To suggest Musk is a "nominal figure" is completely counterfactual to everything Musk has done to transform multiple industries (cars and space launch). He is highly involved in every technical detail and knows everything there is to know about the technology.
To suggest he is following someone else's orders is also obviously wrong because the agenda he follows is pretty unique to Musk - human settlement on Mars.
Your words are apt to Biden and completely inapplicable to Musk.