{"id":20603,"date":"2026-07-06T05:08:08","date_gmt":"2026-07-05T20:08:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tomorrowaccess.com\/?page_id=20603"},"modified":"2026-10-27T14:25:21","modified_gmt":"2026-10-27T05:25:21","slug":"tesla-2010","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/tomorrowaccess.com\/en\/s-1-journal\/tesla-2010","title":{"rendered":"For a Car That Did Not Yet Exist, He Bet the Company on a $1 Salary"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>@import url('https:\/\/fonts.googleapis.com\/css2?family=Newsreader:ital,opsz,wght@0,6..72,400;0,6..72,500;0,6..72,600;1,6..72,400&display=swap');html,body {max-width: 100vw !important;overflow-x: hidden !important;}main,main > .entry-content,main > .wp-block-post-content,main > .wp-block-post-content.is-layout-constrained,main > .wp-block-post-content.is-layout-constrained > *,main .wp-block-group,main .wp-block-post-content {max-width: 100% !important;padding-left: 0 !important;padding-right: 0 !important;margin-left: 0 !important;margin-right: 0 !important;}main#wp--skip-link--target {padding: 0 !important;margin-top: 0 !important;max-width: 100% !important;}.s1-figure-inline {display: block;width: 100%;max-width: 100%;margin: 60px 0;padding: 0;box-sizing: border-box;}.s1-figure-inline picture {display: block;width: 100%;}.s1-figure-inline img {display: block;width: 100%;max-width: 100%;height: auto;margin: 0;}@media (max-width: 720px) {.s1-hero-grid {grid-template-columns: 1fr !important;}.s1-hero-grid > div {border-right: none !important;border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6 !important;padding: 24px 12px !important;}.s1-hero-grid > div:last-child {border-bottom: none !important;}.s1-hero-grid > div > div:first-child {font-size: 32px !important;white-space: normal !important;}.s1-body-table,.s1-body-table tbody,.s1-body-table tr,.s1-body-table td,.s1-body-table th {display: block !important;width: 100% !important;max-width: 100% !important;box-sizing: border-box !important;}.s1-body-table thead {display: none !important;}.s1-body-table tr {margin-bottom: 16px !important;padding: 8px 0 !important;border-top: 1px solid #1a1a1a !important;}.s1-body-table tr:last-child {border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a !important;}.s1-body-table td {text-align: left !important;padding: 6px 8px !important;}.s1-body-table td::before {content: attr(data-label) \": \";font-weight: 700 !important;color: #000 !important;}.s1-body-table td:first-child::before,.s1-body-table td[data-label=\"\"]::before {display: none !important;}.s1-light-shadow {flex-direction: column !important;}.s1-light-shadow > div {border-left: 1px solid #1a1a1a !important;border-top: 0 !important;}.s1-light-shadow > div:first-child {border-top: 1px solid #1a1a1a !important;}h1 {font-size: clamp(26px, 7vw, 34px) !important;}h2 {font-size: clamp(22px, 5.5vw, 28px) !important;}.s1-article-cta-headline {font-size: 24px !important; line-height: 1.4 !important;}}@media (max-width: 480px) {.s1-article-cta-headline {font-size: 20px !important;}}main .wp-block-post-content>.alignfull{margin-left:calc(-1*var(--wp--style--root--padding-left,20px)) !important;margin-right:calc(-1*var(--wp--style--root--padding-right,20px)) !important;max-width:none !important;width:auto !important;}<\/style>\n<div class=\"alignfull\" style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: #1a1a1a; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-wrap: pretty; font-size: 16px; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background: #fafafa; width: 100%;\">\n<div style=\"max-width: 1000px; margin: 0 auto; padding: 80px 20px 0; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/tomorrowaccess.com\/en\/s-1-journal\/\" style=\"text-decoration: none; color: inherit; display: block;\"><\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 40px;\">\n<div style=\"width: 100%; height: 5px; background: #1a1a1a;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-top: 26px; font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 32px; font-weight: 600; color: #1a1a1a; letter-spacing: 0.01em; line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 14px;\">S-1 <span style=\"color: #daa241;\">Journal<\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; align-items: center; flex-wrap: wrap; gap: 14px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 26px;\">\n        <span style=\"font-size: 11px; letter-spacing: 0.18em; color: #1a1a1a; font-weight: 700; text-transform: uppercase;\">The 10 Questions<\/span><br \/>\n        <span style=\"font-size: 11px; color: #ccc;\">|<\/span><br \/>\n        <span style=\"font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.02em; color: #666; font-weight: 400;\">Every S-1, decoded through the same 10 questions.<\/span>\n      <\/div>\n<div style=\"width: 100%; height: 1px; background: #daa241;\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>  <\/a>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"max-width: 720px; margin: 0 auto; padding: 0 20px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: #1a1a1a; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-wrap: pretty;\">\n<div style=\"margin: 0 0 32px 0;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 30px; font-weight: 600; letter-spacing: 0; color: #daa241; margin: 0; line-height: 1.2;\">Tesla<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h1 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(32px, 6vw, 46px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.2; letter-spacing: -0.01em; color: #000; margin: 0 0 40px 0; text-wrap: pretty;\">For a Car That Did Not Yet Exist,<br \/>He Bet the Company on a $1 Salary<\/h1>\n<div style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: 0.03em; color: #888; margin: 0 0 60px 0; border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6; padding-bottom: 16px;\">Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sec.gov\/Archives\/edgar\/data\/1318605\/000119312510017054\/ds1.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" style=\"color: #daa241; text-decoration: underline; text-underline-offset: 3px; text-decoration-thickness: 1px;\">Tesla Motors, Inc. S-1 (filed 2010-01-29) \u2197<\/a><\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">In January 2010, Tesla Motors filed its <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span>. <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Cars shipped to date: 937<\/strong>. <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Accumulated deficit: <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$236.4<\/span> million<\/strong>. Revenue for the nine months to September 2009: just <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$93.4<\/span> million.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">And yet &mdash; by that point, Tesla had already secured a <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\"><span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$465<\/span> million loan<\/strong> from the US government. The money came from the Department of Energy&rsquo;s Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing program.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"max-width: 720px; margin: 80px auto; padding: 0 20px;\">\n<div class=\"s1-hero-grid\" style=\"border-top: 1px solid #1a1a1a; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a; padding: 50px 0; display: grid; grid-template-columns: repeat(3, 1fr); gap: 0; text-align: center; align-items: start;\">\n<div style=\"padding: 0 12px; border-right: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<div style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(28px, 4.5vw, 36px); font-weight: 500; line-height: 1.05; color: #000; letter-spacing: -0.02em; white-space: nowrap;\">937<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; margin-top: 18px; font-weight: 700; text-transform: uppercase;\">ROADSTER SHIPPED<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.04em; color: #888; margin-top: 6px; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.4;\">Roadsters shipped to date<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 0 12px; border-right: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<div style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(28px, 4.5vw, 36px); font-weight: 500; line-height: 1.05; color: #000; letter-spacing: -0.02em; white-space: nowrap;\">$236.4M<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; margin-top: 18px; font-weight: 700; text-transform: uppercase;\">ACCUMULATED LOSS<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.04em; color: #888; margin-top: 6px; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.4;\">accumulated deficit since founding<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 0 12px;\">\n<div style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(28px, 4.5vw, 36px); font-weight: 500; line-height: 1.05; color: #000; letter-spacing: -0.02em; white-space: nowrap;\">$465M<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; margin-top: 18px; font-weight: 700; text-transform: uppercase;\">DOE LOAN<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.04em; color: #888; margin-top: 6px; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.4;\">US Department of Energy loan<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"max-width: 720px; margin: 0 auto; padding: 0 20px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: #1a1a1a; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-wrap: pretty;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 60px 0 1.5em 0;\">What that loan was meant to build was the Model S &mdash; a sedan <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">not a single unit of which had yet been <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">mass-produced<\/span><\/strong>. The star of the show was a car that did not yet exist.