How Elon Musk Broke Clubhouse

Billionaire Elon Musk, who now holds the title of Richest Man in the World, made headlines again when he highlighted the elusive Clubhouse app. The social media app allows users to develop content by uploading audio, hosting chat rooms, and having free-flowing conversations.

Although Clubhouse is a little more than a year old, the platform has grown quickly and is now valued at at least $100 million. With 12.7 million downloads, people are drawn to Clubhouse for more than its unique communication methods.

Its invite-only access and elite user base make it an exciting experience for anyone who can join. The Q&A Musk held on the app proved just that.

On February 1, Musk was interviewed via Clubhouse to reconnect with his followers about various topics. In his first public use of the app, Musk pushed the boundaries of this startup’s abilities.

Clubhouse works by allowing anyone to host a public chat room and invite others to join. So, when the tech mogul of the world joins a room, the rest of Silicon Valley wants to hear what he has to say.

More than 5,000 people— the largest capacity that has been filled in the app’s short history— entered the chatroom to listen in on the interview.

The interview began with Musk discussing the future of life on Mars, saying the early experiences would be “hard”. The conversation then turned to Musk admitting he doesn’t believe in aliens, but he does consider the possibility of rudimentary alien technology existing.

Of course, you can’t mention Elon Musk without acknowledging his love of memes. Musk’s notorious meme-filled Twitter was called into question, and he expressed his love of the format’s ability to transcend pictures and words.

Musk boasted the power of Tela’s AI. Believing AI is the way of the future, he talked about his company, Neuralink, and their work to embed AI into living creatures.

Next up on the topic list was cryptocurrencies. When describing his thoughts about Bitcoin, Musk revealed that he created his own successful cryptocurrency, Dogecoin, to mock the up-and-coming market, and he regrets not supporting it sooner.

Speaking more about his companies, Musk announced his ambitions to produce 20 million new Teslas in the coming year despite only producing a fraction of that in 2020.

A believer in his product, Musk estimated that self-driving cars will significantly integrate into everyday life. He hopes that humans will spend 60 hours out of the week in these vehicles.

Although he is a man of ambition, Musk knows where he’s not needed. While he supports the development of a COVID-19 vaccine, none of his companies will participate in producing them at this time because of the overwhelming efforts of other corporations to dominate the space.

To end the event, Musk interviewed Vlad Tenev, the CEO of Robinhood, to discuss the Company’s response to last month’s GameStop fiasco. Ultimately, Musk ruled that Robinhood was not at fault for its actions because circumstances beyond its control forced its hand.

With big names like Elon Musk bringing attention to Clubhouse, it’s unsurprising that its numbers have soared in recent months. While Clubhouse is just starting out, it’s clear they’re not slowing down anytime soon.