Editor’s Note:

Thank you for raising this very interesting and debatable point about the founding of Tesla. You are completely correct that Eberhard and Tarpenning founded Tesla Motors in 2003 and brought in Musk as an early investor in 2004. However, the company’s website describes Musk as “a co-founder”. In 2009, after months of legal wrangling, Musk and Eberhard agreed that they, along with three others, are officially equals and co-founders of the company.