7 ms·

This is the CEO that said their infotainment system is a HTML supercomputer. He's now a billionaire and has cashed out 70 million with nothing more than a fake

This is the CEO that said their infotainment system is a HTML supercomputer. He's now a billionaire and has cashed out 70 million with nothing more than a fake prototype, lies and purchases from suppliers in which they give their equity and call it a strategic partnership.

RosanaAnaDana 6y ago
Living the dream.
nograpes 6y ago
I thought you were exaggerating but I found the truckinginfo article (https://www.truckinginfo.com/330475/whats-behind-the-grille-of-the-new-nikola-hydrogen-electric-truck https://www.truckinginfo.com/330475/whats-behind-the-grille-...). I am not involved in this world at all... but is this common? Can you really expose your own ignorance in this way and also manage to keep investors?
- sisk 6y ago
  From the linked article, here is the full quote: > "The entire infotainment system is a HTML 5 super computer," Milton said. "That's the standard language for computer programmers around the world, so using it let's us build our own chips. And HTML 5 is very secure. Every component is linked on the data network, all speaking the same language. It's not a bunch of separate systems that somehow still manage to communicate."
  - discreteevent 6y ago
    What a relief! No more worries about the ARM buyout. Just use HTML 5 and you can build your own chips.
  - quantified 6y ago
    Tasty word salad.
  - vsareto 6y ago
    Welp, their trucks are going to get hacked easily.
  - DC-3 6y ago
    Sounds like the sort of guy to create a GUI Interface in Visual Basic to track an IP Address.
    - ganoushoreilly 6y ago
      r/masterhacker material
- xeromal 6y ago
  This is amazing. ``` But the Nikola truck is more than just a fuel cell vehicle; it’s a rolling super computer. One of the key elements of Nikola’s advanced system is the Bosch Vehicle Control Unit, which provides higher computing power for advanced functions while reducing the number of standalone units. "The entire infotainment system is a HTML 5 super computer," Milton said. "That's the standard language for computer programmers around the world, so using it let's us build our own chips. And HTML 5 is very secure. Every component is linked on the data network, all speaking the same language. It's not a bunch of separate systems that somehow still manage to communicate." ```
  - gameswithgo 6y ago
    Man I was already a bit depressed at the state of the world and now seeing that an asshole like this can be a billionaire is killing me. I wish nothing more than that cops would knee these people on the neck until they die instead of poor people.
    - dang 6y ago
      Please don't post like this to HN. Maybe you don't owe billionaires better, but you definitely owe this community better if you're participating in it. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
  - duskwuff 6y ago
    > One of the key elements of Nikola’s advanced system is the Bosch Vehicle Control Unit So… a Bosch ECU? That's hardly new. Bosch is one of the largest players in the market -- Ford, GM, BMW, and VW (among others) have been using their ECUs for ages.
  - netsharc 6y ago
    >And HTML 5 is very secure. Every component is linked on the data network, all speaking the same language. Javascript and CSS to replace the CAN-BUS? That'd be funny.. To spin the tyres you just need to add the CSS style: { animation:spin 4s linear infinite; } And reduce the duration to make the truck go faster..
- jamestimmins 6y ago
  Investors usually don't know better about the tech, but this is exactly how Elizabeth Holmes was exposed. In an interview with Forbes she described Theranos's process as (I'm paraphrasing) "a sequence of chemistries". That sounded fishy to John Carreyrou at the Wall Street Journal, so he started his long term investigation into Theranos, and eventually broke the story. So the short answer is that no, you can't keep investors in the long run, but it takes time for journalists, watchdog groups, and federal agencies to do thorough investigations.
- DobryMorozov 6y ago
  https://youtu.be/Q6iy3IbVIsQ https://youtu.be/Q6iy3IbVIsQ Listen to him talk about Nikola in interviews. In an interview he said "before WeWork it was really easy to get money but now investors ask more questions." His interviews are filled with answers from this perspective and it's quite bizarre how no one noticed this. I noticed that he also makes false statements in the video. Nikola has zero active routes,that's a lie.
mritchie712 6y ago
Your recollection of the statement is so on point. I often can only recall things this clearly when they are that dumb.
adventured 6y ago
> He's now a billionaire and has cashed out 70 million Elizabeth Holmes was worth $5 billion at one point. They'll take every dime this guy has, if it turns out to be a fraud. The Feds will particularly aggressively investigate such a prominent case. Such public cases make the Feds look bad (from their point of view), especially if they don't get the people responsible, so they tend to pursue them rigorously. They'll inevitably find something he did wrong, and he'll end up in the same spot that Holmes is in, spending all his time trying to weasel out of a prison sentence.
johnthescott 6y ago
> HTML supercomputer not sure about the rest of you, but i am investing in html supercomputer. could be bigger than quantum computing. spread the word.

