A couple of plot turns in the Tesla saga

First, the one that everyone saw coming...

Musk has made $2.2B net today. In comparison, that's almost 2 years worth of R&D spend of #Tesla, or 🚨almost half of 20Q1 automotive sales🚨.$TSLA $TSLAQ https://t.co/dAKUQKVMqg

— fly4dat (@fly4dat) July 20, 2020

This despite a stunning number of questions about the company. (Here's a good primer to get you started.)


Second, the one that caught everyone by surprise.

Among Tesla skeptics, the fuel-cell semi company Nikola was strictly a punchline, a fake of a fake. The laughter rose to a crescendo when the CEO agreed to have a long form conversation with arguably the leading skeptic, podcaster Tesla Charts.

That laughter dropped off suddenly.

4/ Third, I left the experience far less skeptical of $NKLA and their prospects than I was before @nikolatrevor agreed to come on. I personally could never bring myself to invest in a pre-revenue company valued at more than $20B, but I also wouldn't short him. He has the spark.

— TC (@TESLAcharts) July 18, 2020

Hey @nikolatrevor kudos to you for the podcast with @TESLAcharts and @georgia_orwell_

No running, no hiding, no evasion, no technobabble. Just a guy with a vision who has built a company, understands it and can communicate the vision effectively. Oh, also no ridiculous promises

— Grant Williams (@ttmygh) July 19, 2020

If you care about cleaner transportation, make sure to listen to this info-packed TC podcast with Trevor Milton (@nikolatrevor), founder of the fuel-cell semi-truck company Nikola. https://t.co/ioBK3DzLQf

— Russ Mitchell (@russ1mitchell) July 20, 2020

It would be great to hear Nikola’s (for now) top competitor muster the courage to also appear on the TC's Chartcast, but................🐔?

— Russ Mitchell (@russ1mitchell) July 20, 2020

Without taking anything away from Milton, much of the credit for the reception goes to Elon Musk and the extent to which he has lowered the bar. Engaging with tough critics on a forthright and knowledgeable way shouldn't be remarkable behavior for a CEO, but this is 2020.