Tech

The CEO of Elon Musk's Boring Company who reportedly slept at Twitter HQ with his wife and baby once owned a bar called 'Thomas Foolery'

elon musk boring company
Steve Davis reportedly slept at Twitter's headquarters after Elon Musk asked for his help. The Boring Company
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The Boring Company CEO, Steve Davis, slept at Twitter's headquarters after Elon Musk asked for his help following his takeover, The Information reported.

Davis spent the first few weeks after his baby was born sleeping in a makeshift bedroom in Twitter's San Francisco office, along with his partner. The outlet reported that he spent two months working for Twitter after Musk asked for his help.   

Musk also owns The Boring Company, which has built a reputation for offbeat stunts. While its core business is focused on digging a network of tunnels for Tesla cars under major US cities, the company has also drawn attention for selling flamethrowers and building a Monty Python-style watchtower.

As it turns out, Davis has a history of wacky gimmicks throughout his career, detailed in a 2019 profile from Bloomberg reporter Sarah McBride (the profile builds on reporting from Ashlee Vance's book on Elon Musk).

Davis was hand-picked by Musk to lead Boring, perhaps in part because of his colorful background. Before working for Musk, Davis founded a frozen yogurt shop and a bar that accepts bitcoin, among other ventures.

Boring Company has faced scrutiny, especially in Chicago and Las Vegas, where it aimed to build its first tunnels. Its first project is a 1.7-mile-long tunnel under the Las Vegas convention center that conveys passengers in Teslas. 

Here are some of the most striking details from Davis' pre-Boring life.

The Boring Company's chief executive slept at Twitter's headquarters with his partner and newborn baby following Musk taking over the social media platform in late October, The Information reported.

Photo of Steve Davis next to a photo of Twitter's makeshift bedroom
Steve Davis became head of The Boring Company in 2019 Mark Ralston/Getty Images, James Clayton/BBC

Musk tested Davis' engineering skills by challenging him to make a $120,000 part with a budget of $5,000. After months of work, Davis emailed Musk that he did so with just $3,900 and Musk responded with one word: "Ok."

elon musk boring company
The Boring Company

The anecdote was reported in Ashlee Vance's book, Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future.

Davis was living in Washington D.C. working for SpaceX and missed California-style frozen yogurt, so he taught himself to make it "via trial and error" and opened his own yogurt shop, "Mr. Yogato."

Frozen Yogurt
Fro-yo, not from Mr. Yogato. Mark Lenihan/AP

Source: Bloomberg

Mr. Yogato offered discounts to customers who could answer trivia questions, or ask "Seinfeld" trivia questions that Davis couldn't answer. Customers also got a discount for dressing as tennis player Bjorn Borg.

Bjorn Borg
Tennis star Bjorn Borg. AP

The "Rules of Yogato" are detailed on Mr. Yogato's website.

Davis ultimately held a Willy Wonka-style contest to select the new owner of Mr. Yogato and sold it for $1 to the new owner.

Washington DC
Allison Shelley/Getty Images

Davis founded and ran Mr. Yogato while simultaneously earning his Ph.D. in economics at George Mason University. The focus of his dissertation was US currency debasement.

Boring Company
Robyn Beck/Reuters

Source: Bloomberg

After getting his Ph.D., Davis opened a bar in D.C. called Thomas Foolery, which was one the city's first establishments to accept bitcoin payments.

A collection of Bitcoin (virtual currency) tokens are displayed in this picture illustration taken December 8, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/Illustration
An illustration of Bitcoin tokens. Reuters

Thomas Foolery offered "gimmick upon gimmick," according to the Washington Post. The bar offered "angry hour," when patrons could receive a discount for shouting their drink order. Visitors to the bar could also get discounts for things like dancing "the Carlton," a move from "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air."

washington dc skyline
The skyline of Washington D.C. Reuters/Larry Downing

Davis is reportedly a devoted fan of Ayn Rand and has quoted "Atlas Shrugged" during public events. He was also an extra in a 2012 "Atlas Shrugged" movie.

David Datuna Steve Jobs Ayn Rand
Mironova Gallery

Source: Mother Jones

Musk hand-picked Davis to lead Boring Company. At an event announcing the company's tunnel plans, Davis joked that they would use bricks made from excavated dirt to build a pyramid in Musk's honor.

elon musk boring
Robyn Beck/Pool via REUTERS

Source: Bloomberg

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Aaron Holmes is a reporter covering tech with a focus on enterprise, networking, and cybersecurity. Before joining Insider in 2019, he has previously written for The New York Daily News, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and The Tampa Bay Times. He has appeared on Good Morning America, CBS Los Angeles, Cheddar, and SiriusXM Radio to discuss his work. He holds a bachelor's degree from Columbia University. Selected stories:   Got a tip? Contact this reporter securely via email at aholmes@bjinnox.com or via the encrypted messaging app Signal at 706-347-1880 using a non-work phone.
Sam Tabahriti reports on trending business news from the London bureau. He frequently covers tech, such as Apple, Twitter, Meta, and Google as well as transportation. Sam is particularly interested in investigating tech companies.  He received his BA in Journalism from the University of Westminster.  Before joining Insider, Sam worked for BBC, The Sunday Times Magazine, talkRADIO, Metro, and more.  Reach out You can get in touch with him by email at stabahriti@bjinnox.com or stabahriti@proton.me securely. He is also available via Twitter @samtabahriti or Instagram @samtbrt. WhatsApp, Signal, or Telegram available upon request.  Top stories A SpaceX technician suffered a fractured skull during a routine rocket test in January and was placed in a coma A 62-year old engineer alleges he was sidelined at SpaceX over fears that he might 'retire or die' Rich Russians offered a Caribbean shortcut to US visas by paying their way to a Grenadian passport Dozens of seized superyachts may cause significant environmental damage if governments fail to pay millions in maintenance costs, experts say Russian oligarchs have been sanctioned like Osama bin Laden was, and they're using similar tactics to avoid them, an expert said Russian oligarchs anticipated sanctions months before the war and moved money through Hawala, an informal payment system, an expert says