Elon Musk Claims He Once Reached Out to Tim Cook About Tesla Purchase But Was Refused Meeting

[stev01]

Imagine Elon Musk being an Apple VP? Or Apple deciding to get rid of the Tesla name?

Culture clash is the biggest issue in acquisitions, especially when the acquisition is not any more some small start-up or nameless division. And especially when big egos are involved.

Since that time, Apple added more market cap than Tesla is worth anyways ...

 

[nylonsteel]

good move on mr cook's part

 

[s66]

If Apple needs a company capable of building car bodies and suspensions of cars in volume: there's no shortage of traditional car makers in deep trouble out there to buy. Some try to merge (e.g. PSA-FCA) , but there's plenty smaller ones left.
That leaves people making an electric propulsion system ("engines") and batteries to place in those bodies and the sensors, display, and electronics to place all around. Electric engines can be bought, just as batteries could be if they decide not to design them themselves . The rest of the electronics: well that's what Apple is already pretty good at, isn't it?
Moreover there are plenty of state of the art factories not running any significant production around Europe as some of their owners can't sell what they could make - leaving them with excess production capability. E.g.: One such factory out here in Belgium near Brussels is owned by Audi: it's currently building their battery-electric flagship but will lose the next model to a factory in Germany. If Apple wanted it: they'd for sure be able to buy it from Audi and get staff used to build cars and even battery electric ones (used to deal with high voltage stuff) all in one deal.
All depends on money and timing. Both things Apple has/or is in control of.

So why would Apple buy anything but a small Japanese or S. Korean manufacturer of cars, and/or a company known for engineering some of the best suspension systems, and/or a few state of the art factories ?
Or even just do a partnership with any number of traditional car makers to a joint venture and get them to use the electronics/sensors they made? It makes sense as many of the traditional car makers are stopping their R&D into self-driving systems as it's too hard a problem to solve - buying / partnering would make much sense to these - and my guess is that's what the likes of Mercedes are planning to do ...

 

[99chickens]

big blunder by Tim Cook. oof.

Tesla ranks consistently last or near the bottom in every major survey. Their vehicles suffer from godawful quality control problems that are unheard of in any other vehicle such as roofs and other body panels flying off, leaks, poorly fitting panels, and paint finishes that look like they were applied by a South Miami chop shop. It also ranks almost dead last in profits and ROI.

Yeah, big blunder.

 

[chucker23n1]

Why make that R&D investment (including licensing the necessary IP) to develop entirely new hardware and services when they could just buy a company that has exactly what they need? They pretty clearly bought Beats for the acoustics folks and Beats Music. Those have allowed them to recoup their investment massively through wearable audio products and Apple Music subscriptions.

Also, the industry connections. But yes — buying Beats saved them time having to build up their own staff. Good move.

 

[Ploki]

it's like saying apple should've bought blackberry, or wacom or intel or whatever similar tech they use more successfully than their predecessors.

Apple doesn't necessarily buy, it takes an idea and perfects it. (point in case, ARM cpus that run windows better than MS ARM tablets ever did).

i don't think it's a fail at all, if even true. Tesla will under their own name pave a way with a lot of blunders and ****ups and research, and apple can make a success story on top of that, without any of the flack that Tesla gets constantly. If anything, it's smart.
Besides, they have enough money to still buy or lease tesla patents if they need to.

 

[DanTSX]

Tesla ranks consistently last or near the bottom in every major survey. Their vehicles suffer from godawful quality control problems that are unheard of in any other vehicle such as roofs and other body panels flying off, leaks, poorly fitting panels, and paint finishes that look like they were applied by a South Miami chop shop. It also ranks almost dead last in profits and ROI.

Yeah, big blunder.

Sounds like someone who only reads about them and not drives them...

 

[DanTSX]

Imagine Elon Musk being an Apple VP? Or Apple deciding to get rid of the Tesla name?

Culture clash is the biggest issue in acquisitions, especially when the acquisition is not any more some small start-up or nameless division. And especially when big egos are involved.

Since that time, Apple added more market cap than Tesla is worth anyways ...

Yeah this would ruin both companies

 

[swagi]

Actually it is YOU who is not informed.

if you follow any expert worth their salt such as Sandy Munro is the expert of experts when it comes to this kind of thing, they all say that Tesla is at least 5 years ahead of any other car maker, including PORSCHE!

Sorry to break it to you.

Well...welcome to the year 2020. self-claimed experts catering to their target audience via a dedicated YouTube channel is what we call experts now.

Right.

So maybe Munro can shed a light on when Tesla finally transitions to a 800V system - which in current state is on the street as Porsche Taycan and Audi e-torn GT.

