The Reputation
ELON MUSK: Wonderkid; everything he touches turns to gold.
TIM COOK: The Apple CEO is said to be obsessed with work, while is also notorious for being fiercely private.
The Money
ELON MUSK: Thought to be worth over $20 billion, Musk’s annual salary is just one dollar. Don’t be fooled – this doesn’t include payouts like a reported $2.6 billion from Tesla.
TIM COOK: Although he’s worth around $600 million, Cook lags way behind Silicon Valley’s billionaires, and has vowed instead to give every penny he has to charity away.
The Cars
Jaguar Series 1 1967 E-Type Roadster
ELON MUSK: He’s all about electric but Musk owns two cars that run on petrol, the Ford Model T and a Jaguar Series 1 1967 E-Type Roadster.
BMW 5 Series
TIM COOK: The first car Cook ever owned was that of a second-hand Porsche Boxster, although he now favours a BMW 5 Series.
The Scandal
ELON MUSK: Musk no longer talks to his dad, after he fathered a child with his former stepdaughter in what has become a soap opera played out in the tabloids.
TIM COOK: We’re clutching at straws here but Cook got himself into a polite spat with Mark Zuckerberg after the Cambridge Analytica controversy. That’s got to be something, right?
The Extravagance
Elon Musk’s Beverly Hills Mansion © Sotheby’s
ELON MUSK: For someone who works 90 hours a week, it’s no surprise Musk doesn’t have time to splash out. Property is probably his biggest indulgence – he owns more than $70 million worth in Bel-Air. He’s also prone to the odd whimsy, like when he bid $920,000 for the submarine car used in a Bond movie.
Tim Cook’s 2400 square-foot home in Palo Alto
TIM COOK: It may not surprise you by now to hear that there isn’t really any. Cook purchased his house in 2010 for – wait for it – a paltry $1.9 million.
The Watches
Elon Musk with a Tesla watch (left) and Tim Cook wearing his customised Apple Watch (right)
ELON MUSK: He’s usually spotted in Tesla-branded timepieces, but he’s also been snapped in a luxe Parmigiani, suggesting the Swiss brand’s the one for him.
TIM COOK: Controversially, Cook sports an Apple timepiece. We know! To be fair, it’s a custom made one that no-one else can buy. So that’s got to mean something.
Verdict?
What is it with tech billionaires and modesty? Even Musk could have done a lot better if he wasn’t working so much. Once a tech geek, always a tech geek, clearly. Even still, Musk is so far ahead he leaves Cook trailing in his electric, environmentally friendly wake.
