Musk was born in 1971 in South Africa. His father was an engineer and his mom, a model and dietitian.
As a child, Musk gravitated towards computers and programming -- teaching himself to code by reading a book. At 12 years old, he created a video game and sold it to a computing magazine for $500.
His interest in books, learning, and computers helped him escape from a troubled social life. Musk has Asperger's syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder. Difficulty reading social cues and the inability to relate to others' feelings are common symptoms. He has said his childhood was lonely and unhappy, and has said he was bullied.
Musk moved to Canada at 17, then later headed south to attend the University of Pennsylvania. While a student at Penn, Musk and his brother launched Zip2, an internet company that began as an online directory of local businesses. The company came to life when Musk wrote code that merged a database of businesses into an electronic mapping application.
Zip2 began charging local businesses for inclusion and, later, licensed its local online directories to newspapers including The New York Times.
In 1999, Compaq Computer bought Zip2 for $307 million. Musk was no longer a majority shareholder or CEO at that point, but he reportedly received $22 million from the sale.
