Would-be Apple-Tesla Deal Kiboshed by Musk, Report Claims
In what kind of shape would Tesla find itself today if tech giant Apple had acquired the automaker in 2013? That’s a question for analysts to ponder in their off hours, as Apple’s reported offer went nowhere.
Craig Irwin, an analyst at Roth Capital Partners, claims specific knowledge of the failed bid, telling CNBC that Apple wished to acquire Tesla for $240 a share — a higher price than the automaker’s stock currently trades at.
Irwin’s remarks bolster, if not outright confirm, rumors that Apple once angled to bring the electric automaker into its corporate fold.
“Around 2013, there was a serious bid from Apple at around $240 a share,” Irwin said. “This is something we did multiple checks on. I have complete confidence that this is accurate. Apple bid for Tesla. I don’t know if it got to a formal paperwork stage, but I know from multiple different sources that this was very credible.”
The alleged bid went bust after “Apple wanted Elon Musk to step away,” Irwin said, adding that this “was a deal killer.”
This admission comes a day after Tesla’s once sky-high stock opened trading at under $200 — a remarkable decline from share values just months earlier. On the day of CEO Elon Musk’s fateful go-private tweet, August 7th, Tesla shares hit $379.57. Musk had indicated, via social media, his intention to take the company private at $420 a share. And we all know how that panned out.
Calling Apple’s 2013 bid “very credible,” Irwin said the interest shown in the company then prevents him from being too bearish on Tesla’s stock today.
“If Apple had interest then, they would probably have interest now at the right price,” he commented.
There’s no indication that Apple retains any interest in acquiring the troubled automaker, which ended its last quarter with a $702 million loss. Still, Apple remains interested in fueling the industry’s future, having pivoted from the development of a fully autonomous car to the development of self-driving systems for other automakers. Irwin claims the company is in the process of building large “dry rooms” in California, indicating a focus on lithium-ion battery propulsion.
“My checks are Apple is building several dry rooms, including a couple that are much larger than what you would need for watch or consumer product battery development,” he said.
[Image: Tesla]
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- Redapple2 I m afraid I d hate the crazy color 2 yrs down the line of a 6 year ownership. So, after dark blues, and dark reds I m back to a wonderful deep, pearly, lustrous white. Looks good at night. In the day. Clean; and when dirty, hides it.
- THX1136 Some folks down the street from me had a beautiful blue/green Jeep. I stay away from grey, brown, silver and black. Ironically I own a white vehicle at the moment due to not being able to afford the blue one I was considering and not wanting the aforementioned colors. A nice emerald green, most shades of blue (Santa Fe Blue is a favorite) and the 'hotter' colors like orange, purple and yellow appeal, but as KOKing mentioned it's got to look 'right' on the car in question.
- THX1136 It's good knowing a purchase decision was well made. Glad to hear it's been a good car for you, Corey! May the good times continue to roll.
- Kwik_Shift_Pro4X I like bright red, like Ford's "Race Red" with black accents/trim on hot hatches. A distant second would be a lighter school bus yellow, like on a 90s Land Rover Discovery Camel Trophy edition.
- KOKing The color has to look right on the car first and foremost, but given the choice, I'll pick the not-bland color every time.
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Much like Tesla, Apple's car project was out of control with crazy amounts of money being spent and over a thousand people doing “R&D”. It was so bad that Tim Cook hired former hardware chief Bob Mansfield out of retirement to see what the hell was going on. Mansfield brought some needed sanity, slashed most of the projects and fired 2/3 of the people. He easily saved Apple $2B-$3B a year in unnecessary expenses. If Musk ever gets the boot from Tesla, look for Bob Mansfield to enter the running as his replacement. He is likely the one person with the experience and temperament needed to save the company.
If Apple purchased Tesla, with its 300 billion cash in the bank and Apple fanboy based; Apple would clean the EV marketplace one and for all to be the supreme all mighty BEV king for eternity!