Musk said it to Fast Company writer Jennifer Reingold, in “Hondas in Space” (published 1 February 2005). The article quotes it directly, right after the set-up “There’s a silly notion that failure’s not an option at NASA.” The wording is confirmed against the article text.
“Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough” Elon Musk, quoted in Jennifer Reingold, “Hondas in Space,” Fast Company, February 2005 · Verbatim: “There's a silly notion that failure's not an option at NASA. Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough.”
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In context
Evoking the world of Elon Musk — Founder, CEO & chief engineer of SpaceX. Theme: "Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough". Atmospheric and restrained, cinematic directional light, a muted period-appropriate palette, fine grain and texture. Compose with generous empty space for the quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.
Minimalist
Minimalist editorial slide for the quote "Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough". Clean background, a single muted accent color, generous negative space, subtle paper or linen texture, no literal illustration — let the words carry it. Reserve clear space for a serif quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.
Provenance
The documented source
Article
Hondas in Space
Publication
Fast Company, February 2005 (Issue 91); online 1 February 2005
Writer
Jennifer Reingold
Form
Direct quotation from Musk in a magazine profile of SpaceX
Getting something out there fast inevitably leads to failures — but that’s to be expected at SpaceX. When something goes wrong, “first of all, there’s a good lashing,” jokes Musk. Getting serious, he says, “There’s a silly notion that failure’s not an option at NASA. Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough.” In fact, says Kevin Brogan, a senior design engineer, “the first time we had a major engine failure Elon was kind of excited. It gave him some street cred.”
Fast Company, Feb 2005
Most quote lists leave out Musk’s opening sentence, a jab at NASA’s “failure’s not an option” motto. Without it, “here” has nothing to point to: it means SpaceX, as opposed to NASA.
Wikiquote’s sourced Elon Musk page ↗ lists the line under 2005 and cites the same Fast Company article, but its transcription has a typo (“aren’t not failing”).
Quote roundups pass it around without a source. Wikiquote’s talk page ↗ lists it under “Further unsourced quotes,” and the only source given there is an Inc. listicle.
The line first appeared in print in Fast Company’s February 2005 article “Hondas in Space.” A 2005 publication is still under US copyright. The site’s footer names Mansueto Ventures, LLC as the copyright holder. Quoting two sentences with attribution, as this page does, is ordinary fair-use quotation.
Rights status is our research, not legal advice — and copyright varies by country and edition. For commercial or published use, confirm with the rightsholder. See terms.
Fact-check
Real quote, garbled history
Musk really did say this. What goes wrong online is the setting, the wording and the missing NASA set-up.
✕
Venue“A SpaceX Q&A session” Vague
24/7 Wall St (Feb 2025) ↗ says Musk said it “during a SpaceX Q&A session” and gives no date. The documented source is a 2005 Fast Company magazine profile.
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Wording“If you’re not failing, you’re not taking enough risks” Paraphrase
The same 24/7 Wall St article ↗ rewrites the second sentence in its headline. Musk said “innovating enough,” not “taking enough risks.”
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SourcingQuote roundups and listicles Unsourced
Articles such as CleanTechnica (2020) ↗ repeat the line with no venue or year. Wikiquote’s talk page ↗ files it under “Further unsourced quotes,” citing only an Inc. roundup.
✕
Transcription“If things aren’t not failing…” Typo
Wikiquote’s main Musk page ↗ cites the right article but transcribes it with a double negative. The article itself ↗ reads “If things are not failing.”
✓The documented source is Fast Company, “Hondas in Space” (1 February 2005) ↗: “There’s a silly notion that failure’s not an option at NASA. Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough.”
Context
Why he said it
The line is a reply to a famous slogan. “Failure is not an option” is a motto tied to NASA’s mission control. Musk calls it “a silly notion” and offers SpaceX’s opposite: break things early and often, because a test that never fails isn’t pushing hard enough.
In the Fast Company profile, the remark sits in a passage about SpaceX’s build-fast, “test the crap out of it” approach while developing the Falcon I. An engineer recalls that after the first major engine failure, “Elon was kind of excited.” Musk’s reply: “If I had the option of not having it blow up, I’d rather not. But it was pretty cool.”
There’s a silly notion that failure’s not an option at NASA.
Explore
Filed under
More provenance-checked quotes on the same theme, each with its reuse status.
b. 28 June 1971 · Founder, CEO & chief engineer of SpaceX
Elon Musk founded SpaceX in 2002 and is its CEO and chief engineer. He also leads Tesla. When Fast Company profiled SpaceX in early 2005, the company was still developing its first rocket, the Falcon I, and Musk made the case for building fast, testing hard and treating failures as part of the process.
For writers & researchers
Cite this
Primary source
Reingold, Jennifer. “Hondas in Space.” Fast Company, no. 91 (February 2005). Published online 1 February 2005. https://www.fastcompany.com/52065/hondas-space.
This verification page
Quotle.info. “Who really said ‘Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough’?” Last verified 2 Nov 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/failure-is-an-option-here-if-things-are-not-failing-you-are/