“I think a lot of his friends now have Teslas”

A promising future for Tesla wasn't all billionaire CEO Elon Musk had to talk about, as “very nice” former President Donald Trump became a topic of interest for shareholders.

The potential for a roughly $50 billion windfall for the tech entrepreneur was the talk of the electric vehicle maker's 2024 Cyber ​​Roundup on Thursday. However, a question-and-answer session allowed some insight into where Musk stood in regards to the GOP leader.

As attendees lined up to ask about the future of electric vehicles, artificial intelligence and robotics, the president's apparent change of heart regarding Tesla was questioned.

(Video: Tesla)

“Donald Trump has been a big critic of electric vehicles,” began the question, which drew laughs from the CEO, “but last week he surprised us by saying that he's a big fan of Tesla and a big fan of you. How about to say?”

“Well, you know, I can be persuasive,” Musk said, eliciting a vague response. “I've had a few conversations with him and he calls me for no reason. I don't know why, but he does.”

“He's very nice when he calls and you know I said, 'You know electric cars are pretty good for the future.' America is the leader in electric cars. You know, 'buy American and stuff,'” he continued before suggesting that opinion was down to peer influence. “I think a lot of his friends now have Teslas. And everyone loves it. And he's a huge Cybertruck fan.”

The comment came on the same day as Trump's interview for Logan Paul's “Impaulsive” podcast, where he told co-host Mike Majlak that Musk is “an awesome guy.”

Just a few weeks earlier, The Wall Street Journal had reported that a potential second term for the presumptive Republican nominee could see the tech mogul join the administration in an advisory role. The newspaper had also detailed that the billionaires, along with their sons X and Barron Trump, had been joined by Nelson Peltz at a breakfast in March where they criticized President Joe Biden.

Meanwhile, a shareholder vote supported Musk's 11-figure pay package deal in 2018 that had previously been struck down by Delaware Court of Chancery Judge Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick, who had argued: “The process that led to the approval of Musk's compensation plan was deeply flawed. Musk had extensive ties to the people charged with negotiating on behalf of Tesla.

Despite the McCormick ruling that invalidated the agreement's compensation based on performance taking into account Tesla's capitalization, profitability and revenue, shareholders seeking to keep their CEO invested in the company. agreed once again the agreement must be maintained.

In addition, after Musk had criticized the incorporation in the state of Delaware due to the interference of the judicial system in the commercial agreement, the shareholders had also agreed to change the incorporation to Texas.

Staff writer

A native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College, where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and seeker of truth, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and dog, and when he's not researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel ·the.

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