Oh - I remember - that may come with that Vaporware roadster that boasts rocket engines for the bragging top speed number.

 

[rafark]

They'll be competitors at the higher end of the market but what are the chances of Apple making a car that it price competitive with the Model 3? ($35k for base model). I'd certainly be surprised.

Well Apple does make cheaper iPhones, iPads and macs, so I wouldn’t be surprised at all, especially because a base 35k car is not exactly cheap to begin with.

 

[Whathappened]

Tim Cook is great at supply chain logistics (not this year), but also not that great when it comes to thinking outside the box

It’s incredible how naive people like you think about how these decisions are made.

 

[swagi]

In what way did they overtake Tesla? Feel free to share specifics as I’ve given you some.
Take the ID.4, it’s estimated to be around 45k for the AWD version in the us with 250miles of range. It’s max charge rate is 125kw on electrify America which as I mentioned earlier, here in the US is not great. That 250 mile range is on a battery the same size as the model Y which gets 326 miles. Tesla hopes to sell 500,000 vehicles this year, Volkswagen hopes to sell 500k in 2025.
Even if you want to focus in just Europe, from Jan to October, the model 3 was the 2nd best selling EV next to Renault. Keep in mind, until they get their Berlin factory up, Europe is being restricted by production.
Spec wise, the only thing these other manufactures are doing is trying to make a lower cost car. With that comes the drawback of slower, less range, less charging capacity. In Europe, that might be fine and will work out okay.
Overall sales, Tesla is in a league of their own. While there is more competition coming out, until any of them prove themselves, Tesla is still king.

Funny you are talking about cumulative 2020 sales up until October when ID.3 entered European market in Mid-September and ID.4 will begin selling Q1/2021.

What they did better? Build quality. Enough said.

software is a mess in cure state but that‘s just how Tesla started.

VW is catering to all audiences with their portfolio...and in every niche will be on par if not better than Tesla with better craftsmanship.

Remember...I am talking about VW, Audi, Porsche and so on being the same parent company.

On a side note: You know that Ford is buying MEB-platforms to build a smaller SUV to complement the Mach E. Yes, VW must be terribly behind.

 

[osufan88]

His Auto driving won't work. Auto driving will require smart roads. Smart roads demand 5G and above. Not happening soon.

This is objectively not true. You do not need Smart Roads (TM) or 5G. YOU don't need smart roads and 5G, and can drive just fine. That's why Tesla's design depends on passive optical navigation. Anyone using LIDAR is going down a road with a dead end.

I have a Tesla with the newer BETA Full Self Driving. I have a 30 minute commute, which backs out of a driveway, through a neighborhood, 2 miles of city streets (with 1 round about), merge onto a highway, change 2 highways (clover interchange), exit, 2 miles of city driving, and parking.

In 4 out of 5 days, it requires ZERO input from me. Not only that, but it's improving at a rapid rate. I get a free, wireless update every 2 weeks, which SUBSTANTIALLY improves this experience.

 

[mmomega]

You expect free LTE? What other car offers a lifetime of LTE connectivity that lets you watch Netfix on the car screen?

FSD will be subscriptions for people who lease the cars because it doesn't make sense to pay $8k for software you're only going to use for 2 years. People will always have the option to buy FSD outright.

I don't expect anything.
And it IS free for the life of 2018 models and older.
Now people that paid $130,000 for a vehicle after 2018, would free internet be an ok option? Sure thing.
Am I ok with paying the $10/month for connectivity? Si.

I have lifetime supercharging so there's a plus that I hope does not get removed but I'm not going raise too much of a care about it. It is what it is.

I have a Performance Model X, I understand what they are doing. Just giving my perspective with what I said.
That it is expensive.
Tesla has moved it's internet connectivity to a subscription and it has.
Tesla is moving FSD to a subscription, lease or finance.
Depending on how your right foot is, the range is so-so.

I'm also not one that Netflixes in my car.
YouTube, maybe at a charging stop on the highway but that isn't that often enough for myself to need it, nor would I have a sense of loss if it was gone or never there.

Tesla leases are 3 years then you have the option to purchase the vehicle after the lease, the end of lease buyout is typically less than what you would find the exact same model with mileage for.
You can lease for 3 years and turn it in and get a new model, or finance then remaining balance through your bank or credit union, which they give you on your lease paperwork and keep it.

 

[jerryk]

Sounds like someone who only reads about them and not drives them...

Yep. Loving our X and Model 3. And the SolarRoof looks great on our house and the Powerwalls ensure we always have power.

Full Disclosure. I am a long time shareholder of Apple, Microsoft, and Tesla.

