Tesla’s founder and CEO bury the hatchet after short lawsuit
Only three months after filing suit against Tesla Motors and its chief executive, Elon Musk (right), the company’s own founder, Martin Eberhard (left), has given up the fight. Tesla announced today that the dispute has been resolved — without saying much else. It’s unclear whether a settlement was reached or if the suit was dropped, but this post will be updated as details emerge.
[Update: The San Jose Business Journal reported last month that Ebarhard outright… Continue Reading
Tesla continues winning streak with new $82.5M
Tesla Motors, the anointed leader in the electric vehicle market, has raised $82.5 million in a sixth round of funding from Daimler, Fjord Capital Partners, Aabar and other undisclosed investors. The amount has been tacked on to the $50 million the San Carlos, Calif. company brought in from Daimler, when the Mercedez-Benz producer took a 10 percent stake in May. All told, Tesla — valued at an estimated $550 million by Daimler — has raised… Continue Reading
Tesla founder sues company, CEO Elon Musk
Martin Eberhard, founder of Tesla Motors, the anointed darling of the electric vehicle industry, has filed suit against the company and its current leader, Elon Musk (right), who he accuses of slander, mismanagement, and, bizarrely, giving him a damaged Tesla roadster (the firm’s first product).
Hostility between Eberhard and Musk is nothing new. The co-founder departed in 2007 after losing too many boardroom skirmishes to Musk (at that time the company’s lead investor). But when he… Continue Reading
Tesla absorbs another $40M to keep the motor running
Tesla Motors has looked a bit shaky lately, starting with a staff layoff and an ouster of its CEO a little over two weeks ago and following with reports that the company had only $9 million left in the bank. But lead investor and new CEO Elon Musk has come through on his promise to find more funding for the company, picking up $40 million from existing investors.
The company issued a terse press release last… Continue Reading
Electric car maker Tesla low on cash, but won’t go bust (yet)
News moves quickly these days. Within hours of a rumor circulating that Tesla Motors is running low on cash, company CEO Elon Musk announced via Reuters that the company will close over $20 million in new funding by next week.
The rumor appears to have come from a company insider, present at an all-hands meeting called at Tesla’s headquarters. Both Left Lane and Valleywag reported, apparently independently, that the company had only $9 million left in… Continue Reading
Elon Musk steps in as CEO at Tesla, lays off staff
Tesla Motors, the maker of the high-performance Roadster, has become something of a symbol for the budding electric car industry. The many other startups in the space, then, should sit up and take notice of its latest move: A takeover of the CEO position by its chairman and chief investor, Elon Musk, the closure of an office near Detroit, and the layoff of dozens of employees.
Musk’s defensiveness is no real surprise. In a down economy,… Continue Reading
SpaceX finally gets a rocket into space
Elon Musk’s Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX) has met with success on its fourth attempt to get a privately designed rocket into orbit.
SpaceX has now proven that a startup can replicate the success of huge efforts made by the United States and Soviet space programs in the 50s and 60s. Legacy technology from those early space programs still helps send satellites and space crews out of the atmosphere today, but the company hopes to undercut… Continue Reading
Private rocket company SpaceX gets $20M from The Founders Fund
Space Exploration Technology Corp., the company created by PayPal co-founder Elon Musk and better-known as SpaceX, has raised $20 million from The Founders Fund.
This is the first time SpaceX has raised outside funding, according to the Wall Street Journal; Musk previously invested $100 million of his own money. The news follows right behind the Hawthorne, Calif. company’s third attempted launch. The launch ended in failure last weekend, when the first-stage engine didn’t separate as required…. Continue Reading
Roundup: Farber takes over at CNET, Mozilla’s new email subsidiary, Scribd iPaper, and more
Here’s the latest action:
1) Dan Farber takes the helm at CNET
2) Mozilla launches email-focused subsidiary
3) Scribd creates iPaper, an Acrobat competitor
4) Hewlett-Packard has great first quarter
5) Tesla Motors pulls in another $40M
6) Verizon, AT&T unveil new unlimited wireless plans
7) Oligarchs, proletariat run amok in Silicon Valley
Scientists suck up CO2 to make alternative fuel
Dan Farber takes the helm at CNET — One familiar figure is stepping aside for another at CNET, where long-time editor-in-chief Jai Singh… Continue Reading
Tesla unveils first production version of electric sports car
The first production version of Tesla’s Roadster, an electric sports car, was unveiled at the company’s San Carlos, Calif. facility earlier today. In fact, board chairman and proud new owner Elon Musk may be taking it for a spin as you read this.
“This represents the first production electric car on the road since God knows when,” Musk said.
This is good news for the company, which has had a tumultuous couple of months. We’ve reported on… Continue Reading
Tesla says first cars will be testing versions, will raise $40M more
Tesla Motors, the company making an electric sports car scheduled to hit the market next quarter, is now saying the first release of cars won’t have the promised performance.
Rather, they’ll come equipped with an interim transmissions that the company says should be considered “public betas,” or trial versions. Public beta is a software term that essentially means something is in a “testing” state, but can be publicly used while bugs or imperfections are ironed out…. Continue Reading
Dell acquires Everdream for undisclosed amount
Everdream is a Fremont, Calif. software-as-a-service company that allows remote servicing and management of computers.
Dell has been active in making similar acquisitions this year, picking up ASAP Software, EqualLogic and, most notably, Silverback. The company is seeking to expand its offerings and provide more managed service products for its customers, as it moves away from direct sales of its systems.
In a press release from the two companies, Dell says that EverDream will continue serving its… Continue Reading
Mahalo.com emerges as yet another search engine
updated
Mahalo.com, the latest company from entrepreneur Jason Calacanis, launched, with a stripped-down search engine designed to handle only the most popular requests in widely appealing categories.
Focused on areas such as travel, music, television, movies, cars, food, health, news and sports — and filtered with the help of a team of 40 employees in Santa Monica, Calif. — the limited results are meant to avoid the spam and other junk results that clog up the other… Continue Reading
Tesla Motors raises $45M more
Tesla Motors, the San Carlos, Calif. maker of a high-performance electric car, has raised $45 million more in financing.
The new backing for the car, due out later this year, is led by Technology Partners, a Palo Alto venture firm that has focused on green investments, and Tesla’s own chairman, Elon Musk. Also investing are Palo Alto’s Capricorn Investment Group, a private investment firm, and major existing investors. Two investors we haven’t mentioned previously are Valor… Continue Reading
Musk leads $10M investment in SolarCity — to provide solar for all
Updated
SolarCity, a new Silicon Valley start-up wants to be the Swiss arms-dealer of the solar industry, and has just raised $10 million to do it.
It wants to provide solar installation for individuals and small companies — by acting as an honest, neutral broker, and giving them the best, most affordable technology available.
SolarCity, of Foster City, is the latest start-up backed by serial entrepreneur and former PayPal co-founder, Elon Musk. Musk, who recently led an investment… Continue Reading