Elon Musk Clarifies How He Started Zip2, Now Known as PayPal

Urian B., Tech Times 21 April 2021, 02:04 am

Elon Musk's beginnings have oftentimes been looked into as a source of inspiration for a lot of people. While there were still some other milestones that the Tesla CEO was able to achieve in his earlier days, Elon Musk's most notable achievement was starting a certain company that would be later known as PayPal.

Elon Musk Zip2 Story

A certain Twitter post that was supposed to explain his beginnings was corrected by Elon Musk himself. A certain detail was pointed out and that particular detail could change the narrative of how people think Elon Musk's company actually started. A certain Twitter user Pranay Pathole posted a Tweet about the Tesla CEO's story but was then corrected by Elon Musk himself. The tweet also included a picture of a much younger Elon Musk.

The Tweet noted that back in 1995, Elon Musk actually wanted to work at an internet company. The story then went on noting that he had applied to work at Netscape and that he had sent his resume. He even reportedly tried hanging out over at their lobby. Elon Musk, however, was too shy to talk to anyone. The ending of the tweet then noted that the reason why he started his very own internet company known as Zip2 is that he was not able to get a job anywhere.

How did Elon Musk Start Zip2?

While the story was inspiring and truthful details were included. Elon Musk then replied to the story saying he could get a job but "just not at an internet company" noting that there weren't a lot of those back then. This changes how the start of Zip2's narrative goes. Elon Musk did not give a reason as to why he started Zip2 but clarified that he could get a job.

The tricky story as to how Elon Musk started Zip2 now known as PayPal is in a YouTube video where he explained his struggles of trying to work at an internet company. The iconic phrase "I guess I'll just have to start my own company" was also heard in the video. Elon Musk mentioned that he had a hard time getting a job at an internet company which is the whole point of his clarification.

PayPal Elon Musk

Although Zip2 is now PayPal and Elon Musk no longer owns stock in the company, the now Tesla and SpaceX CEO is still very busy with his two top companies. Although Elon Musk also owns, invests, and supports a few more companies, he is mostly focused on Tesla and SpaceX as of the moment.

Today, SpaceX and Tesla are two of the most popular companies in the whole world. PayPal, while still a very large company today, is half the value of Tesla but is actually worth more than SpaceX. As of the moment, Tesla Market Capital is worth $690 Billion while PayPal is worth $10 Billion, according to Yahoo Finance. SpaceX, as of the moment, is worth $74 Billion, according to CNBC.