“A new battle is brewing with claims of Tesla Motors gaining the upper hand on Apple Incorporated, in poaching employees,” Mark Reschke writes for TGAAP. “Last year it was rumored that Apple would be investing heavily in Tesla’s upcoming Lithium Ion battery facility in Nevada for a share of the spoils. Evidently the tide has turned and Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Apple CEO Tim Cook can’t stand each other.”
“Here’s an idea,” Reschke writes. “Why doesn’t Tim Cook just reach into his petty cash drawer, buy Tesla and end all of this nonsense?”
“A bit tongue and cheek for sure, but there is actual validity to Apple purchasing Tesla. Apple suffering brain-drain to Tesla can’t continue,” Reschke writes. “Steve Jobs understood the value of top talent, while Steve Ballmer clearly did not. Tim Cook’s latest actions to buy back its former employees from Tesla showcases that Apple clearly understands the value of top talent, but Apple could do much more than just play tit for tat. Apple should simply pull out their trump card and purchase Tesla Motors.”
“Purchasing Tesla would not only give Apple a new level of panache they have never had before, but perhaps most importantly, the acquisition would put Apple in a position to move Musk into their CEO slot when Cook is ready to move on,” Reschke writes. “Acquiring Tesla for Musk would be the number one, long term reason Apple should buy Tesla.”
Read more in the full article here.
Go it. Worth $30 billion (10 Beats).
Tim Cook should buy Tesla and then make Elon work the wrong side of the glory hole
Elon Musk is NOT the type of CEO Apple needs. They should look to promote from within. Keep whats working…working.
no, Apple needs more focus on fixing the things Cook as fucked up in the last 5 years.
Tesla will be bought out by some other automaker in a few years, which would be a much better fit, since Apple doesn’t have any experience or interest to build automobiles.
Apple didn’t have any experience in building phones
Some would argue thy still don’t.. Apple is experienced in building computers, which the iPhone just happens to be one in their lineup. Would be nice to see an article comparing the mundane phone functions in today’s devices. (e.g. receiver/mic, reception, Phone related BT support, etc.)
the iPhone isn’t a phone, it’s a computer
Now it is Tesla. Before it was blackberry, then Nokia, then Motorola, then Samsung all Apple killers. Somehow how now ipoaching is the apple killer. Add this to the analyst from Asia who could not come close to predicting aple’s earnings in the past Q predicting iPad sales falling ( which everyone really has a feel for) and you have the best justification for the the share price manipulation.
It really is absurd. The carnival barker comes out prattling off about hires to get some mileage given that not even the carbon credits are helping TESLA.
I guess that is what you do when both companies you run have bad news (like your cargo ship (space) has an unsuccessful return).
PT Barnum must be smiling.
I hear complaints from the bleachers about what Mark wrote, but on the other hand, market reality exists.
What do we spend a lot of money on?
Cars, computers, communications.
Don’t forget war, gosh the countries where those two companies spend an outlandish amount on war. I guess that fits in with what you say if you replace cars by tanks, computers by “aim for Bin Laden hit Saddam Hussein” guidance system and communication by bully propaganda.
I like the idea of Apple buying Tesla but the stock is too overpriced at this point. If Apple bought it, the value would drop to less than half of what it is. Apple would be left holding an empty bag. All those investors who are pumping it up now would jump ship to some other pumped up stock. All the talk about how great Tesla is would immediately stop. It might be good if Apple could hold on to Elon Musk to keep the Tesla division going but he’d probably take off to start another business of his own.
Great idea! Especially since all Apple would have to do is want to make cars!
Wait, they don’t want to make cars?
Oh, then this is a pretty stupid idea.
If Apple bought Tesla, all the talk would be about why can’t Apple reinvent the car like it did the computer and mobile phone. The automotive industry is a nightmarish mountain of regulations, controlling everything from the brightness of headlights to emissions to fuel consumption to crash safety standards etc. etc. And Apple is not equipped to run an automotive company.
I also don’t see what the problem is, because if people are leaving Apple, there are three main reasons for it:
1. Better pay
2. Better hours
3. New work duties/challenges of job
So if Apple is losing out to better pay or better hours, it need to do something to fix that (easily done). But if people are leaving Apple because they get more responsibility, an increase in creativity/creative freedom, or the ability to work on specific projects like new battery technology or car electronics, there may not be a lot Apple can do to rectify that situation.
