A careful blend of high-tech and luxury materials give the Tesla Roadster a unique and fluid interior style.

Company Board

Elon Musk
Chairman

Elon Musk has been the primary funding source for Tesla Motors, from when Tesla Motors was just three people and a business plan to present day, having led the Series A, Series B and co-led the Series C. Electric vehicles have long been one of his primary interests, stemming from his days in the early nineties working on high energy density capacitor technology in Silicon Valley.

Mr. Musk is known for co-founding PayPal and Zip2 and founding SpaceX. The latter company is in the business of developing and launching the world's most advanced rockets for satellite and later human transportation. As Chairman of the Board of Tesla Motors, he helps develop the company's business and product strategy, and assists with knowledge of composite and metallic structures, domestic manufacturing, and navigating federal regulations.

Ze'ev Drori
President & CEO

Ze'ev Drori is a successful high-tech entrepreneur and an experienced chief executive with the proven ability to create and manage companies with innovative products in both the high-tech and automotive sectors. He has more than 30 years of continual success and has demonstrated the ability to lead a company from conception to profitability and public offering.

The first company he founded was Monolithic Memories, a Silicon Valley semiconductor firm that pioneered fundamental advances in memory and logic technology, before being acquired by Advanced Micro Devices in 1987. Under his leadership, Monolithic introduced programmable read-only memory (PROM) and programmable array logic (PAL), which revolutionized many aspects of computer and electronic systems technology. As CEO through 1981, Ze’ev was responsible for R&D, manufacturing, marketing, finance, worldwide sales and overseas operations for product assembly. Ze’ev served as chairman of the board from 1981 through 1987.

After the sale of Monolithic Memories, Ze’ev purchased a controlling interest in Clifford Electronics, then a small start-up in auto security systems and the perfect combination of his twin passions for technology and automobiles. As chairman and CEO, he rapidly developed Clifford into the world’s leading automobile security company through significant innovations, such as remote control alarms and distribution relationships with domestic and international car manufacturers as well as a network of thousands of retail dealers. In 1999, Ze’ev sold Clifford Electronics to Allstate Insurance.

Competitive and focused, Ze’ev has taken up racing Formula cars, pitting his skills against young drivers aspiring to become professional racers. In his every pursuit, Ze’ev brings his passion and commitment, with an eye on the finish line, and translates that focus into a winning formula for technology companies.

Jim Marver
Co-Founder and Managing Partner, VantagePoint Venture Partners

Jim Marver has over 25 years of Silicon Valley experience investing in and advising high-level public and private technology companies. As a Managing Partner, Mr. Marver shares overall responsibility for all investment and divestiture decisions and management of the $4 billion VantagePoint Funds.

Prior to VantagePoint, Mr. Marver was Senior Managing Director and Head of the Global Technology Group at Bear Stearns where he was responsible for that firm's worldwide technology practice. He also held senior-level positions with LF Rothschild, Unterberg Towbin and began his investment banking career with Goldman Sachs. Earlier, he spent five years as a senior consultant at SRI International (formerly Stanford Research Institute).

Mr. Marver graduated from Williams College (BA) and the University of California at Berkeley (MPP, PhD). He serves on several portfolio company and non-profit boards, and he is Chairman of the Board of Advisors, Goldman School of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley.

Kimbal Musk
CEO of Medium

Kimbal Musk is CEO of Medium, Inc, an internet software company based in Boulder, Colo. Prior to Medium, he has been involved in many young businesses. Mr. Musk and his brother, Elon, started their first company, Zip2, an early content management company for the Internet, 1995. It was the first company to bring vector-based maps and door-to-door directions to the internet, and it built the online content management systems behind more than 100 media companies, including The New York Times. Zip2 was sold for $307 million in cash in 1999, one of the largest transactions of its kind in the internet industry.

Since then, he has helped found, advised, and invested in several exciting young companies. His prior and current board seats, in addition to Tesla Motors, are Medium, Inc., Everdream Corp., BlackBook Media, SpaceX Corp., and ProgressNow.org. He also owns The Kitchen, in Boulder, Colo, one of "America's Top Restaurants" as per Zagat, Gourmet, and the James Beard Foundation. Mr. Musk has served as an Adjunct Professor at New York University, and is a graduate of Queen's Business School in Canada and the French Culinary Institute in New York City.

Laurie Yoler
Managing Director , GrowthPoint Technology Partners

Laurie Yoler has been helping emerging technology companies grow for more than 20 years, as an executive, advisor, investor, and board member. She has served on the boards of public companies, private companies, and non-profit organizations. She is currently a Managing Director at GrowthPoint Technology Partners, a technology investment bank based in Palo Alto, Calif, serving technology and cleantech companies worldwide.

Prior to GrowthPoint Technology Partners, she was chief development officer at Intellectual Ventures, working with Nathan Myhrvold exploring invention and investment opportunities in a wide variety of technology areas. Before joining Intellectual Ventures, Ms. Yoler was vice president of marketing and business development for Packet Design LLC, a networking R&D firm started by Judy Estrin, Bill Carrico, and Van Jacobson. Laurie was instrumental in helping Packet Design spin out three networking companies: Vernier Networks, Packet Design Inc., and Precision I/O.

