Tesla's electric Cybertruck, Elon Musk's take on a pickup truck, was unveiled to much fanfare, and debate, last week. Now Musk claims he has already hooked 200,000 interested customers.
Preorders on the truck, which is scheduled to hit the production line in two years, began last Thursday. The 200,000 sign-ups Musk tweeted about have so far only placed a down payment to reserve a spot in line for the vehicle.
Musk, who has been talking about the Cybertruck for some time, called it "an armored personnel carrier from the future." But some of the features on the demo model didn't quite live up to expectations at the unveiling.
During the "Armor Glass" demonstration, Tesla's chief designer Franz von Holzhausen hit the frame with a sledgehammer to prove it wouldn't cause a dent. He then threw a metal ball at the supposedly shatterproof glass windows, which shattered, not once, but two separate times. In response to the mishap, Musk shared a video, which he says was filmed before the launch, that shows the windows surviving a hit from a metal ball.
Shares of Tesla ($TSLA) fell after the truck's windows shattered on stage Thursday, but rose early Monday again after Musk tweeted "200k," referring to the deposits Tesla received for the Cybertruck. Over the weekend Musk also tweeted that most people involved in preordering indicated that they would opt for the highest pricepoint triple-motor option at $69,900 or the mid-priced dual-engine option. At the time, he said only 17 percent of preorders were for the cheapest, single-motor option.
The unconventionally-shaped truck is made from cold-rolled stainless steel, matching SpaceX's Starship rocket, which is another Musk venture, and Tesla says its most powerful model will be able to tow 14,000 pounds.
Nvidia on Wednesday became the first public company to reach a market capitalization of $5 trillion. The ravenous appetite for the Silicon Valley company’s chips is the main reason that the company’s stock price has increased so rapidly since early 2023.
Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global, breaks down September’s CPI print and inflation trends, explaining what it means for markets.
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
