One of my favorite cartoons growing up was "The Jetsons." The Jetsons were a futuristic family living among the clouds with a fully automated life, from a robot maid named Rosie to technology that could make your dinner or do your laundry in just a few seconds at the push of a button. Everyone’s favorite aspect of this futuristic cartoon lifestyle boiled down to one element, which has become somewhat of a benchmark for technological progress: flying cars. And with Tesla’s recent exhibition, we are one step closer to that Jetsons-esque reality.

If you haven’t seen the video, Tesla did a demonstration of their forthcoming Roadster vehicle, slated for 2028 production. The car swooped up a half-loop ramp reminiscent of Matchbox car stunts. At the top of the ramp, the car, which was upside down at the top, flipped over in midair. Then, thrusters seemed to suspend the car in midair, before helping guide it gently back down to land on the ground.

For just a few moments, that car flew, and it was truly awe-inspiring.

FLYING SPORTS CAR HIDES ITS WINGS AS PRODUCTION GETS CLOSER

The reactions to this engineering feat and demonstration spectacle are somewhat of a Rorschach test. Those who love building, progress, technology or who are just generally optimistic have seen this demonstration as a formidable, impressive achievement. Those who like to see things torn down or are generally naysayers or obstacle formers react with "it’s not that big of a deal" or give other criticisms.

Fortunately, America still has enough people committed to the entrepreneurial spirit to attract the likes of Elon Musk and provide a good home base for his talented team members and others who want to see Musk, America and human beings in general succeed.

It isn’t hyperbole to say that Elon Musk is one of, if not the greatest, entrepreneurs of modern times. Regardless of any personal feelings or thoughts about Musk, if you can separate the art from the artist, or in his case, the entrepreneur from his business accomplishments, objectively, Musk has done the unthinkable time and time again. And we, as a country, are better off for him doing it from America as his home base.

As my husband and I talked about Musk’s varying accomplishments, from his early work in online payments to his achievements in electric vehicle manufacturing and AI, to his SpaceX being able to catch rocket boosters returning to the Earth from outer space upon landing, and now this latest hovering automobile. We discussed that Musk reportedly held discussions with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company regarding a potential collaboration for his "Terafab" semiconductor facility in Texas. I mentioned that chip buildout had faced major challenges elsewhere, and my husband pointed out that it is different under Musk, saying, "In fact, we need 16,000 more Elon Musks."

INNOVATION IS KEY TO AMERICA STAYING A SUPERPOWER. BUT IT IS MISSING AN ESSENTIAL PIECE

And he’s right. America needs more Elon Musks.

No, Elon Musk does not succeed on his own. There are many team members alongside him in undertaking outrageous projects and often making them succeed. But there’s something about Musk’s vision, leadership, hiring and willingness to inspire confidence in others, both on his team and in the general public, that makes his teams continue to be successful. And we need more of that.

We need to not only attract and inspire those who may even be just a little bit like Musk, to dream bigger and bolder, to take calculated risks and try and try again when things don’t work the first time. And we need to make sure that we incentivize that behavior, instead of trying to penalize it or throw up roadblocks.

THE NEXT AMERICAN BOOM COULD BE HERE — UNLESS WASHINGTON REGULATES IT TO DEATH

In our own government, which is supposed to help vs. hinder entrepreneurs, we have politicians like Senator Elizabeth Warren, who is noted for going after Elon Musk because of his success, instead of trying to figure out a way to foster more Musk-like successes. After a vastly-ridiculed post made earlier this week from Warren lamenting, of all things, a possible merger between companies that make various spices and condiments, Mike Solana, CMO of Founders Fund and EIC of Pirate Wires, posted on X (also owned by Musk), highlighting the stark differences between the politician Warren and the creator Musk.

His post said, "liz warren: we’re gonna stop the mayonnaise company from buying a hot sauce company." He then said, "elon musk:," and included the video from Musk of the Roadster’s hovering feat, perfectly illustrating how some in our country are erecting barriers and others are breaking barriers.

America was founded on an idea of individual rights and incentives that rewarded successful pursuits, with such rewards growing at scale. We are very fortunate that we have Elon Musk and others who are pushing boundaries, bringing us into new frontiers, allowing Americans who work for him, who invest with him and who use his products or services to benefit alongside of him.

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We do need 16,000 more Elon Musks. And the way to foster more Elon Musks is to appreciate, incentivize and reward entrepreneurship.