Ms. Yoler was previously a director at Sun Microsystems for seven years, where she held a number of corporate development, business development, marketing, and sales management positions, including three years based in Geneva, Switzerland, as the sales director for financial markets for Europe, Middle East, and Africa. While in Europe, she was selected as a member of the European Union Financial Issues Working Group, which made recommendations to the EU on technology standards. She was also instrumental in the launch of Java worldwide.

Prior to Sun, Ms. Yoler was the director of product development and management at Visa, where she designed and launched the Visa Check Card. Before joining Visa, she was a manager in the advanced technology practices of Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) and Coopers & Lybrand (now PricewaterhouseCoopers).

Ms. Yoler brings consumer product marketing, business development, and public policy expertise to the Tesla Motors board.

Steve Westly
Former California Controller and Founder of The Westly Group

Steve Westly is the CEO and Founder of The Westly Group, which helps entrepreneurs build great companies in the Clean Tech space.

Prior to founding The Westly Group, he served as the Controller and Chief Fiscal Officer of the state of California – the world's sixth largest economy. As Controller, he chaired the State Lands Commission and served on 62 other boards and commissions, including CalPERS and CalSTRS, the nation's two largest public pension funds, which together invest more than $350 billion. During his four-year term, Mr. Westly spearheaded innovative tax programs that helped close the State's budget deficit. He also led an effort to commit more than $1 billion to clean technology investments.

Before running for office, Mr. Westly helped guide the online auction company eBay through a period of rapid growth, serving as the Senior Vice President of Marketing, Business Development, M&A, and International. He helped bring eBay to Europe and Asia, and developed the marketing and acquisition strategies that paved the path for the firm's exponential growth.

He also served as a senior executive for a number of Silicon Valley companies over a 20-year period, including WhoWhere, the nation's leading personal search directory, and Codd & Date, a relational database consulting firm with offices in five countries.

Mr. Westly began his career in Washington, D.C., where he worked first on Capitol Hill and later in the Office of Conservation and Solar at the U.S. Department of Energy. He then returned to California to become special assistant to the president of the California Public Utilities Commission. While there, he published two books on alternative energy and the utilities.

He has a Bachelor of Arts from Stanford University and a Master's in Business Administration from Stanford's Graduate School of Business, where he served on the faculty for five years.

Mr. Westly and his wife Anita have started The Westly Foundation, a philanthropic organization providing support in education, health, and global security.

Ira Ehrenpreis
General Partner, Technology Partners

Ira Ehrenpreis has been with Technology Partners since 1996. He leads the firm’s Cleantech investment practice, investing in Energy Technology, Water Technology, and Materials Science opportunities.

Mr. Ehrenpreis is a recognized leader in both the Cleantech and Venture Capital communities. He has served on several industry Advisory Boards, including the Chairman of the Cleantech Venture Network Advisory Board, the Clean-Tech Investors Summit (2005, 2006 and 2007 Conference Chairman), the Energy Investors Forum (2004 Conference Chairman), the Energy Venture Fair, the California Climate Change Advisory Board, the Southern California Tech Coast Alliance, the Golden Capital Network, the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs (FWE), and the Comerica Venture Capital Advisory Board. He has been featured as the Keynote speaker at both the Cleantech Venture Forum VI and the Cleantech Venture Forum V, as well as countless other industry events.

Mr. Ehrenpreis also serves on the Board of the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) and on the Board of the Western Association of Venture Capitalists (WAVC). He is the Co-Chairman of both the VCNetwork and the YVCA, two non-profit organizations comprising more than 1,000 venture capitalists.

Mr. Ehrenpreis is also an active leader at Stanford University, where his contributions have included helping to teach the course on Venture Capital and serving on the Board of Visitors of Stanford Law School. He is a Contributor to Nimmer on Copyright, the leading copyright treatise.

Mr. Ehrenpreis received his JD/MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business and Stanford Law School, where he was an Associate Editor of Stanford Law Review. He holds a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Los Angeles, graduating Phi Beta Kappa and Summa Cum Laude.

Antonio J. Gracias
CEO and Chairman of the Investment Committee at Valor Equity Partners

Antonio Gracias is Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Investment Committee at Valor Equity Partners. He is responsible for the firm's management, operations, and investment strategy. Mr. Gracias has 15 years experience investing in a variety of sectors including private equity, public equity, and real estate transactions. Prior to founding Valor in 2001, Mr. Gracias served as Founder and Managing Member of MG Capital, a private equity firm headquartered in Chicago, Ill. Prior to MG Capital, Mr. Gracias was an Associate with Goldman, Sachs & Co., where he served the firm's institutional clients in the International Equity Division.

Mr. Gracias is a member of the Chicago 2016 Olympic Committee, Board of Directors of the Grand Victoria Foundation, Board of Trustees of the Illinois Institute of Technology, Board of Advisors of Columbia University's School of Public and International Affairs, and Economic Club of Chicago. He is also a member of several Fund I portfolio company boards.

He holds a joint B.S. and M.S.F.S. (honors degree) in International Finance and Economics from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service as well as a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School.