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">And <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">Elon Musk<\/span> &mdash; neither the founder nor originally the president &mdash; had become CEO in October 2008. <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">He took on the company for a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$1<\/span> salary<\/strong> and put his own money in: <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$10.0<\/span> million into the 2007 Series D, <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$20.4<\/span> million into the December 2008 bridge convertible note, and more. The man who bet on a car that did not yet exist was carrying the company on his back.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.4em 0;\">Ten questions. We lay out only what the S-1 says.<\/p>\n<p><!--s1nltop--><\/p>\n<div class=\"s1-nl-top\" id=\"s1nltop-en\" style=\"max-width:680px;margin:56px auto 0;padding:20px;border:1px solid #e6e6e6;border-left:3px solid #daa241;background:#ffffff;font-family:'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, 'Hiragino Kaku Gothic ProN', '\u30d2\u30e9\u30ae\u30ce\u89d2\u30b4 ProN W3', 'Noto Sans JP', 'Yu Gothic', sans-serif;word-break:keep-all;line-break:strict;box-sizing:border-box;\">\n<p style=\"font-size:11px;letter-spacing:0.22em;font-weight:700;color:#daa241;margin:0 0 8px;\">S-1 JOURNAL NEWSLETTER<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-size:13.5px;line-height:1.7;color:#1a1a1a;margin:0 0 14px;\">Get the Ten Questions checklist (PDF) and the next S-1 reality check, free by email.<\/p>\n<form action=\"https:\/\/tomorrowaccess.com\/wp-json\/s1\/v1\/waitlist\" method=\"post\" onsubmit=\"return s1nlTopSubmit_en(this)\" style=\"display:flex;gap:8px;flex-wrap:wrap;margin:0;\"><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"source\" value=\"s1nltop-en-nojs\"><input type=\"email\" name=\"email\" required placeholder=\"Your email\" style=\"flex:1;min-width:180px;padding:10px 14px;font-size:14px;font-family:inherit;border:1px solid #e6e6e6;background:#fafafa;color:#000000;border-radius:0;box-sizing:border-box;\"><button type=\"submit\" style=\"background:#daa241;color:#ffffff;border:0;border-radius:0;padding:10px 22px;font-size:13px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:0.08em;font-family:inherit;cursor:pointer;\">Subscribe<\/button><\/form>\n<p><script>function s1nlTopSubmit_en(f){var b=f.querySelector(\"button\");b.disabled=true;var em=(f.querySelector(\"input[type=email]\").value||\"\").trim();fetch(f.action,{method:\"POST\",headers:{\"Content-Type\":\"application\/json\"},body:JSON.stringify({email:em,source:location.pathname+\"#top\"})}).then(function(r){return r.json()}).then(function(j){if(j&&j.ok){document.getElementById(\"s1nltop-en\").innerHTML=\"<\/p>\n<p style=\\\"font-size:14px;font-weight:700;color:#1a1a1a;margin:0;\\\">\u2713 You're in \u2014 the checklist PDF is on its way to your inbox.<\/p>\n<p>\";}else{b.disabled=false;alert(\"Something went wrong. Please try again later.\");}}).catch(function(){b.disabled=false;alert(\"Something went wrong. Please try again later.\");});return false;}<\/script><\/div>\n<p><!--\/s1nltop--><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: 0.22em; font-weight: 700; color: #daa241; margin: 100px 0 12px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Question 1<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(26px, 5vw, 32px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.25; letter-spacing: -0.005em; color: #000; margin: 0 0 28px 0;\">What is this company, really?<\/h2>\n<div style=\"margin: 0 0 30px 0; padding: 0 0 16px 0; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 8px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Primary source \u00b7 from the S-1<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.6; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0;\">Prospectus Summary (p.1+), Business (p.57+) \u2014 from the S-1<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">In one line: <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">a company that designs, manufactures, and sells electric vehicles<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span> puts it this way: &ldquo;We design, manufacture and sell <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">high-performance<\/span> fully electric vehicles and advanced electric vehicle powertrain components.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">What Tesla sold in 2010 was the Tesla Roadster &mdash; <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">the world&rsquo;s first <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">mass-produced<\/span> sports car running on <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">lithium-ion<\/span> batteries<\/strong>. Built on the chassis of the British Lotus Elise, it did <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">0&ndash;60 mph in 3.9 seconds<\/strong>, had a range of 236 miles, and cost <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$101,500.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">But the Roadster was not the goal. The <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span> says it intends to demonstrate the capability to <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">mass-produce<\/span> &ldquo;<strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">increasingly affordable electric vehicles<\/strong>&rdquo; over time.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">In other words, Tesla&rsquo;s strategy had <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">three stages<\/strong>: a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">high-end<\/span> sports car (the Roadster) to prove the technology; a luxury sedan (the Model S, base price <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$49,900<\/span> after the federal tax credit); and then a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">mass-market<\/span> car. <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">The star is the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">second-stage<\/span> Model S<\/strong> &mdash; a car not a single unit of which had been <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">mass-produced<\/span>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\"><strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">The star is the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">second-stage<\/span> Model S<\/strong> &mdash; a car not a single unit of which had been <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">mass-produced<\/span>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: 0.22em; font-weight: 700; color: #daa241; margin: 100px 0 12px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Question 2<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(26px, 5vw, 32px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.25; letter-spacing: -0.005em; color: #000; margin: 0 0 28px 0;\">What does it compete on?<\/h2>\n<div style=\"margin: 0 0 30px 0; padding: 0 0 16px 0; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 8px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Primary source \u00b7 from the S-1<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.6; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0;\">Business (Competitive Strengths, p.60+) \u2014 from the S-1<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Tesla&rsquo;s way of competing has four distinctive features.