Shark Tank’s Kevin O'Leary compares working with Steve Jobs and Elon Musk, calls Jobs "nasty" and Musk wastes "zero time"

Shark Tank star Kevin O'Leary recently made a striking comparison between Steve Jobs and Elon Musk during an episode of Anthony Scaramucci’s podcast, released on May 5, 2025. Reflecting on his past experiences, O'Leary shared candid thoughts about what it was like to work with Jobs and why Musk stands apart from anyone else in the business world.

“I worked for Steve Jobs,” O’Leary said, describing the late Apple co-founder as:

“About 80% signal, 10% noise… not easy to work with, very unpopular, really nasty guy, but he really got it,” he shared.

Despite the difficulties, O’Leary has consistently expressed admiration for Jobs’ vision and drive. When asked about Musk, O'Leary, whose son currently works at Tesla, took a different tone.

“He wastes zero time in his day. He has zero time to waste. There's never been a man like him,” O'Leary added.

The conversation also touched on broader topics like AI, crypto, and leadership, but it was this honest comparison between Jobs and Musk that stood out, showing how two major tech figures left very different impressions on the investor.

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“He was not a nice guy” — Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary reflects on working with Steve Jobs

Kevin O’Leary’s experience working under Steve Jobs left a lasting impression. In the Open Book interview, he didn’t hold back while describing Jobs’ tough work style. O’Leary mentioned that Jobs had a sharp focus on execution but was not easy to collaborate with.

“He was not a nice guy,” O’Leary recalled, reiterating that Jobs was “really nasty” and “very unpopular” among colleagues. However, he noted that Jobs had a high success rate in getting people to perform, thanks to his clear direction and high standards.

O’Leary has made similar remarks in the past. In a Facebook post last year,

“What was it like working for Steve Jobs? It was BRUTAL! He was NOT a nice guy,” he wrote.

Shark Tank investor Kevin O'Leary also shared that Jobs would often “walk into a room and absolutely berate everybody in there.” Despite these challenges, O’Leary acknowledged Jobs’ achievements, calling his approach “brutal but effective.”

Other public accounts echo O’Leary’s remarks, including from Jobs’ own daughter Lisa Brennan-Jobs, who shared difficult memories in her memoir Small Fry. For O’Leary, working with Jobs meant witnessing both incredible vision and intense pressure—an experience that shaped how he views other leaders in tech today.

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“There’s never been a man like him” — O’Leary praises Elon Musk’s work ethic

Along with his memories of Jobs, Shark Tank mentor Kevin O'Leary had good things to say about Elon Musk's way of leading. O'Leary said Musk "wastes zero time," pointing out how different it feels to talk with Musk, who, in his view, makes every second count.

“He’ll walk away from a conversation with you if he’s wasting time. There’s never been a man like him,” O’Leary said.

Shark Tank mentor O’Leary dded that this razor-sharp focus on work plays a big part in Musk's wins with companies like Tesla and SpaceX. He also said his son Trevor works at Tesla and often praises Musk's style of leading backing up O'Leary's view of him as quick and driven.

While chatting with Scaramucci, they talked about AI leaders like Sam Altman, but O'Leary soon switched to Musk. He stressed that Musk's skill to get things done without distractions makes him stand out. "Elon has no noise. He's 100% signal," O'Leary said hinting that Musk gets so much done by staying away from useless talks or time-wasters.

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Watch the latest episodes of Shark Tank currently streaming on ABC.