Twitter And Elon Musk Face A Growing List Of Claims
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Tesla and Twitter CEO Elon Musk is struggling with more problems. From the side of Twitter with financial arrears, and from the side of Tesla - from the driver assistance system.
List of claims
Ever since Elon Musk took over, Twitter Inc. faced a growing list of claims.
Owners, consultants and retailers have sought payment in at least nine lawsuits in recent months, with their complaints totaling more than $14 million plus interest.
Among the alleged overdue notifications is an invoice for nearly $7,000 for a "gift box for Elon" ordered by Twitter's marketing department days before the $44 billion deal closed on October 27.
Twitter obligation
Twitter, which is now private, no longer publicly discloses its financial details. The company said last year it owed $239 million mostly for office space and data center facilities in 2023.
In a January lawsuit, Canary LLC, a marketing firm that specializes in making items embellished with logos that are ubiquitous among Silicon Valley tech companies, alleged that Twitter owed nearly $400,000 for various Twitter-branded merchandise.
Career on Twitter
Musk's pre-Twitter career involved navigating near financial doom, including Tesla Inc. who almost ran out of money. It overcame previous financial challenges by partly putting pressure on suppliers and vendors while saving cash was paramount.
Musk inherited the bills when he took over more than three months ago and quickly introduced a more austere spending style as part of his trademark intensity.
Twitter has undergone dramatic changes since late October as Musk raced to rework the company's product, which has suffered financial losses and cost-cutting from advertiser withdrawals and transaction-related debt costs. He cut staff sharply and countered spending tweets, including $13 million a year for employee meals at company headquarters.
Early on, Musk complained that the company was losing more than $4 million a day and hinted bankruptcy was possible. Since then, he said the company is making progress.
Read next: Meta Introduces Paid Verification Subscription Service| FXMAG.COM
Twitter share price
Twitter shares are trading at $53.70
Tesla
Tesla, where Musk is also chief executive, worried its suppliers in 2018 as it struggled to ramp up production of the Model 3 compact car. During this time, the company extended payment terms from 60 days to 90 days.
Tesla critical accident
US auto safety regulators have stepped up investigations into accidents at the scene involving Tesla.
A Tesla driver crashed into a Contra Costa County Fire Protection District truck that was parked in two lanes to block traffic while police officers assisted in towing the vehicle.
A Tesla spokeswoman said the Tesla driver died at the scene. A passenger in the Tesla was transported to the hospital in critical condition. The condition of this person could not be immediately determined.
The cause of the crash is still being investigated. It is unknown if the vehicle had Tesla's advanced driver assistance systems, known as Autopilot, activated at the time of the accident.
Autopilot may be a problem
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the auto industry's primary regulator, has been investigating Tesla's advanced driver assistance system for more than a year after multiple crashes in emergency scenes. The NHTSA said Thursday that some Teslas may in rare circumstances violate local traffic laws, potentially increasing the risk of a collision if the driver does not intervene.
The agency said it informed Tesla late last month of potential concerns about the system's characteristics specific to certain road environments.
Autopilot is designed to help drivers with tasks such as steering and keeping a safe distance from other vehicles on the road. The electric car maker said features like Autopilot are meant to be used by a fully attentive driver.
Tesla share price
After Tesla's stock fell to 202.41, it bounced back to 208.31.
Source: wsj.com, finance.yahoo.com