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">A proprietary <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">battery-pack<\/span> design<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Tesla&rsquo;s technical core is the battery pack. The Roadster assembles <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">6,831 <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">lithium-ion<\/span> battery cells<\/strong> (the 18650 cells used in laptops) into a proprietary pack structure. Thermal management, charge\/discharge management, and safety mechanisms are all designed <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">in-house<\/span>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Tesla defines the locus of its technical edge this way:<\/p>\n<blockquote style=\"position: relative; margin: 36px 0; padding: 20px 22px 16px 22px; background: #f5f1e6; box-sizing: border-box; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden;\"><p>\n<span aria-hidden=\"true\" style=\"position: absolute; top: 2px; left: 10px; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 42px; font-weight: 400; color: #daa241; line-height: 1;\">&ldquo;<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 17px; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0.02em; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 10px 0; padding-left: 24px; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow-wrap: break-word;\">We believe our core intellectual property contained within our electric powertrain will form the foundation for our planned future vehicles.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 9.5px; font-weight: 700; letter-spacing: 0.16em; color: #daa241; margin: 0; padding-left: 24px; overflow-wrap: anywhere;\">TESLA S-1 (JAN 2010) \u2014 BUSINESS, OUR COMPETITIVE STRENGTHS<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">In short, <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">the very skill of bundling batteries together is the weapon<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">A <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">direct-sales<\/span> model<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The industry norm is to sell through a dealer network. Tesla uses <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">its own showrooms plus online direct sales<\/strong>. It <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">strips out the middleman margin and controls the customer experience<\/strong> itself.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">Selling powertrains to others<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Tesla supplied its own electric powertrains to other automakers. By this point it was <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">delivering battery packs for the Smart car to Daimler (the parent of <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">Mercedes-Benz<\/span>)<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">So Tesla was, at the same time, a company that sold cars and a components supplier for electrification.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">The DOE loan (a government backstop)<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span> repeatedly mentions the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$465<\/span> million DOE loan. This is a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">long-term<\/span> loan under the Department of Energy&rsquo;s Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) Program, earmarked for the planned manufacturing facility and powertrain development. It is Tesla riding <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">a framework in which the government backs this sector<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Battery packs, direct sales, powertrain supply, and government financing &mdash; four pillars.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: 0.22em; font-weight: 700; color: #daa241; margin: 100px 0 12px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Question 3<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(26px, 5vw, 32px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.25; letter-spacing: -0.005em; color: #000; margin: 0 0 28px 0;\">How big is the market?<\/h2>\n<div style=\"margin: 0 0 30px 0; padding: 0 0 16px 0; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 8px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Primary source \u00b7 from the S-1<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.6; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0;\">Business (Market Opportunity, p.59+) \u2014 from the S-1<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Tesla sketches two markets.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">What Tesla aims for first is <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">the premium sedan market<\/strong>. The Audi A6, the BMW 5 Series, and the Mercedes <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">E-Class<\/span> are among the competition. According to CSM Worldwide, as cited in the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span>, that market represented <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">approximately 2.1 million vehicle sales<\/strong> in the United States and Europe in 2008.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">But Tesla&rsquo;s message does not stop at &ldquo;capture the luxury market.&rdquo; It sees policy and incentives as something that &ldquo;will result in significant growth in the market for electric vehicles.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Per the Frost &amp; Sullivan forecast the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span> cites, the market for <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">electric-based<\/span> vehicles &mdash; EVs, hybrids, and <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">plug-in<\/span> hybrids &mdash; is expected to grow from approximately 1.75 million units (<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">3%<\/span> of new vehicles sold) in 2008 to <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">approximately 10.6 million units (<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">14%<\/span>) by 2015<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Still, as of 2010, <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">the market for pure electric vehicles was all but zero<\/strong>. What Tesla was describing was the story of <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">building a market that did not exist, by itself<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">A premium sedan market of roughly 2.1 million cars a year in the US and Europe. The cars <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Tesla had sold to date: 937<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"margin: 30px 0;\">\n<table class=\"s1-body-table\" style=\"width: 100%; table-layout: fixed; border-collapse: collapse; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums;\">\n<thead>\n<tr style=\"border-top: 2px solid #1a1a1a; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Metric<\/th>\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Figure<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\"><span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">Electric-based<\/span> vehicles worldwide (2008)<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Approx. 1.75 million (<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">3%<\/span> of new vehicles)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Same, 2015 forecast (Frost &amp; Sullivan)<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Approx. 10.6 million (<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">14%<\/span> of new vehicles)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Premium sedans, US + Europe (2008, CSM Worldwide)<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Approx. 2.1 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Against a sedan market of roughly 2.1 million a year, Tesla was showing up with 937 cars.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: 0.22em; font-weight: 700; color: #daa241; margin: 100px 0 12px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Question 4<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(26px, 5vw, 32px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.25; letter-spacing: -0.005em; color: #000; margin: 0 0 28px 0;\">Who actually uses it?<\/h2>\n<div style=\"margin: 0 0 30px 0; padding: 0 0 16px 0; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 8px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Primary source \u00b7 from the S-1<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.6; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0;\">Business (Customers, p.66+) \u2014 from the S-1<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">At this point there were two kinds of customer.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Consumers (Roadster buyers): <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">937 cars shipped cumulatively<\/strong> as of <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">year-end<\/span> 2009, priced at <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$101,500,<\/span> sold in <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">18 countries<\/strong>. The buyer profile is <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">the wealthy, the tech industry, and early adopters<\/strong>. No individual buyer names are listed.