

Elon Musk
Elon Musk, President Trump share interesting dialogue regarding Tesla Gigafactory India
Tesla CEO Elon Musk and President Donald Trump shared an interesting dialogue regarding the automaker’s potential entry into the Indian market, which could require the construction of a new Gigafactory in the country.
For the past several years, Tesla and India have attempted to come to terms on an agreement that would see the EV maker bring its vehicles to the country permanently. There have been several sticking points in the negotiations, which have delayed Tesla’s plans.
Tesla has wanted to test demand by shipping vehicles from its Gigafactory Berlin plant in Germany to India.
This would not be an adequate way to assess whether India is an ideal market for Tesla because the country applies 100 percent import duties to imported vehicles, doubling the price of the car in question.
India has agreed to reduce or even eliminate the import duties for Tesla under one condition: it commits to building a factory in the country. This would essentially eliminate the need for the demand test, though.
This is where Tesla and India have been held up. However, recent discussions between Musk and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have resulted in Tesla initiating hiring efforts for Sales and Service advisors in India.
But things got interesting during an interview with President Trump and Musk yesterday, especially in regards to Tesla’s potential plans to build a Gigafactory in India.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk to meet with Indian PM once again – Here’s why
Musk and Trump both discussed the high import duties on imported vehicles in India, which Tesla will likely need to use a Gigafactory in the country to avoid.
President Trump seems more in tune with the idea of Tesla sending American vehicles to India and using a reciprocal tariff strategy to force the country to eliminate its duties.
The back-and-forth went like this:
Musk: The tariffs are like 100 percent import duty.
President Trump: The tariffs are so high —
Musk: Yeah.
President Trump: — they don’t want to — now, if he [Musk] built the factory in India, that’s okay, but that’s unfair to us. It’s very unfair. And I said, “you know what we do?” I told Prime Minister Modi yesterday — he was here. I said, “Here’s what you do. We’re going to do — be very fair with you.” They charge the highest tariffs in the world, just about.
Media: 36 percent?
President Trump: Oh, much, much higher.
Musk: It’s 100 percent on — auto imports are 100 percent.
President Trump: Yeah, that’s peanuts. So much higher. And — and others, too. I said, “Here’s what we’re going to do: reciprocal. Whatever you charge, I’m charging.”
The interesting bit about President Trump stating that Tesla building a factory in India is “unfair to us. It’s very unfair” seems to be a point of potential disagreement between the two.
It’s nothing that can’t be worked out, but it seems there could be a bargaining point between Musk, President Trump, and Modi.
Musk wants to get Tesla’s vehicles in India because it is such a large market and it could be a massive boost to the company’s annual delivery totals in the coming years. It has to be at the right price and at the right time.
Modi wants Tesla in India, too, but this will only happen if it can boost the economy. India has a very hellbent focus on domestic manufacturing through its “Make In India” campaign, which is why import duties are so high.
Trump wants Tesla to continue building vehicles in the U.S. to bolster his plans that would provide a resurgence to domestic manufacturing. He is fine with Tesla operating in India, but only if the U.S. sees a benefit, and not Tesla exclusively.
This will likely prolong what seemed to be an almost guaranteed deal between Tesla and India.
Need accessories for your Tesla? Check out the Teslarati Marketplace:
- https://shop.teslarati.com/collections/tesla-cybertruck-accessories
- https://shop.teslarati.com/collections/tesla-model-y-accessories
- https://shop.teslarati.com/collections/tesla-model-3-accessories
Please email me with questions and comments at joey@teslarati.com. I’d love to chat! You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

Elon Musk
Elon Musk confirms two measures Tesla is taking to fight vandalism

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced two measures the company is taking to fight the vandalism that is going on at showrooms across the country as vehicles and even structures have been lit on fire, spray painted, or damaged by various means by those who oppose him or the automaker.
As attacks against Tesla owners and even the company directly continue to occur across the country, people have been wondering what the company will do to fight back. After President Trump and other members of the administration stated that attacks against the company would be treated as domestic terrorism, many thought things would cool down.
However, things have only intensified. Although several of the perpetrators have been arrested and are facing consequences, it seems the severity of the attacks has only gotten worse. Things like Molotov cocktails have been employed by protestors to show their distaste for the company.
Now, Musk is detailing several things Tesla is doing at its showrooms in hopes of ending everything that has gone on and persisted due to the resistance from those who oppose the automaker.
Musk says that Tesla is now ramping up security at its showrooms and is now using Sentry Mode on all vehicles to help catch perpetrators in the act.
We have seen security beef up in several high-profile locations, including Tesla’s Las Vegas location on Sahara Blvd., where Las Vegas Metro Police were spotted yesterday keeping things under control:
🚨 Tesla showrooms in Las Vegas have security in the form of the LVMPD
It is literal insanity that we have cops guarding Tesla dealers because people can’t have a different opinion in peace https://t.co/aunbNmWRuK
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) March 19, 2025
Additionally, Sentry Mode has already done a great job of catching several perpetrators in the act, like this one who was recently caught, arrested, and now faces up to 18 months in jail for keying a swastika in a Tesla:
Not smart to attack Teslas
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 20, 2025
Hopefully, these two measures can eliminate most of the issues Tesla has had at its showrooms. If not, there will likely be follow-up measures utilized by Tesla in hopes of ending this senseless vandalism.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk’s X valued at $44 billion in latest funding round: report
Investors reportedly valued Elon Musk’s X at $44 billion in a secondary deal earlier this month.

