Musk has recently backed an industry AI slowdown.

Dario is right that there should be some oversight. Peer review of AI by competitors is the right way to start this off.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 13, 2026

She said Elon stood out from age three. While his siblings Kimbal and Tosca explored, he sank into deep thought and said things far beyond his age.

Wealth has not changed her travel habits. At Starbase, SpaceX’s launch site in Texas, she sleeps on a small bed in his garage. The alternative is a hotel suite 45 minutes away.

Maye also said she is sure Elon will fly to space himself one day. She has no plans to join him.