Let all those good people go last Nov for.a brief stock jump - stock took a dump back down to where it was. Wait until Elon starts taking subs - game over. Verizon will be a fiber biz at best and we can’t even do that effectively.
Watch it happen - 2-3 yrs max .
@cv Exactly!
@cv I’m not betting against the Elon - it will happen.
Landing a rocket on a barge
• Retired NASA astronaut Scott Kelly: “When Elon Musk said he was going to launch his rocket and then land the first stage on a barge, I thought he was crazy. And then he did it. I’m not going to ever doubt what he says, ever again.”
• Link: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/17/astronaut-scott-kelly-says-dont-doubt-elon-musk.html
Private company building and launching liquid-fueled orbital rockets
• Widespread view that only governments (NASA, Roscosmos, etc.) could do this. SpaceX’s Falcon 1 became the first privately developed liquid-fueled rocket to reach orbit in 2008 after three failures.
• Musk himself estimated <10% chance of success at the start.
Tesla producing 5,000 Model 3s per week
• Analysts, media, and auto industry figures called the target unrealistic or impossible during the 2017–2018 “production he-l.”
• Tesla hit it in late June 2018.
• Links:
• https://cleantechnica.com/2019/10/21/7-more-things-tesla-couldnt-achieve/
• https://www.wsj.com/articles/tesla-reaches-production-goal-for-making-5-000-model-3s-1530474490
Tesla showing a profit (especially around the Model 3 ramp)
• Many claimed it was impossible given the production ramp and cost structure. Tesla posted profits in Q3 and Q4 2018.
• Link: https://cleantechnica.com/2019/10/21/7-more-things-tesla-couldnt-achieve/
Mass-producing the Model X with falcon-wing doors
• Former GM executive Bob Lutz and others said the doors would never work at scale. Tesla produced and delivered the Model X in volume.
• Links:
• https://cleantechnica.com/2019/10/19/7-things-tesla-couldnt-do/
• https://electrek.co/2016/05/18/gm-bob-lutz-tesla-false-information/
Electric cars becoming desirable / Tesla succeeding as a real car company at scale
• Early and persistent predictions that EVs would never be popular, Tesla would go bankrupt, or it couldn’t compete with legacy automakers. Tesla became one of the world’s most valuable automakers and pushed the industry toward electrification.
• Link: https://cleantechnica.com/2018/10/14/8-impossible-goals-tesla-achieved/
Autopilot features like automatic lane changes (early versions)
• Called unrealistic or impossible by some auto experts in the mid-2010s. Tesla shipped the capability.
• Link: https://cleantechnica.com/2019/10/19/7-things-tesla-couldnt-do/
CleanTechnica compilations (best single sources for the “they said it couldn’t be done” framing)
• https://cleantechnica.com/2019/10/19/7-things-tesla-couldnt-do/
• https://cleantechnica.com/2019/10/21/7-more-things-tesla-couldnt-achieve/
• https://cleantechnica.com/2018/10/14/8-impossible-goals-tesla-achieved/