RosanaAnaDana 6y ago

Living the dream.

nograpes 6y ago

I thought you were exaggerating but I found the truckinginfo article (https://www.truckinginfo.com/330475/whats-behind-the-grille-of-the-new-nikola-hydrogen-electric-truck https://www.truckinginfo.com/330475/whats-behind-the-grille-...). I am not involved in this world at all... but is this common? Can you really expose your own ignorance in this way and also manage to keep investors?

sisk 6y ago
From the linked article, here is the full quote: > "The entire infotainment system is a HTML 5 super computer," Milton said. "That's the standard language for computer programmers around the world, so using it let's us build our own chips. And HTML 5 is very secure. Every component is linked on the data network, all speaking the same language. It's not a bunch of separate systems that somehow still manage to communicate."
- discreteevent 6y ago
  What a relief! No more worries about the ARM buyout. Just use HTML 5 and you can build your own chips.
- quantified 6y ago
  Tasty word salad.
- vsareto 6y ago
  Welp, their trucks are going to get hacked easily.
- DC-3 6y ago
  Sounds like the sort of guy to create a GUI Interface in Visual Basic to track an IP Address.
  - ganoushoreilly 6y ago
    r/masterhacker material
xeromal 6y ago
This is amazing. ``` But the Nikola truck is more than just a fuel cell vehicle; it’s a rolling super computer. One of the key elements of Nikola’s advanced system is the Bosch Vehicle Control Unit, which provides higher computing power for advanced functions while reducing the number of standalone units. "The entire infotainment system is a HTML 5 super computer," Milton said. "That's the standard language for computer programmers around the world, so using it let's us build our own chips. And HTML 5 is very secure. Every component is linked on the data network, all speaking the same language. It's not a bunch of separate systems that somehow still manage to communicate." ```
- gameswithgo 6y ago
  Man I was already a bit depressed at the state of the world and now seeing that an asshole like this can be a billionaire is killing me. I wish nothing more than that cops would knee these people on the neck until they die instead of poor people.
  - dang 6y ago
    Please don't post like this to HN. Maybe you don't owe billionaires better, but you definitely owe this community better if you're participating in it. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
- duskwuff 6y ago
  > One of the key elements of Nikola’s advanced system is the Bosch Vehicle Control Unit So… a Bosch ECU? That's hardly new. Bosch is one of the largest players in the market -- Ford, GM, BMW, and VW (among others) have been using their ECUs for ages.
- netsharc 6y ago
  >And HTML 5 is very secure. Every component is linked on the data network, all speaking the same language. Javascript and CSS to replace the CAN-BUS? That'd be funny.. To spin the tyres you just need to add the CSS style: { animation:spin 4s linear infinite; } And reduce the duration to make the truck go faster..
jamestimmins 6y ago
Investors usually don't know better about the tech, but this is exactly how Elizabeth Holmes was exposed. In an interview with Forbes she described Theranos's process as (I'm paraphrasing) "a sequence of chemistries". That sounded fishy to John Carreyrou at the Wall Street Journal, so he started his long term investigation into Theranos, and eventually broke the story. So the short answer is that no, you can't keep investors in the long run, but it takes time for journalists, watchdog groups, and federal agencies to do thorough investigations.
DobryMorozov 6y ago
https://youtu.be/Q6iy3IbVIsQ https://youtu.be/Q6iy3IbVIsQ Listen to him talk about Nikola in interviews. In an interview he said "before WeWork it was really easy to get money but now investors ask more questions." His interviews are filled with answers from this perspective and it's quite bizarre how no one noticed this. I noticed that he also makes false statements in the video. Nikola has zero active routes,that's a lie.

mritchie712 6y ago

Your recollection of the statement is so on point. I often can only recall things this clearly when they are that dumb.

adventured 6y ago

> He's now a billionaire and has cashed out 70 million Elizabeth Holmes was worth $5 billion at one point. They'll take every dime this guy has, if it turns out to be a fraud. The Feds will particularly aggressively investigate such a prominent case. Such public cases make the Feds look bad (from their point of view), especially if they don't get the people responsible, so they tend to pursue them rigorously. They'll inevitably find something he did wrong, and he'll end up in the same spot that Holmes is in, spending all his time trying to weasel out of a prison sentence.

johnthescott 6y ago

> HTML supercomputer not sure about the rest of you, but i am investing in html supercomputer. could be bigger than quantum computing. spread the word.