OK, fair enough, that wasn't enough evidence. So, more evidence that he IS willing to stand on the shoulders of others -- he is not intent on reinventing the wheel, avoids it actually.
He tried to get Alan Cocconi to commercialize the t-zero (standing on the shoulders of others), then licensed from them (standing on the shoulders of others). He read every antique Russian rocket manual there was at SpaceX (standing on the shoulders of others). He financed Eberhard & Tarpenning's electric car company instead of starting his own. And originally, Teslas were designed to plug into standard NEMA outlets rather than inventing an entirely new car charger which you had to hardwire into your house.
He is perfectly happy to stand on the shoulders of giants. When the giants falter in his opinion, however, he builds his own giants. That's the control aspect.