Investor's Corner
Elon Musk clarifies his demeanor in NYT interview: ‘There were no tears’
Elon Musk appears to be hitting his stride in his social media use once more. Since announcing that Tesla would remain publicly traded, Musk has been his charming self on the social media platform, even clarifying his demeanor during his fateful interview with the New York Times earlier this month.
The past month has been quite difficult and stressful for Elon Musk, and just like Tesla’s struggles with the Model 3 ramp, much of his stress were pretty much self-inflicted. Musk found himself in the middle of controversy after he announced on Twitter that he was considering taking the company private at $420 per share, and that he had “funding secured.” In the weeks that followed, Tesla was attacked by a fresh wave of criticism from dedicated short-sellers and at some point, even the mainstream media. SEC investigations were reportedly started, and lawsuits were reportedly filed against Musk as well.
Tesla is now dealing with the aftermath of the privatization attempt and its subsequent cancelation, but during the height of the go-private drama, Musk opted to give an interview to the New York Times. The interview, which reportedly lasted an hour, featured Musk discussing the events that led up to his tweet about Tesla’s privatization attempt, as well as his struggles in the weeks that followed after. The NYT piece was extensive, though it included more references to unnamed sources than it did of Musk’s actual statements. What’s more, the piece painted a picture of a man who was on the verge of a breakdown, with the article stating that during the course of the interview, “Mr. Musk alternated between laughter and tears” and that the CEO “choked up multiple times” while talking about the difficulties he was facing.
Musk’s depiction in the NYT interview affected Tesla’s stock. In the days that followed, the company’s shares tanked more than 12% as investors started having second thoughts about Musk’s ability to lead the company. New York Times reporter David Gelles, one of the publication’s staff who penned the interview, when posted a tweet stating that “Tesla $TSLA stock now down close to 4 percent in premarket trading. Wonder why?” — seemingly as a direct reference to the interview’s effect on Tesla stock.
Musk recently issued a clarification about his composure during the NYT interview. In a statement on Twitter, Musk noted that his voice cracked once during the conversation, though he maintained that he did not shed any tears.
For the record, my voice cracked once during the NY Times article. That’s it. There were no tears.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 28, 2018
Elon Musk’s recent clarification does stand in line with his demeanor and composure during an interview filmed in roughly the same time period as the New York Times article. In the same week as his interview with the publication, Musk also had an interview with noted YouTube tech reviewer Marques Brownlee. Musk seemed incredibly tired in his conversations with the YouTuber, but he did not look like he was, in any way, close to having a breakdown. If any, Musk’s interactions with Brownlee showed classic Elon Musk — overworked, inherently nerdy, and even a bit charming. Overall, the contrast between the Elon Musk in the MKBHD video and the Musk depicted in the NYT article was pretty much night and day.
If there is one thing that seems to be accurate in the New York Times piece, it is that Elon Musk appears to have pledged to keep his behavior in check on Twitter. This was reiterated by the Wall Street Journal as well, in a recent report about how Musk walked away from $30 billion of funding for Tesla’s privatization. Both articles noted that Musk pledged to Tesla’s Board of Directors that he would exercise more restraint in social media. So far, Musk appears to be doing just that.
Since announcing the end of Tesla’s privatization attempt, Musk has maintained a witty, polite tone on Twitter, at one point even responding to child actor and Fresh Off the Boat star Ian Chen, who asked if Musk could sign his Model 3.
Sure 🙂
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 28, 2018
Watch Elon Musk’s interview with YouTube tech reviewer Marques Brownlee in the video below.
Elon Musk
SpaceX just filed for the IPO everyone was waiting for
SpaceX filed its public S-1, revealing $18.7 billion in revenue and billions in losses.
SpaceX publicly filed its S-1 registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 20, 2026, making its financial details available to the public for the first time ahead of what could be the largest IPO in history.
An S-1 is the formal document a company must submit to the SEC before going public. It includes audited financials, risk factors, business descriptions, and how the company plans to use the money it raises. Companies are required to file one before selling shares to the public, and it must be published at least 15 days before the investor roadshow begins. SpaceX had already submitted a confidential draft to the SEC in April, which allowed regulators to review the filing privately before it went public.
The S-1 reveals that SpaceX generated $18.7 billion in consolidated revenue in 2025, driven largely by its Starlink satellite internet division, which posted $11.4 billion in revenue, growing nearly 50% year over year. Despite that growth, the company lost about $4.9 billion in 2025 and has burned through more than $37 billion since its founding.
SpaceX just forced Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile to team up for the first time in history
A significant portion of those losses trace back to xAI, Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company, which was recently merged into SpaceX. SpaceX directed roughly 60% of its capital spending in 2025 to its AI division, totaling around $20 billion, yet that division lost billions and grew revenue by only about 22%.