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Powertrain customers (B2B): Daimler AG (supply of battery packs for the Smart EV, plus a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$50<\/span> million investment via Series E in May 2009, holding 22,427,223 shares).<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\"><strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Daimler is both an investor and a customer<\/strong>. For Tesla, the meaning is validation &mdash; proof of its technology. The fact that <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">the world&rsquo;s oldest automaker recognized Tesla&rsquo;s battery technology<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The Roadster was bought by 937 wealthy individuals. The powertrain was bought by an automotive giant. Both were people who <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">believed in Tesla&rsquo;s technology<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"margin: 30px 0;\">\n<table class=\"s1-body-table\" style=\"width: 100%; table-layout: fixed; border-collapse: collapse; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums;\">\n<thead>\n<tr style=\"border-top: 2px solid #1a1a1a; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Customer type<\/th>\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Customer<\/th>\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Scale \/ relationship<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Consumer<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Roadster buyers<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">937 cumulative, <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$101,500,<\/span> <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">18 countries<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">B2B<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Daimler AG<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Battery packs for the Smart EV + <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$50M<\/span> investment (22,427,223 shares)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">937 wealthy individuals and a global automotive giant &mdash; both <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">believed in Tesla&rsquo;s technology<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: 0.22em; font-weight: 700; color: #daa241; margin: 100px 0 12px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Question 5<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(26px, 5vw, 32px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.25; letter-spacing: -0.005em; color: #000; margin: 0 0 28px 0;\">How does it make money?<\/h2>\n<div style=\"margin: 0 0 30px 0; padding: 0 0 16px 0; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 8px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Primary source \u00b7 from the S-1<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.6; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0;\">MD&#038;A (p.40+), Business (p.57+) \u2014 from the S-1<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">By design, Tesla has two revenue streams.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\"><strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Almost the entire amount is Roadster automotive sales<\/strong> (including <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$7.6<\/span> million of ZEV credits). Powertrain <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">battery-pack<\/span> shipments began in November 2009, and that revenue was not yet booked as of the end of September.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">gross margin for the nine months of 2009 was <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">8.3%<\/span><\/strong>. In other words, <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">selling a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$101,500<\/span> car yields a gross profit of only about <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$8,000<\/span><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Tesla is aware of this &mdash; the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span> itself concedes that the Roadster&rsquo;s gross margin remains low.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The real source of future profit is meant to be the Model S &mdash; though the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span> itself warns there is <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">no assurance Tesla will ever achieve a positive gross margin on it<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"margin: 30px 0;\">\n<table class=\"s1-body-table\" style=\"width: 100%; table-layout: fixed; border-collapse: collapse; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums;\">\n<thead>\n<tr style=\"border-top: 2px solid #1a1a1a; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Revenue source (9 months, 2009)<\/th>\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: right; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Amount<\/th>\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Status<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Automotive sales (Roadster, incl. <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$7.6M<\/span> ZEV)<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: right; word-break: break-word; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums; color: #1a1a1a;\"><span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$93.4M<\/span><\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Booked (<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">100%<\/span>)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Powertrain (sales to Daimler)<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: right; word-break: break-word; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums; color: #1a1a1a;\">\u2014<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Booking begins Q4 2009<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\"><strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Prove the technology with the Roadster, make the profit with the Model S<\/strong> &mdash; 2010 is the &ldquo;proof phase.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: 0.22em; font-weight: 700; color: #daa241; margin: 100px 0 12px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Question 6<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(26px, 5vw, 32px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.25; letter-spacing: -0.005em; color: #000; margin: 0 0 28px 0;\">Are the numbers healthy?<\/h2>\n<div style=\"margin: 0 0 30px 0; padding: 0 0 16px 0; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 8px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Primary source \u00b7 from the S-1<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.6; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0;\">Selected Financial Data (p.38+), MD&#038;A (p.40+) \u2014 from the S-1<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Lay out the numbers.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\"><strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Revenue for the nine months of 2009 was <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$93.4<\/span> million<\/strong> (<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">full-year<\/span> 2008 was <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$14.7<\/span> million). But it posted an <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">operating loss of <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$29.0<\/span> million<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\"><strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Accumulated deficit (since founding) was <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$236.4<\/span> million<\/strong>, and cash at the end of September 2009 was <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$106.5<\/span> million. There is cash on hand, but <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">developing and <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">mass-producing<\/span> the Model S requires money of an entirely different order<\/strong>. The <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span> states plainly that the continuation of the business depends on the IPO and the DOE loan.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">There is the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$465<\/span> million DOE loan, but it is tied to building the Model S factory and to manufacturing, and cannot be used for working capital. On top of that, the DOE imposes financial covenants. A breach risks a halt to the financing.