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I would contend this is at least part of the reason why Elon has been engaging in so many antics lately: to keep this out of the news. Ford even held a press ev

I would contend this is at least part of the reason why Elon has been engaging in so many antics lately: to keep this out of the news. Ford even held a press event in mid-May[0] but there was hardly any coverage due in no small part to the distraction caused by the Twitter buyout news. Since most professional journalists pretty much live on Twitter, they talked about little else during the time. Meanwhile there is still no ship date in sight for Tesla’s “Cybertruck”, is there? Lest anyone think that this is a silly idea in terms of the amount of money being spent, it’s worth noting that at least one article claims Ford’s F-series truck business produces revenue of about $42B annually[1], which is coincidentally (wink, wink) very close to the amount of Elon’s Twitter purchase ($44B), something to consider before dismissing the idea as not possibly worth it. [0] https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2021/05/10/ford-to-reveal-all-electric-f-150-lightning.html https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2021... [1] https://thenewswheel.com/ford-f-series-42-billion-revenue-2019/ https://thenewswheel.com/ford-f-series-42-billion-revenue-20...

ricardobeat 4y ago
Those numbers have absolutely no relation to each other. What would be the point? Those $42B of revenue are from the ICE line, not EVs, so how would a couple weeks of publicity even affect that?
mrfusion 4y ago
I don’t see how two different things being around 40B makes them connected. I’m surprised this odd speculation is the top comment.
the_cat_kittles 4y ago
i think its much more likely he was trying to distract from stories about him sexually harassing people
randrews 4y ago
This doesn't even sort of make sense. Twitter was in the news and this wasn't because Twitter is actually a bigger story: you're right that most journalists live on Twitter, so, its policies have massive influence on the national discourse as a whole. Ford releasing a very expensive truck to the few people who want and can afford very expensive trucks is a niche story.
- alphabettsy 4y ago
  Very expensive truck? It’s right in-line with ICE pickups they make and about half the price of the other two EV pickups nicely equipped.
  - randrews 4y ago
    It starts at around $40k. That's expensive for a car. Most people are not buying new vehicles, electric or otherwise.
    - bryanlarsen 4y ago
      That's less than the average price paid for a new vehicle in 2021. Add in the TCO savings you get by buying an EV, and $40K is competitive with the price of a used vehicle.
      - deleted 4y ago
        [deleted]
    - alphabettsy 4y ago
      https://www.autoweek.com/news/trucks/a32945300/ford-averages-over-100-f-150-pickups-sold-per-hour-247/ https://www.autoweek.com/news/trucks/a32945300/ford-averages... This article says the average selling price of an F150 was $47k in 2018 and they sold 900k of them. Seems like a pretty sizable market considering that’s about how many vehicles Tesla sold last year total. You’re right that most people buy used vehicles, but over 10 million of new cars are sold every year in the US alone.
unboxingelf 4y ago
I would contend this is at least part of the reason why Elon has been engaging in so many antics lately: to keep this out of the news. FUD. Elon has been pushing for an EV future since day 1, that’s why Tesla’s patents are open source.
- alphabettsy 4y ago
  That depends on if you believe that’s the real and sole reason their parents are open source. https://startupnation.com/manage-your-business/teslas-open-source-patent-strategy/ https://startupnation.com/manage-your-business/teslas-open-s...
  - unboxingelf 4y ago
    If I’m interpreting[0] that article correctly, it sounds like if a company uses a Tesla patent they must agree to terms that grant Tesla access to derived works. Considering the enormous risk Tesla took by building the first EV company, it seems like fair use to me. [0] not a lawyer
_ea1k 4y ago
I think if that were true, we'd see Tesla a lot more focused on building and testing more prototypes. Maybe they'd even get them to production at the expense of Y volume. Instead they seem to be laser focused on maximizing Y and to a lesser extent 3 production.

ricardobeat 4y ago

Those numbers have absolutely no relation to each other. What would be the point? Those $42B of revenue are from the ICE line, not EVs, so how would a couple weeks of publicity even affect that?

mrfusion 4y ago

I don’t see how two different things being around 40B makes them connected. I’m surprised this odd speculation is the top comment.

the_cat_kittles 4y ago

i think its much more likely he was trying to distract from stories about him sexually harassing people

randrews 4y ago

This doesn't even sort of make sense. Twitter was in the news and this wasn't because Twitter is actually a bigger story: you're right that most journalists live on Twitter, so, its policies have massive influence on the national discourse as a whole. Ford releasing a very expensive truck to the few people who want and can afford very expensive trucks is a niche story.

alphabettsy 4y ago
Very expensive truck? It’s right in-line with ICE pickups they make and about half the price of the other two EV pickups nicely equipped.
- randrews 4y ago
  It starts at around $40k. That's expensive for a car. Most people are not buying new vehicles, electric or otherwise.
  - bryanlarsen 4y ago
    That's less than the average price paid for a new vehicle in 2021. Add in the TCO savings you get by buying an EV, and $40K is competitive with the price of a used vehicle.
    - deleted 4y ago
      [deleted]
  - alphabettsy 4y ago
    https://www.autoweek.com/news/trucks/a32945300/ford-averages-over-100-f-150-pickups-sold-per-hour-247/ https://www.autoweek.com/news/trucks/a32945300/ford-averages... This article says the average selling price of an F150 was $47k in 2018 and they sold 900k of them. Seems like a pretty sizable market considering that’s about how many vehicles Tesla sold last year total. You’re right that most people buy used vehicles, but over 10 million of new cars are sold every year in the US alone.

unboxingelf 4y ago

I would contend this is at least part of the reason why Elon has been engaging in so many antics lately: to keep this out of the news. FUD. Elon has been pushing for an EV future since day 1, that’s why Tesla’s patents are open source.

alphabettsy 4y ago
That depends on if you believe that’s the real and sole reason their parents are open source. https://startupnation.com/manage-your-business/teslas-open-source-patent-strategy/ https://startupnation.com/manage-your-business/teslas-open-s...
- unboxingelf 4y ago
  If I’m interpreting[0] that article correctly, it sounds like if a company uses a Tesla patent they must agree to terms that grant Tesla access to derived works. Considering the enormous risk Tesla took by building the first EV company, it seems like fair use to me. [0] not a lawyer

_ea1k 4y ago

I think if that were true, we'd see Tesla a lot more focused on building and testing more prototypes. Maybe they'd even get them to production at the expense of Y volume. Instead they seem to be laser focused on maximizing Y and to a lesser extent 3 production.