Steve Davis, Musk’s Fixer, Emerges From Shadows in Unprecedented Media Blitz

Key facts

• Steve Davis, president of The Boring Company, gave a 90-minute livestream on X in November 2024.
• The Boring Company was fined for dumping wastewater into Las Vegas manholes.
• A congressional investigation into firefighters burned in Boring Co. tunnels prompted a demand for transparency from Nevada’s governor.
• In Nashville, a Metro Council member introduced legislation opposing the Loop project, and the 'Big Dumb Hole Coalition' formed.
• The Boring Company has opened only a 4-mile tunnel in Las Vegas, with speeds of 35 mph, far below the promised 100+ mph.
• Potential projects in California, Illinois, Texas, Florida, and Maryland have fizzled out.
• Davis is a former SpaceX engineer and helped cut costs at X after Musk’s 2022 purchase; he also worked on DOGE during Musk’s White House stint.
• The Boring Company launched a bimonthly blog in Nashville and representative Tyler Fairbanks spoke at a Nevada State Board of Regents meeting.

A Decade of Silence Shattered

Steve Davis, the president of Elon Musk’s $5.6 billion tunneling venture The Boring Company, has long been a ghost. He rarely speaks publicly, shuns journalists, and the company operates without a public relations department. But in late November, Davis sat for a 90-minute livestream on X with a former news broadcaster to discuss a planned tunnel project in Nashville. Weeks later, he personally escorted a Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter on a rare tour of the company’s tunnels under the city. In January, he rode in a Tesla with a YouTuber through the completed Las Vegas Loop, pointing out features. For a man who has avoided the spotlight for a decade, the shift is startling.

Regulatory Troubles and Political Pushback

The timing of Davis’s media charm offensive appears tied to mounting problems. The Boring Company was recently fined for dumping wastewater into Las Vegas manholes. An investigation into firefighters who were burned in its tunnels led a member of Congress to demand greater transparency from Nevada’s governor. In Nashville, where the company hopes to build a 25-mile tunnel network, a Metro Council member introduced legislation opposing the Loop project, which has garnered broad support among her peers. A group calling itself the “Big Dumb Hole Coalition” has formed to oppose the plan. These challenges underscore the difficulty of winning public trust for a company that has long refused to engage.

Davis: The Reluctant Face of a New Strategy

Davis, in his mid-40s, is a close Musk ally and longtime fixer. He joined SpaceX as an early engineer, then helped Musk cut costs at X after the 2022 acquisition. Last year, during Musk’s tenure in the White House, Davis was roped in to help run the Department of Government Efficiency. He gave a rare Fox News interview with DOGE colleagues but refused to confirm his role, saying only he was “part of the DOGE team.” Now, he is the main face of Boring Co.’s outreach. On the Las Vegas tunnel tour, he told the reporter, “We’re not transparent enough, so we’re glad that you’re here.” Yet the company still ignored interview requests from Fortune, suggesting limits to the new openness.

Incremental Progress vs. Grand Ambitions

Founded roughly a decade ago, The Boring Company aims to build hyperloop tunnels where autonomous vehicles travel at over 100 mph. But so far, only a 4-mile stretch in Las Vegas is operational, with human-driven Teslas shuttling tourists between two resorts and the Convention Center at 35 mph. Projects in California, Illinois, Texas, Florida, and Maryland have all collapsed, due to lost political momentum or failed environmental assessments. A former employee, speaking anonymously for fear of retaliation, said, “I think they’ve realized based on failures on other projects that they need to be more proactive on messaging.”

The Challenge of Public Transportation Outreach

Boring Co. projects are, at their core, public transportation initiatives, which require buy-in from landowners, politicians, technical experts, emergency responders, and city residents. The company has launched a bimonthly blog in Nashville and sent representative Tyler Fairbanks to a Nevada State Board of Regents meeting to emphasize safety. But the broader question remains: Is this media blitz a temporary damage-control measure, or a fundamental shift in Musk’s “go direct” strategy? Davis’s sudden visibility suggests a recognition that silence no longer serves the company’s ambitions.

A Fixer’s Past and Future

Davis has said little about his own role. More than a decade ago, he spoke with Ashlee Vance for the biography Elon Musk, and his work at SpaceX—along with his frozen yogurt restaurant, Mr. Yogato—was featured in a 2012 Voices of America video. Now, as he steps into the spotlight, the stakes are high. If the outreach succeeds, it could pave the way for Nashville and future projects. If it fails, the company may face continued regulatory scrutiny and public opposition. For now, Davis is the unlikely messenger, trying to sell a vision that has yet to match its promise.

The bottom line

• Steve Davis, Musk’s longtime fixer, is leading an unprecedented media push for The Boring Company after years of silence.
• The company faces fines for wastewater dumping, a congressional investigation into firefighter burns, and organized opposition in Nashville.
• Only 4 miles of tunnel are operational in Las Vegas, far short of the ambitious hyperloop vision.
• Davis’s outreach includes livestreams, press tours, and a company blog, but the company still avoids most media requests.
• The shift may signal a strategic recognition that public transportation projects require community engagement to succeed.
• The Boring Company’s future hinges on whether this transparency is a temporary fix or a lasting change.