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">&ldquo;<strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Tesla is a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">loss-making<\/span> company<\/strong>&rdquo; &mdash; and, moreover, &ldquo;a company that <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">cannot <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">mass-produce<\/span> the Model S without the IPO and the DOE loan<\/strong>.&rdquo; <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">The IPO is fundraising &ldquo;to survive.&rdquo;<\/strong><\/p>\n<div style=\"margin: 30px 0;\">\n<table class=\"s1-body-table\" style=\"width: 100%; table-layout: fixed; border-collapse: collapse; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums;\">\n<thead>\n<tr style=\"border-top: 2px solid #1a1a1a; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Metric<\/th>\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: right; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">9 months, 2009 (to Sept 30)<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Revenue<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: right; word-break: break-word; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums; color: #1a1a1a;\"><span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$93.4M<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Gross profit (margin <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">8.3%<\/span>)<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: right; word-break: break-word; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums; color: #1a1a1a;\"><span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$7.8M<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Operating loss<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: right; word-break: break-word; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums; color: #1a1a1a;\">\u2212<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$29.0M<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Net loss<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: right; word-break: break-word; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums; color: #1a1a1a;\">\u2212<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$31.5M<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\"><strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">The IPO is fundraising &ldquo;to survive.&rdquo;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: 0.22em; font-weight: 700; color: #daa241; margin: 100px 0 12px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Question 7<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(26px, 5vw, 32px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.25; letter-spacing: -0.005em; color: #000; margin: 0 0 28px 0;\">Who runs it?<\/h2>\n<div style=\"margin: 0 0 30px 0; padding: 0 0 16px 0; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 8px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Primary source \u00b7 from the S-1<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.6; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0;\">Management (p.86+), Business (p.57+) \u2014 from the S-1<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">When you talk about Tesla, there is one name you cannot avoid.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\"><span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">Elon Musk<\/span> (Chairman &#038; CEO)<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">Elon Musk<\/span> Revocable Trust <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">holds 81,067,755 shares as the largest shareholder<\/strong> (over <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">5%<\/span>). His own money went into the 2007 Series D (<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$10.0<\/span> million) and <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">the December 2008 bridge convertible note (<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$20.4<\/span> million)<\/strong>, among others. <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">He became CEO in October 2008<\/strong>; he had been Chairman since April 2004.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Against a salary of <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$33,280,<\/span> <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">he takes only <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$1<\/span><\/strong> to preserve cash. His other roles include CEO and Chairman of Space Exploration (SpaceX) (since 2002) and Chairman of SolarCity (since 2006). <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">He <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">co-founded<\/span> PayPal<\/strong>, which eBay acquired in 2002.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Tesla got through 2008 on bridge loans (February <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$40.2<\/span> million, December <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$40.0<\/span> million, both at <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">10%<\/span> annual interest). Musk was one of the largest providers of that bridge, contributing <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$20.4<\/span> million in the December tranche alone. The <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span> records his contribution this way:<\/p>\n<blockquote style=\"position: relative; margin: 36px 0; padding: 20px 22px 16px 22px; background: #f5f1e6; box-sizing: border-box; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden;\"><p>\n<span aria-hidden=\"true\" style=\"position: absolute; top: 2px; left: 10px; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 42px; font-weight: 400; color: #daa241; line-height: 1;\">&ldquo;<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 17px; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0.02em; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 10px 0; padding-left: 24px; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow-wrap: break-word;\"><span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">Mr. Musk<\/span> has contributed significantly and actively to us since our earliest days in April 2004 by recruiting executives and engineers, contributing to the Tesla Roadster&#8217;s engineering and design, raising capital for us and bringing investors to us, and raising public awareness of the Company.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 9.5px; font-weight: 700; letter-spacing: 0.16em; color: #daa241; margin: 0; padding-left: 24px; overflow-wrap: anywhere;\">TESLA S-1 (JAN 2010) \u2014 MANAGEMENT<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">A <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$1<\/span> salary, one of the largest insider investors &mdash; <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Musk led Tesla with his own money on the line<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">JB Straubel (CTO)<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">An energy engineer out of Stanford. He led the design of the battery pack and powertrain &mdash; the technical core.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">Deepak Ahuja (CFO)<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Fifteen years at Ford Motor Company. A finance professional from the auto industry.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">The founding story<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The founding story is told as well. Tesla Motors was founded in 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning. Musk joined as an investor in 2004 and later took over the company.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">What moved Tesla was one man, putting his own money on the line for a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$1<\/span> salary.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: 0.22em; font-weight: 700; color: #daa241; margin: 100px 0 12px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Question 8<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(26px, 5vw, 32px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.25; letter-spacing: -0.005em; color: #000; margin: 0 0 28px 0;\">Who controls it?<\/h2>\n<div style=\"margin: 0 0 30px 0; padding: 0 0 16px 0; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 8px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Primary source \u00b7 from the S-1<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.6; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0;\">Principal Stockholders (p.95+), Description of Capital Stock (p.100+) \u2014 from the S-1<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Tesla&rsquo;s share structure is designed differently from Google&rsquo;s or Facebook&rsquo;s.