I tend to approach things from a physics framework. And physics teaches you to reason from first principles rather than by analogy.
Elon MuskRead
There are really two things that have to occur in order for a new technology to be affordable to the mass market. One is you need economies of scale. The other is you need to iterate on the design. You need to go through a few versions.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Affordable technology requires mass production and design improvements.
This quote by Elon Musk emphasizes that for new technologies to be made accessible and affordable to a wide audience, two key factors must be in place: the ability to produce the technology on a large scale, which reduces costs, and a commitment to refining the product through multiple iterations. This iterative design process allows for enhancements that improve functionality and user experience.
Themes
TechnologyAffordabilityInnovationDesignScale
In practice
Example use cases
In a technology conference presentation discussing the future of affordable smart devices.
More from Elon Musk
All quotes →The United States is definitely ahead in culture of innovation. If someone wants to accomplish great things, there is no better place than the U.S.
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The space shuttle was often used as an example of why you shouldn't even attempt to make something reusable. But one failed experiment does not invalidate the greater goal. If that was the case, we'd never have had the light bulb.
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The reality is gas prices should be much more expensive then they are because we're not incorporating the true damage to the environment and the hidden costs of mining oil and transporting it to the U.S. Whenever you have an unpriced externality, you have a bit of a market failure, to the degree that eternality remains unpriced.
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Man has the power to act as his own destroyer - and that is the way he has acted through most of his history.
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I've actually made a prediction that within 30 years a majority of new cars made in the United States will be electric. And I don't mean hybrid, I mean fully electric.
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