Company · Technology · Manufacturing · founded 2002

SpaceX

Builds rockets and spacecraft and runs the Starlink satellite internet network. Founded by Elon Musk in 2002.

Of the 6 people here linked to SpaceX, 1 is a founder and 5 are still there. 3 of them also appear at PayPal. These are people who succeeded, not the odds of succeeding.

Description and founding year: en.wikipedia.org. Each person's role links to its own source on their profile.

6 people at SpaceX

Founder

Role

Founder, CEO and chief engineer, 2002–now

Also at

Zip2 PayPal Tesla OpenAI Neuralink Twitter / X xAI

Source · high confidence

Still there

Technology 2 / 2

Elon Musk

CEO, Tesla and SpaceX; owner, X (formerly Twitter)

wealthy · some · college degree

Executive

Role

Vice president of business development, later President and COO, 2002–now

Also at

The Aerospace Corporation Chrysler

Source · medium confidence. Current status rests on Wikipedia listing her as President and COO.

Still there

Technology · Manufacturing 2 / 4

Gwynne Shotwell

President and Chief Operating Officer, SpaceX

comfortable professional · some · graduate degree

Board

Role

Director, 2010–now

Also at

Valor Equity Partners Tesla Goldman Sachs

Source · medium confidence. Forbes's profile says director since 2010; Valor's own bio lists SpaceX among current directorships. Valor's investment began about 2008 per Forbes's 2024 article.

Still there

Finance · Venture Capital · Technology 2 / 2

Antonio Gracias

Founder, CEO and chief investment officer of Valor Equity Partners; early Tesla investor and board member, SpaceX director

upper-middle class (inferred) · well-connected · graduate degree

Board

Role

Director; investor through Founders Fund and Gigafund, 2008–now

Also at

PayPal Netscape Founders Fund Gigafund

Source · medium confidence. Forbes calls him a director since 2008, as of May 2026. Gigafund's site says he has served on the board since. No source opened shows a date after the June IPO.

Still there

Venture Capital · Finance · Technology 4 / 3

Luke Nosek

Co-founder of PayPal; co-founder of Founders Fund and Gigafund; SpaceX director since 2008

Polish-born · some · college degree

Investor

Role

Investor, through Apandion

Also at

Inovalon Apandion

Source · low confidence. Forbes lists SpaceX among Apandion's investments and links him to it as a financial asset. Size and date of the stake are not established.

Still there

Software · Technology · Venture Capital 3 / 1

Keith Dunleavy

Physician who founded Inovalon, the healthcare data and analytics company, and ran it for 26 years through a 2015 IPO and a $7.3 billion take-private

class not established · some · graduate degree