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Tesla <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">does not use a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">dual-class<\/span> structure<\/strong>. All stock is Common Stock, <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">one share, one vote<\/strong>. That was not unusual in 2010. <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">Dual-class<\/span> became the Silicon Valley standard only after Google&rsquo;s success, in the 2010s.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Musk is the largest shareholder (the Trust holds 81,067,755 shares). But that <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">does not reach a majority<\/strong>. Because there is no <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">dual-class<\/span> structure, in theory <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">other shareholders could band together and overrule Musk<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">The &ldquo;invisible guardrails&rdquo; of Daimler and the DOE<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Daimler is both a shareholder and a customer. The DOE loan comes with covenants. As a condition of the financing, Tesla is obligated to comply with certain financial standards and a business plan.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">In other words, Tesla was a structure led by Musk, but with <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Daimler and the US government functioning as guardrails<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Tesla went public <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">single-class<\/span>. There is no mechanism for the founder to monopolize voting power. Instead, <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Musk&rsquo;s overwhelming personal investment and will became, in effect, the controlling force<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"margin: 30px 0;\">\n<table class=\"s1-body-table\" style=\"width: 100%; table-layout: fixed; border-collapse: collapse; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums;\">\n<thead>\n<tr style=\"border-top: 2px solid #1a1a1a; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Shareholder<\/th>\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Shares held (pre-IPO)<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\"><span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">Elon Musk<\/span> (Trust)<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">81,067,755 shares<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Daimler (Blackstar Investco)<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">22,427,223 shares<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Al Wahada Capital Investment (Abu Dhabi)<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">21,891,419 shares<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">VantagePoint Venture Partners<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">20,916,746 shares<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Valor Equity Partners<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">14,725,794 shares<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\"><strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Musk&rsquo;s overwhelming personal investment and will became, in effect, the controlling force<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: 0.22em; font-weight: 700; color: #daa241; margin: 100px 0 12px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Question 9<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(26px, 5vw, 32px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.25; letter-spacing: -0.005em; color: #000; margin: 0 0 28px 0;\">What is it afraid of?<\/h2>\n<div style=\"margin: 0 0 30px 0; padding: 0 0 16px 0; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 8px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Primary source \u00b7 from the S-1<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.6; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0;\">Risk Factors (p.10+) \u2014 from the S-1<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Here are the five things Tesla itself says it worries about most.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">Zero experience <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">mass-producing<\/span> the Model S<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The most candid risk the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span> writes is this one.<\/p>\n<blockquote style=\"position: relative; margin: 36px 0; padding: 20px 22px 16px 22px; background: #f5f1e6; box-sizing: border-box; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden;\"><p>\n<span aria-hidden=\"true\" style=\"position: absolute; top: 2px; left: 10px; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 42px; font-weight: 400; color: #daa241; line-height: 1;\">&ldquo;<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 17px; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0.02em; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 10px 0; padding-left: 24px; overflow-wrap: break-word; overflow-wrap: break-word;\">We have <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">no experience to date in high volume manufacturing<\/strong> of our electric vehicles.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 9.5px; font-weight: 700; letter-spacing: 0.16em; color: #daa241; margin: 0; padding-left: 24px; overflow-wrap: anywhere;\">TESLA S-1 (JAN 2010) \u2014 RISK FACTORS, MANUFACTURING<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The Roadster is <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">low-volume<\/span> production of a few hundred a year. <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">The Model S targets 20,000 a year<\/strong>. That is <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">two orders of magnitude apart<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">And the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span> states plainly: &ldquo;We have not selected a facility in which to manufacture and assemble our Model S.&rdquo; Even the factory to house mass production had not been decided at this point.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">A shortage of funds<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">&ldquo;We may need to raise additional funds and these funds may not be available to us when we need them.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Cash on hand before the IPO was <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$106.5<\/span> million (end of September). The <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">nine-month<\/span> operating loss was <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$29.0<\/span> million. If the IPO does not succeed, or if Model S development costs balloon, additional fundraising is needed.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">The risk of breaching the DOE loan covenants<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\"><strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">The <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$465<\/span> million DOE loan comes with strict covenants<\/strong>. If it fails to meet the financial standards, the financing is halted. In the worst case, <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">full repayment is demanded<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">The limits of battery technology<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The Risk Factors cite the inherent risks in the safety, lifespan, and performance of <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">lithium-ion<\/span> batteries.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Batteries degrading, catching fire, falling short on range &mdash; each strikes directly at the value of Tesla&rsquo;s product. As of 2010, EV batteries were <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">a technology still close to &ldquo;experimental.&rdquo;<\/strong><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; color: #000; margin: 30px 0 16px 0; border-left: 4px solid #daa241; padding: 0 0 0 16px;\">Market skepticism toward electric vehicles themselves<\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">&ldquo;The market for alternative fuel vehicles is relatively new, rapidly evolving, characterized by rapidly changing technologies&hellip;&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The fundamental question is whether consumers will buy electric vehicles at all. In 2010, EV market share was near zero. Against the convenience of gasoline cars (range, charging infrastructure), EVs were clearly inferior.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">&ldquo;Can it build them,&rdquo; &ldquo;can it sell them,&rdquo; &ldquo;will the money last&rdquo; &mdash; <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">all of it was unproven<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; letter-spacing: 0.22em; font-weight: 700; color: #daa241; margin: 100px 0 12px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Question 10<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(26px, 5vw, 32px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.25; letter-spacing: -0.005em; color: #000; margin: 0 0 28px 0;\">What becomes of the money it raises?