Elon Musk has denied that the US government is purchasing $400 million worth of Tesla Cybertrucks. The billionaire made the statement on Twitter after reports emerged that the Trump administration intended to spend $400 million on “armored” Tesla electric vehicles as part of a State Department contract.
Musk tweeted: “I’m pretty sure Tesla isn’t getting $400M. No one mentioned it to me, at least.” He failed to deny outright that his company would receive any government contracts, sparking speculation about the deal.
The procurement document, which was initially listed as an “Armored Tesla” but later changed to “Armored Electric Vehicles”, is estimated to cost between $100 million and $500 million over five years. The contract listing mentions a new requirement for armored electric vehicles, with no mention of Tesla specifically.
Musk’s denial comes after it was reported that he spent over $250 million on political donations to help Donald Trump retake the White House this year. The billionaire has also been receiving multi-million dollar contract payouts from the US government for his rocket company, SpaceX.
Experts say Musk’s stance is hypocritical, given his efforts to reduce government spending and promote “Department of Government Efficiency”. However, they note that he appears to be exempt from these promises when it comes to his own business dealings.
Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/elon-musk-us-government-tesla-cybertrucks-b2697589.html