Elon Musk Jokes About Tesla Bankruptcy: Odds It Actually Happens
- Shares in Tesla Inc. dropped 5.16% Monday morning, following the news that first-quarter production targets were not met.
- In an apparent response to “total collapse” rumors, Musk tweeted a fake bankruptcy announcement Sunday afternoon.
- While the company has not formally filed for bankruptcy, some experts are predicting Tesla will be forced in that direction before the end of the year.
For someone whose company just experienced its worst month in the past seven years, Elon Musk seems to be taking things quite well. The founder of Tesla, SpaceX and Neuralink sent out a series of tweets Sunday afternoon, quite obviously making light of the recent predictions and rumors that Tesla Inc. is headed for bankruptcy.
This marks the worst month fiscally that the carmaker has experienced since December of 2010.
Shares in the electric car company plummeted 22% in March, following a bout of negative news stories — including a deadly car crash involving the company’s semi-autonomous driving system — a Moody’s downgrade of its debt, and negative analyst forecasts moving into the second-quarter. This marks the worst month fiscally that the carmaker has experienced since December of 2010.
But, leave it to Musk to create a silver lining where one might not so easily be found. Mid-Sunday afternoon, he sent out a series of tongue-in-cheek tweets announcing that, despite “intense efforts to raise money, including a last-ditch mass sale of Easter Eggs” Tesla has gone “completely and totally bankrupt. So bankrupt, you can’t believe it.”
Tesla Goes Bankrupt
Palo Alto, California, April 1, 2018 — Despite intense efforts to raise money, including a last-ditch mass sale of Easter Eggs, we are sad to report that Tesla has gone completely and totally bankrupt. So bankrupt, you can’t believe it.— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 1, 2018
There are many chapters of bankruptcy and, as critics so rightly pointed out, Tesla has them *all*, including Chapter 14 and a half (the worst one).
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 1, 2018
Elon was found passed out against a Tesla Model 3, surrounded by “Teslaquilla” bottles, the tracks of dried tears still visible on his cheeks.
This is not a forward-looking statement, because, obviously, what’s the point?
Happy New Month! pic.twitter.com/YcouvFz6Y1
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 1, 2018
…despite this second-quarter starting off on shaky ground…Elon Musk may yet have the last laugh.
The tweets were complete with a photo of Musk “passed out” against a Tesla Model 3, surrounded by “Teslaquilla” bottles, and a lingering sense that despite this second-quarter starting off on shaky ground (shares continued to drop as markets opening Monday morning) Elon Musk may yet have the last laugh.
Odds that Tesla Inc. is Headed for Bankruptcy
Shares in the company were down again Monday morning as the markets opened, following the latest revelation to bring negative press against Tesla. The electric carmarker fell short of its first-quarter production targets on the Model 3, a leaked email from Elon Musk disclosed. As investors watch the bottleneck back up, they are bound to grow even more wary. Take into consideration Tesla’s recent recall of 123,000 vehicles, and it’s not hard to see why, either.
Will the company be able to recover out of this downward spiral? Tesla is treading through muddy waters at the moment, and though Musk may be able to laugh it off at the moment, investors are much less likely to enjoy the joke.
| Will Tesla Declare Bankruptcy by Third-Quarter? | ODDS |
|---|---|
| NO | 2/3 |
| YES | 3/2 |
If shares continue to fall at the rate they currently are, these odds will change just as quickly. However, at this point a bankruptcy in the next three months isn’t the likeliest outcome we can predict.
Odds that Elon Musk Breaks Into Alcohol Market
He’s taken on cars, space and sustainable energy sourcing. Why not alcohol? After tweeting that he had been drinking a little too much “Teslaquilla” post-bankruptcy, Musk may have inadvertently found himself a new business venture. And, hey, depending on how those self-driving cars pan out, he may have also found a way to make drinking even more appealing to the masses.
| Will Teslaquilla Become a Reality? | ODDS |
|---|---|
| YES | 1/3 |
| NO | 3/1 |
Did we think Musk would sell flamethrowers in earnest? Did we think he would put a car into orbit? The man is a dreamer, and a doer — with enough marketing buzz, a limited run of Teslaquilla (perhaps a case thrown in with the purchase of a car?) certainly isn’t the craziest idea to cross Musk’s path.
Odds of Autopilot Getting the Red Light
Tesla’s semi-autonomous driving system, Autopilot, is currently involved in a National Transportation Safety Board investigation, due to a fatal crash in California just this past month. This is the second fatal incident the system has been involved in, the first one taking place back in 2016 in Florida (that case still under investigation).
Self-driving cars have long been an assumed part of the future of transport. As automation advances, and AI technologies continue to open doors to new possibilities, the question has shifted from an “if” to a “when”. And, in this case, to whether or not it will be Autopilot, or some other yet-to-come system that will change the course of automotive history.
| Will Autopilot Be Cleared by the National Transportation Safety Board in 2018? | ODDS |
|---|---|
| NO | 1/4 |
| YES | 4/1 |
It will be a long road, no pun intended, to seeing self-driving cars on the road. With so many roadblocks — they’re just coming far too easily — in the way for Tesla, at this point we are wagering that the future isn’t quite here yet.
An unabashed interest in the lives of other people and all things pop culture makes analyzing the world of entertainment an easy fit for Kaela. With a degree in Intercultural Communication, she has contributed to SBD since 2017.
