Elon Musk’s tears have put a smile on the faces of many of his critics on Friday.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO “choked up” several times in a new interview with the New York Times on Thursday night, while detailing what has been an “excruciating” year, in his words. The stress of meeting Tesla production goals, sleeping at the office on countless nights, dealing with investors betting against the electric car company, and nearly missing his brother’s wedding has made it the “most difficult and painful year” of Musk’s career.
“There were times when I didn’t leave the factory for three or four days — days when I didn’t go outside,” Musk told the Times. “This has really come at the expense of seeing my kids. And seeing friends.”
The misery of one of Silicon Valley’s most prominent executives has become a laughing matter for many on Twitter. A few users mocked Musk over his complaint that he had to spend his 47th birthday working a full 24-hours at Tesla’s offices.
“Elon Musk crying about having to work on his birthday is today’s highlight,” one user shared.
Elon Musk crying about having to work on his birthday is today’s highlight pic.twitter.com/jFH1dJxjjg
— James Kelleher (@etienneshrdlu) August 17, 2018
BuzzFeed News tech reporter Katie Notopoulos thought it was hilarious, too. “‘I’m sorry but there’s something deeply funny about a 47 year old crying over not having a birthday party,” tweeted Notopoulos.
I’m sorry but there’s something deeply funny about a 47 year old crying over not having a birthday party https://t.co/CvtGqSIyRF pic.twitter.com/JSy8sUobQP
— Katie Notopoulos (@katienotopoulos) August 17, 2018
Same goes for The Forward editor Batya Ungar-Sargon.
https://twitter.com/bungarsargon/status/1030447053720182784
And podcaster Brendan F. Newnam.
https://twitter.com/BFNewnam/status/1030440579266736130
Others found it funny for a myriad of reasons, including Musk’s “toxic masculinity.”
https://twitter.com/cvinopal1014/status/1030470766452781056
https://twitter.com/productland/status/1030460584561504257
https://twitter.com/zerosum24/status/1030460538525048833
On top of the jokes on Twitter, Tesla’s rough week since Musk hinted the company would go private continued on Friday, with the company’s stock dropping 8 percent to $308 per share.