While digging through old family photos and papers, Maye Musk, mother of tech magnate Elon Musk, uncovered a document that perfectly captured her son’s early brilliance in computers. The unexpected discovery was a computer aptitude test result from 1989—an official record that highlighted a teenage Elon’s exceptional performance in programming and operating systems.
The document, issued by the University of Pretoria and signed by the director of information management, JLM Wiechers, showed Elon Musk scoring A+ in both Programming and Operating Systems. The report noted, “The results were outstanding,” suggesting that even in his teens, Musk’s technological aptitude far surpassed that of his peers.
Maye Musk shared the discovery on social media, proudly calling her son “My genius boy” and expressing the joy of finding such a remarkable piece of his academic past. Elon, never one to miss a witty opportunity, responded with a futuristic twist, saying, “They said I scored the highest for engineering aptitude that they had ever seen. Or, in other words, not bad for a human, as a future AI might say.”
This glimpse into Musk’s early academic record adds another layer to his achievements. Before he became a globally recognized entrepreneur and innovator, Musk briefly studied at the University of Pretoria in South Africa. Later he moved to Canada to attend Queen’s University and after to University of Pennsylvania. There, he completed degrees in physics and economics before launching into the startup world.
These early indicators of brilliance foreshadowed Musk’s future as a world-changing innovator. Today, he is the driving force behind Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and The Boring Company, each pushing the limits of science and engineering in different arenas—from electric vehicles and space travel to brain-computer interfaces and urban transport systems.
Prior to that Elon Musk co-founded two influential tech ventures: Zip2, an early online platform offering maps and business directories, and PayPal, a digital payment service. Both companies were eventually sold, marking the beginning of Musk’s journey as a serial entrepreneur and paving the way for his future innovations.
The document, issued by the University of Pretoria and signed by the director of information management, JLM Wiechers, showed Elon Musk scoring A+ in both Programming and Operating Systems. The report noted, “The results were outstanding,” suggesting that even in his teens, Musk’s technological aptitude far surpassed that of his peers.
Maye Musk shared the discovery on social media, proudly calling her son “My genius boy” and expressing the joy of finding such a remarkable piece of his academic past. Elon, never one to miss a witty opportunity, responded with a futuristic twist, saying, “They said I scored the highest for engineering aptitude that they had ever seen. Or, in other words, not bad for a human, as a future AI might say.”
While sorting through photos, I came across computer aptitude test results of @elonmusk at 17. My genius boy. Proud mom. pic.twitter.com/1MeWDSQ6FZ
— Maye Musk (@mayemusk) May 18, 2025
This glimpse into Musk’s early academic record adds another layer to his achievements. Before he became a globally recognized entrepreneur and innovator, Musk briefly studied at the University of Pretoria in South Africa. Later he moved to Canada to attend Queen’s University and after to University of Pennsylvania. There, he completed degrees in physics and economics before launching into the startup world.
These early indicators of brilliance foreshadowed Musk’s future as a world-changing innovator. Today, he is the driving force behind Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and The Boring Company, each pushing the limits of science and engineering in different arenas—from electric vehicles and space travel to brain-computer interfaces and urban transport systems.
Prior to that Elon Musk co-founded two influential tech ventures: Zip2, an early online platform offering maps and business directories, and PayPal, a digital payment service. Both companies were eventually sold, marking the beginning of Musk’s journey as a serial entrepreneur and paving the way for his future innovations.
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