• Hans Hasselby-Andersen quit Texas Instruments during the 2008 financial crisis with four young kids at home.
• He sold his apartment, cashed out his pension, and took on debt to build a semiconductor startup.
• Nine years later, his company, Merus Audio, was acquired by Infineon.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Hans Hasselby-Andersen, 56, CEO of Danish semiconductor startup Lotus Microsystems and cofounder of Merus Audio, which was acquired by Infineon in 2018. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

When I quit my job at Texas Instruments in September 2008 to start a semiconductor company, I had four children between the ages of 5 and 14.

It was almost the height of the financial crisis. You had Lehman Brothers going down in flames in the US, and the whole credit market was just freezing up.

So to jump out at that point and go into fundraising was a big, big step. My manager was looking at me like I was crazy, basically.

Thinking back, probably I should have waited a year or so and just cooled off a little bit. But the thing is, once you have an idea and you're really motivated, you can't really wait. You have to go do something about it.

I'm an electrical engineer by training. Earlier in my career, I joined a small startup that was acquired by Texas Instruments about five or six months after I arrived.

The whole concept of a company being acquired, an exit and all that, was all new to me.

It planted a seed in my head that, if the circumstances were right, this was also a path I could take, and not just build my career in a large company.

I stayed at Texas Instruments and worked in the audio semiconductor business.

I was picking up things from my interactions in the market where I thought there was actually a need for a much more energy-efficient way to drive speakers in products like portable speakers and soundbars.

I saw a market need, but I didn't have the technical solution, so my first task was to go out and find a cofounder who could come up with a technical solution for that market.

I think that's actually quite unusual for tech startups. Normally, somebody comes up with some technology, and then they go out and try to see where it can be applied. This was the opposite approach.

Four kids, one big decision

Just before I resigned, I called my bank and asked if I could get a basic bank overdraft facility just to give me some extra headroom to live on.

Honestly, I think if I had waited two weeks, I wouldn't have gotten it. It was just when the financial crisis started to really kick in, and I seriously doubt I would've gotten that line of credit.

Getting the first funding took the better part of a year.

I probably spoke to between 50 and 100 different investors.

It's really a dating game. You try to look appealing and interesting from a company point of view, but you mostly get rejections because the investor doesn't invest in your domain, you're too early, you're too late, or you don't fit their profile.

I paid out of my own pocket to travel to Japan, South Korea, and Singapore to meet potential customers. I wanted to pressure-test my idea, understand what they were struggling with, what their requirements were, and help mature my business case.

Eventually, I raised the equivalent of about $150,000 to $200,000. It was a very small amount, and we spent it in about six months. The minute we got the funding, we knew we had to continue fundraising immediately.

My wife, who was a school teacher at the time, has been very, very supportive. She never told me, "This is a stupid idea, go back and find a job."

With four kids, you can't just make that decision on your own. When we finally got the company off the ground, my wife and I made some adjustments to minimize the risk for my family.

We sold our apartment while we could still make a little money from it and rented instead, so we wouldn't risk having to sell at a loss if the company failed. We also sold our car and leased one instead.

I slaughtered my pension and took out the money. I thought, "I need it now. I'm not about to be retired anyway."

Throughout the life of a startup company, you're more or less in fundraising mode all the time. You always have to keep your eye on how long you have cash and where you're going to get your next funding. The worst thing that can happen is that you run out of cash.

If there's one recommendation I would give first-time founders, it's to prepare for things to take longer than they expect because they always do.

If you think you can do something in two years or three years, multiply that by two, at least.

If you plan financially for your cash to fund your plan as you lay it out, then you're going to be in a difficult situation because you're going to run out of cash before you've achieved the milestones you set out to achieve.

Engineers have to sell, too

Starting a company around 40 made me a different kind of founder. There were definitely things I had learned that I wouldn't have been without.

I had learned how to communicate with customers, how to find out what the market needed, and how to explain what I was doing and why it was a good idea.

Many engineers are obviously good at what they do technically, but they can have a big challenge explaining that to others.

When you're standing in front of investors, you have three minutes to explain what you're doing. You have to train to do that elevator pitch.

Nine years later, the company I cofounded, Merus Audio, was acquired by Infineon.

I stayed on to help with the integration, but I was really not looking to go back into the corporate world. I had already had that experience and I had really come to like the startup life.

Today, I'm CEO and an investor at Lotus Microsystems, another semiconductor startup.

I'm not a founder this time, but I feel ownership. I feel invested in the company.

Would I take that same risk again today as I did with Merus?

I think the answer is yes.

If you have that mentality of wanting to try something on your own, to build something, that is a major driver inside you. It gives you an enormous amount of energy and motivation.

When you do that, you can actually achieve a lot.