Texts From Elon Musk to His Engineering Team

Actual texts between the Tesla chief and his team of designers.

This week, Tesla visionary Elon Musk reportedly saw his net worth drop $770 million overnight after a disastrous debut for Tesla’s new “Cybertruck.” The Cybertruck, in addition to being uncommonly hideous, was reported to have windows made of special Tesla “armor glass.” When, during the live demonstration, a Musk subordinate tried to demonstrate the strength of the armored windows by throwing a metal ball at them, they immediately shattered.

Tesla is known for its chaotic internal culture, and Musk himself has been a controversial figure. Now, for the first time, Current Affairs offers a peek inside the real-world operations of Tesla. Thanks to an internal whistleblower, we have obtained a record of texts sent from Musk to his engineering team.

EDITOR’S NOTE: I suppose for “legal purposes” and because it’s almost impossible to tell actual Elon Musk quotes from parodies I should formally note that these texts are satire and as far as we know were not actually sent by Elon Musk.

More In: Frivolity & Amusement

Cover of latest issue of print magazine

Announcing Our Newest Issue

Featuring

Our first issue of 2026 is here! Featuring gorgeous whimsical cover art by Toni Hamel, this issue dives deep into Thomas Pynchon’s novels, Phil Ochs’ songs, and Elon Musk’s creepy plan to put a chip in your brain. We look at New York City’s effort to exterminate the spotted lanternfly, the struggles of striking garbage workers, and the U.S. role in destroying Gaza. But that’s not all. We have some “cheerfulness lessons” inspired by Zohran Mamdani, an interview with CODEPINK’s Medea Benjamin, and a demonstration of how buying more Labubu can solve all of your problems at once! 

The Latest From Current Affairs