Jeremy Grantham says Elon Musk turned "bullshit and charisma" into billions of dollars and real factories. He called it "almost miraculous management." The legendary bubble investor had bought a Tesla in 2019. He praised the car but wrote that the stock was incredibly expensive. It rose 10x. At the time of his warning, the automaker had never reported an annual profit. He thought it might not survive another two years. In this 2023 interview, Grantham says he failed to account for Musk's ability to persuade investors. "He was such a wonderful propagandist that he talked the stock up way ahead of any possibility." That enthusiasm gave Tesla more than a rising share price. It opened access to enormous amounts of cash. When a company has a higher valuation, it can obtain the same sum while surrendering less ownership. During 2020 alone, Tesla completed three equity offerings that produced approximately $12.27 billion after costs. Grantham says Musk repeatedly promoted the business as the company issued additional shares, converting investor expectations into cash it could spend. "He had generated out of thin air a massive amount of real buying power which went straight into these megafactories." Grantham thought the price had moved too far ahead of the business. Musk used that gap to help Tesla catch up.
Charlie Munger said this on camera, weeks before he died: "I don't regard Elon Musk as truly rich, because I don't think it's sure that everything he's working on can work." Then he went further. "I would not invest in Elon Musk myself." Munger's reasoning wasn't about Tesla's product or Musk's talent. It was about pattern. "He's used leverage so much that he's doubled down right to the edge of extinction maybe two or three times." Asked how many times Musk had walked that edge without falling in, Munger's answer: "he's done it three times. Maybe he's got six more." This is coming from a man who spent six decades building Berkshire on the opposite principle. Munger and Buffett deliberately took smaller stakes than they could have afforded, using less leverage than was available, specifically so a bad stretch would never wipe out the people who trusted them. Munger used the phrase "two hard pile" for things he'd rather not spend time thinking about, things he can't fix himself. He used it earlier in the same conversation for the risk of nuclear war. Elon Musk went in the same pile. "I never met with him," he said. "As far as I'm concerned, he doesn't exist."
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Replying to @lorneseth
Grantham is not a builder, so he will never understand

Sep 21, 2026 · 3:44 PM UTC

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Replying to @elonmusk
Fair. He saw the premium. You turned it into factories.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
The bullshit and charisma looks pretty freaking amazing.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
I love all Elon’s “bullshit and charisma”
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
Builders usually don’t waste much time explaining. They just build.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
True
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
You know who is a builder? Vlad Tenev!
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
OPTIMUS AI
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
@elonmusk the boring company is working on a Martian tunnel
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
Erroneous on both accounts. Elon is a lousy bullshitter and he has virtually no charisma at all. He is however a gifted engineer, visionary, risk taker, negotiator, etc. Combined with a balls to the wall work ethic, and a God-given gift of foresight, Musk has decided to be a doer of many things, instead of sitting on the sidelines criticizing others.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
Real Builders
Made with AI
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
He thinks one can just buy success in the car industry. If that would be true Rivian would be the leader.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
Munger, post-mortem - just lost years of family respect. He does not exist. Bye bye Charles.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
He got the charisma right.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
Some people are just soo great at faking it tho 🤔😏🤣
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
thats sweet that he called u charismatic "is that a death threat or .. a love letter - Eminem 🤣
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
I am not a builder per se and I get it.. And I DID it.. although now that I know pretty much everything can write code it wasn't hard I guess.. Ha ha . I just had to ask the right questions is all. I TOLD you I didn't have to learn all that sht. I SAID...It would write
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
What a dumbass comment from Grantham. Few things in life are more annoying than a person with a strong opinion on something they neither know nor understand.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
Ignore these useless comments about you. People who invested in you are the ones who have your back. me since 2012... and never had any doubt!!
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
He is also not a liar. YOU will never understand.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
You are though.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
Listening to him the past Raj decades would have assured your insolvency. How is this guy still invited to speak around ?
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
It was mostly an accolade, but I understand your response. Your accomplishments are miraculous & the "out of thin air" phrase might be a bit much but you gotta admit, hard work without some luck, magic, or synchronicity didn't get you where you are. Responsibility is required.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
He's looking at stock gains, and you've had a habit of investing back into your companies when necessary. The two things aren't incompatible, but investments may take longer to see progress. Better than a complete write-off though.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
My dad use to say, if you think you have a good idea for a business don’t use your own money. If it’s such a good idea and believe you’re good enough to make it work, let other people fund it. That will let you know how good your idea is and how well you can sell it. If you cannot raise the money, your idea is crap and you’re not a good salesman. Granted, Bank loan business plans aren’t in the same league.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
Tesla isnt worth 350 PE ratio. No offense bro, no revenue growth in years and Optimus has plenty of competition. You know this is true.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
You aren't a builder either; you sit back and watch others build. You hold the contracts, not the skill or the merit.
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
I think 2020 Tesla sold stock three times $12.27B after fees into the plants @grok confirm that 2020 raise total
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
Yes
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
He is such an idiot…how can anyone say that “bullshit and charisma”🤦🏼‍♀️
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
They’ll see it one day
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
Never bet against Elon Musk and his biggest product Optimus AI
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
We build, We understand @grok
Made with AI
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
Grantham is a hater and an ignorant piece of sh*t
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Replying to @elonmusk @lorneseth
I hope he do 🥺
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