This CNBC article “Billionaire Elon Musk credits his success to these 8 books” references “Kevin Rose's interview of Elon Musk” and points to Ben Franklin and Albert Einstein as heroes of Elon Mush. That article also talks about Musk's love for the writing of Isaac Asimov
http://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/21/billionaire-elon-musk-credits-his-success-to-these-8-books.html
http://www.the9billion.com/2012/09/11/kevin-rose-interviews-elon-musk/
Musk's love for the writing of Sci-Fi master Isaac Asimov and the influence Asimov's writing had on him is documented in this article, http://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-favorite-book-foundation-asimov-2014-12
Many answers jump to the conclusion that Musk was a fan of Nikola Tesla, why else would he name a company after him. Although Elon Musk is considered one of the founding fathers of the Tesla company, it was initially founded in 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning and named after Nikola Tesla before Musk was involved with the company. When asked about Nikola Tesla in an interview, Elon Musk says he is a bigger fan of Thomas Edison than Nikola Tesla “because Edison brought his stuff to market and made those inventions accessible to the world, whereas Tesla didn't really do that.”
https://www.quora.com/Why-is-Elon-Musk-a-bigger-fan-of-Edison-than-Tesla/answer/Tom-Peracchio
It is a shame that Quora is so full of hero workship and twisted facts leading to confirmation bias turning popular legends into facts.
Tech’s Enduring Great-Man Myth - a not so flattering story https://www.technologyreview.com/s/539861/techs-enduring-great-man-myth/
The Guru 42 Universe is not run by a university professor with a team of editors and advisers working to developing a website. Tom Peracchio is simply someone who loves technology and history and is amazed by how little people know about the great minds in the world of technology.
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