Antonio Gracias is Mr “Fix-it”
History has shown that when Musk is fighting his toughest battles, Gracias is often his Mr. Fix-It. Together they have helped reshape industries—autos and aerospace—but now face an even bigger, and politically fraught, test in trying to redefine the U.S. government itself.
Until recently, Gracias rarely made high-profile public appearances. He has preferred something akin to anonymity for the past two decades as he not only invested in, but also personally helped Musk build, his business empire.
As an investor in Tesla, Gracias was asked in the early years to help Musk get a handle on out-of-control costs for the company’s first car.
As the company grew, Gracias and his team from Valor Equity Partners worked to untangle problems, including those with the Model 3 sedans, which almost bankrupted the company in 2018.
*Gracias had served on the Tesla board and remains on the SpaceX board. *
He went on to help Musk when he took control of Twitter.