<\/h2>\n<div style=\"margin: 0 0 30px 0; padding: 0 0 16px 0; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.2em; color: #daa241; font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 8px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">Primary source \u00b7 from the S-1<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.6; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0;\">Use of Proceeds (p.36+), Cover \u2014 from the S-1<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; color: #888; letter-spacing: 0.01em; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0; padding: 16px 20px; background: #f5f5f5; border-left: 3px solid #888;\">Note: This analysis draws only on the facts in the S-1. The final IPO price, the listing date, post-listing share performance and trading demand are not in the filing and fall outside its scope.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Here is the IPO plan as written in the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The use of proceeds: Model S development and manufacturing preparation, working capital and general corporate purposes, and expansion of stores and service centers. It comes down to one thing. The money raised at IPO is <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">the money to make the Model S real<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">At this point, the start of Model S mass production was planned for 2012. <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">Two years from IPO to mass production<\/strong>. In the meantime, Tesla needed to get by on Roadster sales and powertrain supply while standing up the Model S factory with IPO funds and the DOE loan.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">The funding structure: <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">an assumed IPO raise of about <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$200<\/span> million<\/strong>, the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$465<\/span> million DOE loan, and <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$106.5<\/span> million cash on hand &mdash; roughly <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$772<\/span> million in total. Note that the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$200<\/span> million is not a figure from the original <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span>: it derives from the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span>\/A (June 2010) and its <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$14<\/span>&ndash;<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$16<\/span> assumed price range. Of this, <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">the DOE loan is tied to the Model S factory and manufacturing and cannot be used freely<\/strong>. The IPO money was the only sizable pool of cash Tesla could deploy at its own discretion.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">Tesla <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">went public for &ldquo;a car that did not yet exist.&rdquo;<\/strong> Raise <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$200<\/span> million, <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">begin mass production within two years &mdash; or the money runs out<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"margin: 30px 0;\">\n<table class=\"s1-body-table\" style=\"width: 100%; table-layout: fixed; border-collapse: collapse; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums;\">\n<thead>\n<tr style=\"border-top: 2px solid #1a1a1a; border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Item<\/th>\n<th style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; font-weight: 700; color: #000; word-break: break-word;\">Detail<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Listing<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Nasdaq, ticker TSLA (per the <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span>\/A)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #e6e6e6;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Assumed price<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\"><span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$14<\/span>\u2013<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$16<\/span> (<span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span>\/A, 2010)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"border-bottom: 1px solid #1a1a1a;\">\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Lead underwriters<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding: 14px 8px; text-align: left; word-break: break-word; color: #1a1a1a;\">Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, J.P. Morgan, Deutsche Bank Securities<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">What was written there was <strong style=\"font-weight: 700; color: #000;\">a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">back-to-the-wall<\/span> funding plan<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; letter-spacing: 0.25em; font-weight: 700; color: #daa241; margin: 120px 0 12px 0; text-transform: uppercase;\">In closing<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: clamp(26px, 5vw, 32px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.25; letter-spacing: -0.005em; color: #000; margin: 0 0 20px 0;\">Beyond the ten questions<\/h2>\n<div style=\"width: 140px; height: 4px; background: #daa241; margin: 0 0 40px 0;\"><\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">What Tesla sells is not just &ldquo;electric vehicles.&rdquo; With the Roadster it shipped 937 units of the world&rsquo;s first <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">mass-produced<\/span> <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">lithium-ion<\/span> EV, supplied battery packs to Daimler, and turned Daimler into a major shareholder with a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$50<\/span> million investment. It won a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$465<\/span> million loan from the US Department of Energy. But the factory to <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">mass-produce<\/span> the Model S had not yet been selected at the time of this <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span>. It is both a components supplier for electrification and a company the government backs as national policy.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">But the star of that <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span> is the Model S, not a single unit of which had been <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">mass-produced<\/span>. It targets 20,000 a year, yet Tesla has no experience in volume production. Gross margin <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">8.3%<\/span>, accumulated deficit <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$236.4<\/span> million, a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">nine-month<\/span> operating loss of <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$29.0<\/span> million, <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$106.5<\/span> million cash on hand. In the Risk Factors it discloses &ldquo;can it build them,&rdquo; &ldquo;can it sell them,&rdquo; &ldquo;will the money last&rdquo; &mdash; all as unproven.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0 0 1.5em 0;\">And <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">Elon Musk<\/span> &mdash; neither the founder nor the president &mdash; became CEO in October 2008. He led the company for a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$1<\/span> salary and backed it with his own money, putting <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$20.4<\/span> million into the December bridge convertible note. The <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">Elon Musk<\/span> Revocable Trust holds 81,067,755 shares as the largest shareholder (over <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">5%<\/span>), but it does not reach a majority, and Daimler and the DOE function as de facto guardrails. A company that bet on a car that did not yet exist heads into a <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">two-year<\/span>, <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">back-to-the-wall<\/span> stand by raising <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">$200<\/span> million at IPO (an assumed figure per the June 2010 <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span>\/A).