Musk-style first-principles cost teardown
OfficialOfficial · updated Nov 4, 2026 · v1.0.1
Rebuilds the cost of a product or service from its basic inputs, built on the first-principles approach Musk described: price the inputs, compare that floor with today's price, and explain the gap.
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When to use it
- A price is accepted because the industry has always charged it
- A quote or bill of materials looks high and you want a should-cost estimate
What you give it
- The product, part or cost line
- Today's price and quantity
- What it is made of
- Market rates for the inputs, with sources
What you get
An inputs table with a cost floor and its share of today's price, the layers of the gap marked evidence or hypothesis, tests to run, and the floor's limits.
Changelog
- v1.0.1 · Nov 4, 2026 · Example output now opens with the attribution and not-affiliated lines, as the skill's own checks require.
- v1.0.0 · Nov 4, 2026 · First release.
Sources
- The mind behind Tesla, SpaceX, SolarCity ... - TED interview transcript, 2013 (2026-11-04)
- Elon Musk's Mission to Mars - Wired interview, 2012 (2026-11-04)
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