Elon Musk’s X has clawed its way back to a valuation of $44 billion, a sharp rebound from its estimated value following the Tesla CEO’s turbulent takeover in 2022.
Information about the social media platform’s recent valuation was shared by the Financial Times in a recent report.
Back to $44 Billion
Citing people reportedly familiar with the matter, the FT noted that investors valued Elon Musk’s X at $44 billion in a secondary deal earlier this month. During the deal, investors reportedly exchanged existing stakes in the social media platform. The publication’s sources also claimed that X is working on raising fresh capital in a primary round that is aimed at raising around $2 billion, which would be used to pay off over $1 billion in junior debt from Musk’s 2022 Twitter buyout.
X’s $44 billion valuation is a stunning reversal from the company’s previous estimates. Just last September, Fidelity Investments valued X below $10 billion. Interestingly enough, Fidelity was also one of the investors in X’s recent funding round. Other investors included Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, 8VC, and Goanna Capital.
Musk’s Cost-Cutting Pays Off
Musk’s serious cost-cutting measures caught a lot of flak following his acquisition of Twitter. So notable were the criticisms of Musk’s drastic cuts that critics were expecting Twitter to go offline and die. This, however, did not come to pass, though the company had to crawl its way out of the ditch to get to where it is now.
During the last full year before Musk’s takeover, Twitter reported adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) of about $682 million and about $5 billion in revenue. In 2024, X had an EBITDA of about $1.25 billion and annual revenue of $2.7 billion. As per the Wall Street Journal, these figures were better than expected for X’s investors.
New Cash Streams and AI Power Up
X’s valuation is also boosted by the company’s stake in Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup, xAI, which develops Grok, a large language model. X CEO Linda Yaccarino also noted that X Money, a Visa-backed payment service, is expected to be rolled out later this year.
Elon Musk
Tesla owners doxxed by controversial anti-DOGE website in clear intimidation tactic

Tesla owners are being doxxed by a controversial anti-DOGE website in what it called an act to “empower creative expressions of protest.”
Dogequest, a website that has been created with a clearly outlined use for intimidation against Tesla owners, posted the names, addresses, phone numbers, and other contact information of those who own vehicles made by the electric vehicle manufacturer.
It was spotted by 404 Media.
The site also claims to have the information of employees at the Department of Government Efficiency, as well as the addresses of Tesla dealerships and the locations of Tesla Superchargers. The latter two are public information.
However, the website is hoping to get Tesla owners to sell their vehicles in this evident intimidation tactic. However, the information on the website, while it was seen, was not verified to prove that it contained the information of real-world Tesla owners. The site was not accessible by Teslarati at the time of publication.
The creation of a site like Dogequest is just another level that anti-Elon Musk activists are taking to attempt to destroy a company like Tesla as its CEO works with the Trump Administration to eliminate excessive government spending through the work of DOGE.
It is also the latest attack on Tesla owners, who have seen their vehicles vandalized, damaged, and even destroyed by those who disagree with the actions of Musk.
Tesla as a company has also seen several acts of retaliation against it, as everything from the arson of its showrooms and vehicles to it being kicked from the popular Vancouver Auto Show have come as a result of the recent backlash against the company.
Moving forward, there are still questions surrounding how these attacks will be combatted. The Trump Administration has indicated that acts of vandalism against Tesla would be considered a federal crime, but the tricky part of locating the culprits has proven to be extremely difficult. Only a handful have been found and held accountable.
-
News2 weeks ago
Tesla at risk of 95% crash, claims billionaire hedge fund manager
-
News2 weeks ago
Tesla contract with Baltimore paused after city ‘decided to go in a different direction’
-
Elon Musk5 days ago
Elon Musk roasts owners of this car brand after another Tesla vandalism incident
-
Elon Musk1 week ago
President Donald Trump buys a Tesla at the White House – Here’s which model he chose
-
News1 week ago
Rivian supports Tesla despite all the Elon Musk hate
-
Elon Musk1 week ago
Tesla says it will be a victim of Trump admin’s tariff strategy
-
News4 days ago
SpaceX rescue mission for stranded ISS astronauts nears end — Here’s when they’ll return home
-
News6 days ago
U.S. AG Pam Bondi: Tesla Molotov attack suspect facing up to 20 years in prison