Socialism: “Seize the means of production!”
SpaceX: “Here, have some stock… because you worked hard.”
Plot twist: Workers actually get rich instead of equally poor.
~ Incognito
Peter Sellis of Discord wrote on X in response to a comment about SpaceX and the reason for its success. It was a singular idea that instilled loyalty and commitment in the employees.
First, SpaceX pays fairly average, but for more than a decade, they have offered regular (~bi-annual) liquidity to employees. To live comfortably (especially to have a family) in LA County, most employees would have sold a little bit here and there, if not a lot (e.g., if they were the sole earner in a household).
Second, critically, because there is no double trigger (in order to facilitate the liquidity), most people default to “sell-to-cover”—i.e., ~40-50% of their holdings are immediately sold to cover the taxes on vest. Remember, these vests are W-2 events. In order to not do this, the employee would need to come up with significant cash (because the taxes are paid against the price at vest, not the price at grant)—especially later on.
“They gave stock to everyone. There are a bunch of highly skilled workers that we on X never think of, like Tube Benders, Orbital Tube Welders, Cleanroom Technicians, etc. that are going to make significant fortunes.”
However, two things make SpaceX particularly awesome IMO:
1. They gave employees the option to choose stock or options along the way. Someone who took options and paid the taxes with cash would have done very well.
2. They gave stock to everyone. There are a bunch of highly skilled workers that we on X never think of, like Tube Benders, Orbital Tube Welders, Cleanroom Technicians, etc. that are going to make significant fortunes.
Maybe it’s overly quixotic, but this last point is an underrated part of @elonmusk attacking physical problems, not just software ones, with 100x thinking: a bunch of people in the types of jobs America needs and romanticizes (for good reason) will be rewarded with the kind of wealth that really would not be possible at any other company they would have chosen.
An incredibly positive story that, if you can’t see it in that light, you should look inward.
Elon Musk’s brilliance is what made this happen.
True:
“They gave stock to everyone. There are a bunch of highly skilled workers that we on X never think of, like Tube Benders, Orbital Tube Welders, Cleanroom Technicians, etc. that are going to make significant fortunes.” https://t.co/Q9LPnubCU5
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 1, 2026