Elon Musk's top three favourite tech CEOs

The tech billionaire, Elon Musk, recently made headlines not for his inventions but for his admiration of others.

Appearing on the Verdict with Ted Cruz podcast earlier this year, the Tesla and SpaceX CEO was asked who he considered the smartest leaders he had met.

In a candid moment, he named three well-known rivals: Jeff Bezos, Larry Ellison, and Larry Page.

His recognition of these figures underscores both his respect for transformative leadership and his willingness to set aside personal rivalries in favour of acknowledging true visionaries.

Jeff Bezos

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has long been one of Musk’s fiercest rivals, particularly in space exploration through his company Blue Origin.

While the two have been arguing publicly over rocket technology, Musk acknowledged Bezos’s relentless drive and ability to scale Amazon into a global giant.

Bezos’s long-term vision of space colonisation also mirrors Musk’s Martian ambitions, suggesting that beneath the rivalry lies a mutual respect for big-picture thinking.

Larry Ellison

Surprisingly, another of Musk’s favourites is Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, the one who recently briefly overtook his place as the world’s richest person.

Known for his sharp business instincts and bold leadership style, Ellison transformed Oracle into a software powerhouse.

Musk has often admired Ellison’s ability to disrupt industries and take calculated risks, qualities that resonate with Musk’s own career.

Larry Page

Completing Musk’s trio is Google co-founder Larry Page. A pioneer in artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous vehicles, and “moonshot” ventures, Page’s futuristic outlook aligns closely with Musk’s.

Both men share a belief in technology as a driver of societal transformation, and Musk has described Page as a kindred spirit in pushing humanity toward bold new frontiers.