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"max-width: 720px; margin: 80px auto; padding: 0 20px;\">\n<div class=\"s1-light-shadow\" style=\"display: flex; align-items: stretch;\">\n<div style=\"flex: 1 1 0; min-width: 0; box-sizing: border-box; border: 1px solid #1a1a1a; overflow-wrap: break-word; background: #ffffff; display: flex; flex-direction: column;\">\n<div style=\"background: #c4922e; padding: 20px 28px; text-align: center;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; letter-spacing: 0.25em; color: rgba(255,255,255,0.7); font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 4px 0;\">LIGHT<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 600; color: #ffffff; margin: 0;\">The bull case<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 28px; background: #ffffff; flex: 1;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.65; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0; overflow-wrap: break-word;\"><span style=\"display:block; padding-left:1.2em; text-indent:-1.2em; margin:0 0 0.6em 0;\">&middot; Shipped 937 units of the world&rsquo;s first mass-produced lithium-ion EV with the Roadster.<\/span><span style=\"display:block; padding-left:1.2em; text-indent:-1.2em; margin:0 0 0.6em 0;\">&middot; Daimler invested $50M and is also a battery-pack customer.<\/span><span style=\"display:block; padding-left:1.2em; text-indent:-1.2em; margin:0 0 0.6em 0;\">&middot; Won a $465M US DOE loan toward Model S mass production.<\/span><span style=\"display:block; padding-left:1.2em; text-indent:-1.2em; margin:0 0 0.6em 0;\">&middot; In-house battery-pack design, direct sales, powertrain supply, and a government backstop &mdash; four pillars.<\/span><span style=\"display:block; padding-left:1.2em; text-indent:-1.2em; margin:0;\">&middot; Revenue of $93.4M over nine months (full-year 2008 was $14.7M).<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div style=\"flex: 1 1 0; min-width: 0; box-sizing: border-box; border: 1px solid #1a1a1a; border-left: 0; overflow-wrap: break-word; background: #ffffff; display: flex; flex-direction: column;\">\n<div style=\"background: #1a1a1a; padding: 20px 28px; text-align: center;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; letter-spacing: 0.25em; color: rgba(255,255,255,0.5); font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 4px 0;\">SHADOW<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: 600; color: #ffffff; margin: 0;\">The bear case<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 28px; background: #ffffff; flex: 1;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.65; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0; overflow-wrap: break-word;\"><span style=\"display:block; padding-left:1.2em; text-indent:-1.2em; margin:0 0 0.6em 0;\">&middot; Roadster gross margin of 8.3% (typically 20%).<\/span><span style=\"display:block; padding-left:1.2em; text-indent:-1.2em; margin:0 0 0.6em 0;\">&middot; Accumulated deficit of $236.4M, a nine-month operating loss of $29.0M, $106.5M cash on hand.<\/span><span style=\"display:block; padding-left:1.2em; text-indent:-1.2em; margin:0 0 0.6em 0;\">&middot; The Model S targets 20,000 a year, but with zero mass-production experience.<\/span><span style=\"display:block; padding-left:1.2em; text-indent:-1.2em; margin:0 0 0.6em 0;\">&middot; The DOE loan carries strict covenants, with a risk of suspended financing on breach.<\/span><span style=\"display:block; padding-left:1.2em; text-indent:-1.2em; margin:0;\">&middot; Single-class: Musk holds no majority; Daimler and the DOE are the guardrails.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"max-width: 720px; margin: 0 auto; padding: 0 20px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: #1a1a1a; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-wrap: pretty;\">\n<p style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.65; letter-spacing: 0; color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0;\">The <span style=\"white-space:nowrap;\">S-1<\/span> says it will build &ldquo;increasingly affordable electric vehicles&rdquo; over time. The market expects &ldquo;an attempt to rewrite the auto industry through electrification.&rdquo; At the intersection of the two, Tesla sells stock. 937 sports cars and one dream &mdash; the starting point that confronts the auto industry with a new option.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><!--s1nl--><\/p>\n<div class=\"s1-nl\" id=\"s1nl-en\" style=\"max-width:680px;margin:70px auto 0;padding:30px;border:1px solid #e6e6e6;background:#ffffff;font-family:'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, 'Hiragino Kaku Gothic ProN', '\u30d2\u30e9\u30ae\u30ce\u89d2\u30b4 ProN W3', 'Noto Sans JP', 'Yu Gothic', sans-serif;word-break:keep-all;line-break:strict;box-sizing:border-box;\">\n<p style=\"font-size:12px;letter-spacing:0.25em;font-weight:700;color:#daa241;margin:0 0 10px;\">S-1 JOURNAL NEWSLETTER<\/p>\n<div style=\"font-size:20px;font-weight:700;line-height:1.6;color:#1a1a1a;margin:0 0 10px;\">When the next S-1 drops, get the reality check.<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-size:14px;line-height:1.8;color:#333333;margin:0 0 20px;\">Event-driven S-1 breakdowns and new deep dives, delivered free by email. Subscriber bonus: the Ten Questions checklist (PDF). No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.<\/p>\n<form action=\"https:\/\/tomorrowaccess.com\/wp-json\/s1\/v1\/waitlist\" method=\"post\" onsubmit=\"return s1nlSubmit_en(this)\" style=\"display:flex;gap:10px;flex-wrap:wrap;margin:0;\"><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"source\" value=\"s1nl-en-nojs\"><input type=\"email\" name=\"email\" required placeholder=\"Your email\" style=\"flex:1;min-width:200px;padding:13px 16px;font-size:15px;font-family:inherit;border:1px solid #e6e6e6;background:#fafafa;color:#000000;border-radius:0;box-sizing:border-box;\"><button type=\"submit\" style=\"background:#daa241;color:#ffffff;border:0;border-radius:0;padding:13px 28px;font-size:14px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:0.08em;font-family:inherit;cursor:pointer;\">Subscribe free<\/button><\/form>\n<p style=\"font-size:11px;color:#999999;line-height:1.7;margin:10px 0 0;\">By subscribing you agree to receive emails from S-1 Journal.<\/p>\n<p><script>function s1nlSubmit_en(f){var b=f.querySelector(\"button\");b.disabled=true;var em=(f.querySelector(\"input[type=email]\").value||\"\").trim();fetch(f.action,{method:\"POST\",headers:{\"Content-Type\":\"application\/json\"},body:JSON.stringify({email:em,source:location.pathname})}).then(function(r){return r.json()}).then(function(j){if(j&&j.ok){document.getElementById(\"s1nl-en\").innerHTML=\"<\/p>\n<p style=\\\"font-size:16px;font-weight:700;color:#1a1a1a;margin:0;\\\">\u2713 You're in. See you at the next S-1.<\/p>\n<p>\";}else{b.disabled=false;alert(\"Something went wrong. Please try again later.\");}}).catch(function(){b.disabled=false;alert(\"Something went wrong. Please try again later.\");});return false;}<\/script><\/div>\n<p><!--\/s1nl--><\/p>\n<div style=\"background: #000000; padding: 80px 40px; text-align: center; margin-top: 80px;\">\n<div class=\"s1-article-cta-headline\" style=\"font-family: 'Newsreader', Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 32px; font-weight: 400; color: #fafafa; line-height: 1.5; text-wrap: pretty;\">A great company, or a mediocre one?<br \/>That judgment is now in your hands.<\/div>\n<div style=\"width: 240px; height: 4px; background: #daa241; margin: 30px auto 0;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"max-width: 720px; margin: 40px auto 0; padding: 0 20px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;\">\n<p style=\"font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.7; color: #888; letter-spacing: 0.02em; margin: 0;\">Source: All facts are drawn from Tesla Motors, Inc.&#8217;s S-1 (accession 0001193125-10-017054, filed 2010-01-29), together with the company&#8217;s IPO roadshow presentation and factsheet where noted.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"max-width: 720px; margin: 16px auto; padding: 0 20px;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/tomorrowaccess.com\/en\/s-1-journal\/\" style=\"font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 700; color: #daa241; text-decoration: none; letter-spacing: 0.02em;\">\u2190 Back to S-1 Journal<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>S-1 Journal The 10 Questions | Every S-1, decoded through the same 10 questions. Tesla For a Car That Did Not  [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":24380,"parent":20744,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"Tesla S-1","_yoast_wpseo_title":"Tesla S-1, Explained: Betting the Company on a $1 Salary %%sep%% %%sitename%%","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Tesla&rsquo;s 2010 S-1, decoded through 10 questions: 937 Roadsters shipped, a $236.4M accumulated deficit, a $465M DOE loan, and a CEO who took a $1 salary to bet the company on a car that did not yet 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