Enigmatic entrepreneur Elon Musk has no shortage of hobbies: sometimes, he makes cars. Other times, he likes to do a space thing or play Martian overlord. But now, the 45-year-old billionaire is turning his attention to the arts, as evidenced by a series of cryptic drawings he created using Tesla’s new sketchpad feature, which is accessible once users download the 8.1 software update for the car’s touchscreen. More impressive than the art itself, however, is the fact that Musk is using it to hint at the next wave of Tesla technology: unicorn fart-powered vehicles.
Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Sure, it sounds outlandish, but Musk has proven time and again that the uncomfortable is his comfort zone. After all, isn’t it unbelievable enough that grown adults would feel compelled to use their car — which is typically used for driving — as a sketchpad? Blurring the lines between utility and complete uselessness is something Musk is clearly looking to explore, as evidenced by these creations, which he tweeted last night:
Made today on Tesla sketch pad pic.twitter.com/Z8dFP2NN41
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 30, 2017
OK, forget that Mona Lisa shit — can we talk about the unicorn?
The implications here are obvious to the point of absurdity: Clearly, Tesla is developing a cutting edge, sustainable way to harness unicorn farts in order to power their next line of vehicles. Traditionally, Tesla has taken some heat for not being as green as an electric car should be, but using something cleaner like unicorn farts is certainly one way of showing the company is serious about ending our reliance on fossil fuels.
Oddly enough, this isn’t even the first time Musk has hinted at his plans. In February, Musk shared a photo of a mug bearing almost the exact same crude illustration. Scribbled on the other side is an even more overt message: “Electric cars are good for the environment because electricity comes from magic.” Interpret that as you will.
Rainbows, unicorns and electric cars pic.twitter.com/oGHkVUmpdi
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 4, 2017
Tesla’s highly anticipated Model 3 begins production sometime in the next few days, so it’s no surprise that Musk is riding the hype train with his Unicorn Fart Clues. Expected delivery on the Model 3 begins in 2018, so we’ll be watching and waiting to see how Musk pulls this one off.