Yes the car industry is, as you say, “…is a nightmarish mountain of regulations, controlling everything from the brightness of headlights to emissions to fuel consumption to crash safety standards etc….”. But to say Apple is not equipped is same as saying what former Palm CEO once said. He said something like, “….they are not just going to walk in and take over the cell phone market, where we’ve been trying to build one for the last 10 years”. Or words to that affect.
You are also totally “off” on the wages front too. Cook has offered huge bonus and wage incentives. Without luck. These guys don’t want common old garden wage hikes. They want a share of a ‘young’ company. A company they perceive as better for share appreciation than Apple. In fact your last guess about ‘responsibility/creativity/product sexiness’ is the more likely reason.
Anyone who works in the valley knows that engineers, project managers and middle managers are constantly jumping between companies. Usually senior management has incentive to stay due to stock options. If a up and coming or even poser wanna be company is willy to buy out those options than senior management jumps too. Apple has had many previous waves of “jumping” but no more than Google. It’s a valley thing.
Betteridge’s law: Nope.
Worseridge’s Law: Yep.
If Apple bought them there’s no reason they would need to swallow them whole and start making an Apple car. There are obvious areas where they could be mutually beneficial to each other. Apple buying them would just reduce competition in overlapping areas of interest.
I think it would be a great idea to acquire Tesla, Space X, and Solar City and operate them as separate businesses like they’re doing with Beats. Acquiring for Elon Musk would be killer, I think that he has the vision, the guts, and the swagger to be Apple’s guy after Cook retires. Tesla and SpaceX are both very bold endeavours, and their focus on engineering and building things right are in parallel with Apple’s values.
Apple needs another visionary at the helm, who better than Elon Musk?
Maybe Apple should spend some time and money and fix the crappy software they are distibuting. Have been an Apple user for 30 years and this is the worst i have seen it.
This clown is assuming that Tesla is for sale and that Apple wants anything to do with building cars beyond Car play.
I don’t see it happening and it would be a bad move IMHO.
What a terrible idea! It would be the death of Apple and Tesla.
If you enjoy smack talk, then I suppose this article is fun. Other than that, it is useless.
Um, Tesla is a taxpayer-funded boondoggle. Since when does Apple purchase taxpayer-funded boondoggles? Tesla will likely be gone within a few years, when people finally realize that electric cars are not the future. This story is nothing but cheap click-baiting.
Someone said above visionary….
Yeah like read about Spcex in WIKI. paraphrased a bit. “The past 10 years received $1B in funding. $100M from musk and $100M from other. The rest coming front NASA”. Who absorbs the loss from failed tests? Additional funding from NASA or better said from the taxpayer.
Add to this carbon credits. Visionary alright….
Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Apple CEO Tim Cook can’t stand each other
Based on WHAT?! This is tabloid trash talk.
Meanwhile: Elon Musk is going to continue on in his direction, which is NOT Apple’s direction. He’s a master entrepreneur with his own positive spin on business and creativity. I don’t see the competition angle here. I don’t see the direct crossover of employee skills.
IOW: I’m wondering how much of this ‘poaching’ is mere hyperbole. Everyone wants great coders and designers! But these are two very different beasts in terms of companies and products.
In any case: Compete capitalist world! COMPETE! It’s a good thing.
I have 20 years of experience in the auto industry, including 8 years with two very successful, non-government controlled car manufacturers.
Companies like Tesla are called “boutique builders” in the same sense that a rich lady who starts a clothing boutique is always tempted to bill herself as a “designer” Failure rate on those is over 90%. Well, maybe not so bad since the failure rate on new business is 90% so……
And of course, EVERYBODY can afford a $70-100k car, right?
As a couple of commenters have pointed out, the auto business is far more complex than any computer company, even the best one in the world: Apple. The product lines are orders of magnitude more complex especially when you kick in marketing, regulation etc.
Add in the fact that electrical generating capacity cannot seriously be increased unless you keep coal and nuclear. Solar collectors and batteries, just go down to your hardware store and try to buy that “breakthrough” that millions of science fiction readers promise is “just around the corner.” RIIIIGHT
How about disposal of old batteries, the subject that no one wants to talk about. Right now, disposal in a land fill in Utah from what I hear.
Apple, you are the best computer company in the world, I am a user since 1988. They are my everyday working tools. Get the software right, iOS especially, and OSX, more buggy than I have ever seen and with “odd” interface experiments from Johnny Ive. Get those right and leave the boutique business alone, its a black hole.
Yet another “Apple should buy some company just because they can” story.
These idiots always leave out the costs beyond the acquisition. Taking over Tesla would cost Apple far more in management distraction than it’s worth.
-jcr