SpaceX plans to list its Class A common stock on Nasdaq under the ticker SPCX, with Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and Bank of America leading the offering. The dual-class share structure means going public will not meaningfully reduce Musk’s control, as Class B shares he holds carry 10 votes per share compared to one vote for public Class A shares.
The company is targeting a raise of around $75 billion at a valuation of roughly $1.75 trillion, which would make it the largest IPO ever. The investor roadshow is reportedly planned for June 5.
Elon Musk
Tesla ditches India after years of broken promises
Tesla has ditched its plans to build a factory in India after years of failed negotiations.
Tesla’s long-running effort to establish a manufacturing presence in India is officially over. India’s Minister of Heavy Industries H.D. Kumaraswamy confirmed on May 19, 2026 that Tesla has informed authorities it will not proceed with a manufacturing facility in the country.
Tesla first signaled serious interest in India around 2021, when it began hiring local staff and lobbying the Indian government for lower import tariffs. The ask was straightforward: reduce duties enough for Tesla to test the market with imported vehicles before committing capital to a local factory. India’s position was equally firm, with an ask of Tesla to commit to manufacturing first, then receive tariff relief. Neither side moved, and the talks quietly collapsed.
Tesla to open first India experience center in Mumbai on July 15
India had offered a policy that would reduce import duties from 110% down to 15% on EVs priced above $35,000, provided companies committed at least $500 million toward local manufacturing investment within three years. Tesla declined to participate. The tariff standoff was only part of the problem. Analysts pointed to significant gaps in India’s local supply chain, inadequate industrial infrastructure, and a mismatch between Tesla’s premium pricing and the purchasing power of India’s automotive market as additional factors that made the investment difficult to justify.
First signs of an unraveling relationship came in April 2024, when Musk abruptly cancelled a planned trip to India where he was set to meet Prime Minister Modi and announce Tesla’s market entry. By July 2024, Fortune reported that Tesla executives had stopped contacting Indian government officials entirely. The government at that point understood Tesla had capital constraints and no plans to invest.
The more fundamental issue is that Tesla’s existing factories are currently operating at approximately 60% capacity, making a commitment to building new manufacturing capacity in a new market difficult to defend to investors. Tesla will continue selling imported Model Y vehicles through its existing showrooms in Mumbai, Delhi, Gurugram, and Bengaluru, but local production is no longer part of the plan.
Elon Musk
SpaceX just forced Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile to team up for the first time in history
AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon just joined forces for one reason: Starlink is winning.
America’s three largest wireless carriers, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon, announced on On May 14, 2026 that they had agreed in principle to form a joint venture aimed at pooling their spectrum resources to expand satellite-based direct-to-device (D2D) connectivity across the United States in what can be seen as a direct response to SpaceX’s Starlink initiative. D2D, in plain terms, is technology that lets a standard smartphone connect directly to a satellite in orbit, the same way it connects to a cell tower, with no extra hardware required.
The alliance is widely seen as a means to slow Starlink’s rapid expansion in the satellite internet and mobile markets. SpaceX’s Starlink Mobile service launched commercially in July 2025 through a partnership with T-Mobile, starting with messaging before expanding to broadband data. SpaceX secured access to valuable wireless spectrum through its $17 billion deal with EchoStar, paving the way for significantly faster satellite-to-phone speeds.
SpaceX was not shy about its reaction. SpaceX president and COO Gwynne Shotwell responded on X: “Weeeelllll, I guess Starlink Mobile is doing something right! It’s David and Goliath (X3) all over again — I’m bettin’ on David.” SpaceX’s VP of Satellite Policy David Goldman went further, flagging potential antitrust concerns and asking whether the DOJ would even allow three dominant competitors to coordinate in a market where a new rival is actively entering.
Weeeelllll, I guess @Starlink Mobile is doing something right! It’s David and Goliath (X3) all over again — I’m bettin’ on David 🙂 https://t.co/5GzS752mxL
— Gwynne Shotwell (@Gwynne_Shotwell) May 14, 2026
Financial analysts at LightShed Partners were blunt, saying the announcement showed the three carriers are “nervous,” and pointed to the timing: “You announce an agreement in principle when the point is the announcement, not the deal. The timing, weeks ahead of the SpaceX roadshow, was the point.”
As Teslarati reported, SpaceX’s next generation Starlink V2 satellites will deliver up to 100 times the data density of the current system, with custom silicon and phased array antennas enabling around 20 times the throughput of the first generation. The carriers’ JV, which has no definitive agreement, no financial structure, and no deployment timeline yet, will need to move quickly to matter.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is targeting a Nasdaq listing as early as June 12, aiming for what would be the largest IPO in history. With Starlink now serving over 9 million subscribers across 155 countries, holding 59 carrier partnerships globally, and now powering Air Force One, the carriers’ joint venture announcement landed at exactly the wrong time to look like anything other than a defensive move.
SpaceX reveals what Anthropic will pay for massive compute deal
SpaceX just filed for the IPO everyone was waiting for