 

[diamond3]

Funny you are talking about cumulative 2020 sales up until October when ID.3 entered European market in Mid-September and ID.4 will begin selling Q1/2021.

What they did better? Build quality. Enough said.

software is a mess in cure state but that‘s just how Tesla started.

VW is catering to all audiences with their portfolio...and in every niche will be on par if not better than Tesla with better craftsmanship.

Remember...I am talking about VW, Audi, Porsche and so on being the same parent company.

On a side note: You know that Ford is buying MEB-platforms to build a smaller SUV to complement the Mach E. Yes, VW must be terribly behind.

Your answers are validating my position. You can’t assume someone else is king until they prove they can do it. You’re claiming a car that just started to be sold as already beating Tesla at the EV game. Come back in a year and maybe we could have that discussion.
If you only care about build quality, then you might have that one position to stand on. However, that’s just one quality when people decide on a car. Power, range, charging infrastructure, and software/self driving are all other areas of importance. I’ve also heard VW is taking a loss on their EV sales right now. So long term, it will be interesting to see how they manage that as Tesla continues to bring down price while running a profit now.
I’m all for competition and different players in the market. It’s the same for apple. They’ll push each other to innovate. Although Tesla has done a really good job at that without much competition.

 

[imola.zhp]

Nope! Have you seen the many issues that Apple products have right now, quality is not a word I use to describe them.

Weird, all of the Apple devices in my household work great. However the Tesla Model Y we went to pick up on 01 August looked like a toddler assembled it. None of the doors lined up, there was a dent in one quarter panel, a large sweeping semi-cicular deep scratch in the other quarter panel and a busted, yes I just typed BUSTED, taillight.

I've never picked up a new iPhone with a busted screen.

We walked away and are hoping to try again early next year.

 

[swagi]

Your answers are validating my position. You can’t assume someone else is king until they prove they can do it. You’re claiming a car that just started to be sold as already beating Tesla at the EV game. Come back in a year and maybe we could have that discussion.
If you only care about build quality, then you might have that one position to stand on. However, that’s just one quality when people decide on a car. Power, range, charging infrastructure, and software/self driving are all other areas of importance. I’ve also heard VW is taking a loss on their EV sales right now. So long term, it will be interesting to see how they manage that as Tesla continues to bring down price while running a profit now.
I’m all for competition and different players in the market. It’s the same for apple. They’ll push each other to innovate. Although Tesla has done a really good job at that without much competition.

I actually was in the market for an electric car - had a closer look at the Model 3 and bought an ID.3. I could have gone Tesla. But trust me - Being 10K cheaper and offering the far better interior concept the choice for ID.3 was a no-brainer.

 

[diamond3]

I actually was in the market for an electric car - had a closer look at the Model 3 and bought an ID.3. I could have gone Tesla. But trust me - Being 10K cheaper and offering the far better interior concept the choice for ID.3 was a no-brainer.

So your personal choice is where all this is stemming from, not actually sales or specs.

ID.3 - a super inefficient car, slower, smaller in size, worse charging infrastructure at a slower rate. It's fine that you chose that car. Nothing wrong with that. But it's not like it's doing everything a Tesla does for that slightly less price. That seems to be the takeaway from all the reviews I've read as well.

Also, interior concept preference is just that, a personal preference. I actually love the Tesla interior design/layout.

 

[Pearple]

Maybe Apples car will run on good old fuel.

 

[DanTSX]

Maybe Apples car will run on good old fuel.

It will run on outsourced internal combustion.

 

[jimbobb24]

Elon Musk is a weird dude with a weirder wife but he is by far the most interesting CEO of our time who is taking things in interesting and amazing directions.

 

[jimbobb24]

It's already working. Private beta was released a couple months ago.

You're not going to redo the world's road infrastructure to make them "smart roads". Never going to happen.

You are right. The original poster - No no no. The roads don’t change. That was the way people thought about auto driving cars in the 1990s and 2000s and it’s ridiculous. It sound absurd now. The car gets smarter. The roads stay the same.

 

[kyleh22]

And how is this a blunder? Apple is far wealthier than Tesla. Just because Telsa reaches out Apple to purchase the company doesn't mean Apple has to do it. Apple doesn't need Tesla to build cars.

It was a blunder b/c apple could have bought telsa for 1/10 of it's current valuation. In other words, Apple would have my 1000% on it's investment in about 3 years. It was a massive missed opportunity.

 

[kyleh22]

Tim Apple should have at least took the meeting given he is planning to compete in the space. He could have picked up the most talented engineers in California along with a devoted Tesla fan base.

Tim Apple, please take some risks...