Elon Musk would fire overworked Tesla staff on the spot during meltdowns, new book claims

"I'm in the factory working my ass off, so I don't want to hear about how hard everyone else in the factory works."

A new book has alleged that Elon Musk would sometimes fire Tesla staff on the spot in explosions of rage. The book, entitled Power Play: Tesla, Elon Musk and the Bet of the Century, has been written by Wall Street Journal reporter Tim Higgins, and details the explosive temper and meltdowns of the Tesla boss. Musk would apparently tell his staff that they had no right to complain about being overworked because "I can be on my own private island with naked supermodels, drinking Mai Tais - but I'm not." On another occasion he reportedly shouted at an executive who had the audacity to tell him that staff were exhausted and needed time off.

Higgins writes: "At the end of the assembly line one evening, (Vice President Josh) Ensign and Musk got into a heated debate about giving the workers time off.

"The factory boss made the case that the team needed to rest. Ensign's entire argument seemed to set Musk off.

"'I can be on my own private island with naked supermodels, drinking Mai Tais, but I'm not,' Musk bellowed. 'I'm in the factory working my ass off, so I don't want to hear about how hard everyone else in the factory works.'

"And with that Musk stomped off."

Related links: Anonymous threatens to target Elon Musk Jeff Bezos calls out NASA over ‘mistake’ Elon Musk moon-lander contract Elon Musk has reportedly lost over $20 billion since hosting SNL The billionaire's temper was reportedly explosive throughout the development of Tesla's Model X SUV as Musk tried to pursue his dream of building a commercially viable electric car. The book also claims Musk once screamed at a group of engineers, telling them their work was "complete shit," with the 50-year-old then getting each engineer to tell him "who the fuck you are and what the fuck you're doing to fix my goddamn [production] line." Higgins writes in the book that Musk was motivated by a "relentless drive" to produce an affordable and reliable electric car, and he would sleep on the factory floor and give interviews in t-shirts that he hadn't changed in three days.

He describes Musk's way of operating as the 'ultimate game of chicken': sell investors and consumers on his vision just enough for him to stay ahead of creditors, competitors and regulators.

Higgins writes: "And while Musk's vision, enthusiasm, and determination carry Tesla; his ego, paranoia, and pettiness threaten to undo it all."

Well, there's a surprise. It turns out that billionaire bro and wannabe meme lord Elon Musk actually isn't the best guy. Who knew?