Photo: Britta Pedersen/Pool via Yahoo! Finance
With recent reports that Apple is still considering making its own EV and present it to the world either as early as 2021 or late in 2024-25, here’s an unexpected twist: Apple could have had Tesla.
The meme “this could be us, but you playin’” comes to mind. According to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, he offered to sell Tesla to Apple during the company’s darkest times, but Tim Cook wouldn’t even take a meeting. Presumably, he did so out of spite over failed 2013 negotiations for a takeover.
In recent days, there’s been a lot of chit-chatter online about how Apple is still determined to be a player in the EV field while keeping a lid on progress. Several reports point to various deadlines for when the Apple Car will be making its supposed debut, and a more recent one says Project Titan, the official name of the Apple EV, will be using a mono cell battery design.
Addressing this, as well as claims that Apple’s approach will be revolutionary, Musk says on Twitter that it’s “strange, if true.” Tesla has already been down that path.
Speaking of paths and the strange turns they present, Musk recalls the time when he was willing to sell the company to Apple for a tenth of its current value (which is some $607 billion, for the record), but Cook wouldn’t even listen. “During the darkest days of the Model 3 program, I reached out to Tim Cook to discuss the possibility of Apple acquiring Tesla (for 1/10 of our current value). He refused to take the meeting,” Musk says.
In previous Twitter posts, Musk revealed that between mid-2017 and mid-2019, Tesla faced an uphill struggle, coming even close to filing for bankruptcy within ten months. Based on that, we can probably set a timeframe for his offer to Cook and Apple.
Back in 2013, Apple was looking to buy Tesla so as to further its efforts into the field. Negotiations were reportedly well under way when they came to a dead-end because Apple wanted Musk out of the company as a prerequisite for the transaction to go through. Cook seems to be the kind that holds a grudge.
In recent days, there’s been a lot of chit-chatter online about how Apple is still determined to be a player in the EV field while keeping a lid on progress. Several reports point to various deadlines for when the Apple Car will be making its supposed debut, and a more recent one says Project Titan, the official name of the Apple EV, will be using a mono cell battery design.
Addressing this, as well as claims that Apple’s approach will be revolutionary, Musk says on Twitter that it’s “strange, if true.” Tesla has already been down that path.
Speaking of paths and the strange turns they present, Musk recalls the time when he was willing to sell the company to Apple for a tenth of its current value (which is some $607 billion, for the record), but Cook wouldn’t even listen. “During the darkest days of the Model 3 program, I reached out to Tim Cook to discuss the possibility of Apple acquiring Tesla (for 1/10 of our current value). He refused to take the meeting,” Musk says.
In previous Twitter posts, Musk revealed that between mid-2017 and mid-2019, Tesla faced an uphill struggle, coming even close to filing for bankruptcy within ten months. Based on that, we can probably set a timeframe for his offer to Cook and Apple.
Back in 2013, Apple was looking to buy Tesla so as to further its efforts into the field. Negotiations were reportedly well under way when they came to a dead-end because Apple wanted Musk out of the company as a prerequisite for the transaction to go through. Cook seems to be the kind that holds a grudge.
During the darkest days of the Model 3 program, I reached out to Tim Cook to discuss the possibility of Apple acquiring Tesla (for 1/10 of our current value). He refused to take the meeting.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 22, 2020
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