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All the EVs (and one PHEV) you can buy with 0% financing in March 2025 [update]
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1 month agoon
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Lease deals get all the hype, but most people still want to own the car after they’re done making all those payments on it. If that sounds like you, and you’ve been waiting for the interest rates on auto loans to drop, you’re in luck: there are a bunch of great plug-in cars you can buy with 0% financing this March … and that includes a zero percent Tesla deal!
UPDATE: some American icons return to the list, and we’ve got more bonus cash offers, too!
I’ve done a couple of these now, so you probably already know that there were plenty of ways for me to present this information. “Best EVs ..?” Too opinion based. “Cheapest EVs ..?” Too much research. In the end, I went with alphabetical order, by make. And, as for which deals are new this month? You’re just gonna have to read the article. Enjoy!
Acura ZDX

The 2024 Acura ZDX uses a GM Ultium battery and drive motors, but the styling, interior, and infotainment software are all Honda. That means you’ll get a solidly-built EV with GM levels of parts support and Honda levels of fit, finish, and quality control. All that plus Apple CarPlay and 0% financing for up to 72 months makes the ZDX one the best sporty crossover deals in the business.
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All the electric Chevy EVs (again)

For the second month in a row, Chevrolet is offering 0% financing for up to 60 months on all three of its Ultium-based EVs – and they’re all winners. The Silverado is an incredibly capable pickup that can be spec’ed up to a 10,500 lb. GVWR, making it eligible for Class 3 incentives up to $30,000 in some markets and capable enough to tow whatever horse, boat, or RV you put behind it.
On the crossover side, both the Chevy Blazer EV and Equinox EV each offer their own takes on the five-passenger family SUV, with the cost of base model Equinox LT FWD models with 319 miles of EPA-rated range dropping to just $27,500 after you apply the $7,500 Federal tax credit (which, for now, is still a thing).
Dodge Charger EV

As the auto industry transitions to electric, Dodge is hoping that at least a few muscle car enthusiasts with extra cash, will find their way to a Dodge store and ask for the meanest, loudest, tire-shreddingest thing on the lot.
These days, that’s the new electric Charger – and you still owed money on the Hemi you just totaled, Dodge will help get the deal done on its latest retrotastic ride with a $3,000 rebate plus 0% financing for up to 72 months!
Ford Mustang Mach-E

This month, you can get a killer deal on a new 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E (shown, above). Through March 31st, you can get $2,500 in bonus cash, a free L2 home charger installed, plus 0% financing for up to 72 months. Tesla owners can also get an additional $1,000 in conquest cash, bringing the hood money total to $3,500.
Ford also announced a 0% financing deal plus $4,000 in bonus cash on the F-150 Lightning pickup, while Ford Pro customers buying an F-150 Lightning for their commercial or public fleet can get even better deals on the OG electric trucks.
GMC Hummer and Sierra Denali EV

The biggest Ultium-based EVs from GM’s commercial truck brand are seriously impressive machines, with shockingly quick acceleration and on-road handling that seems to defy the laws of physics once you understand that these are, essentially, medium-duty trucks. This month, GMC is doing its best to move out its existing inventory of 2024s, so if you’re a fan of heavy metal you’ll definitely want to stop by your local GMC dealer and give the Hummer EV and Sierra Denali EV a test drive.
Honda Prologue

Despite the Honda Prologue was one of the top-selling electric crossovers last year by combining GM’s excellent Ultium platform with Honda sensibilities and Apple CarPlay, Honda upgraded the 2025 model with slightly more EPA range. Even so, there’s still some remaining 2024 inventory out there and dealers are ready to deal (that’s what they do, after all). To make room for the 2025 models, Honda is offering 0% APR for up to 72 months on the remaining 2024s.
Hyundai IONIQ 5

Hyundai is still offering 0% financing for 60 months on all versions of the hot-selling 2024 IONIQ 5 crossover, making it hard to overlook in the five-passenger segment. It’s worth noting that Hyundai is also offering the 5 with $7,500 bonus cash in select markets, but that offer can’t be stacked with the 0%, so do some math before deciding which way you want to go.
All the Kia EVs

Kia’s EV6 and EV9 have been grabbing headlines and setting sales records sine the Kia EV6 shocked the world, making its global debut on a drag strip where the car ran against a Lamborghini, a Porsche, and an AMG Mercedes (and won). This month, however, it’s the Kia Niro EV’s turn to shine thanks to 0% financing on the fun, compact urban runabout for up to 60 months.
The Niro’s bigger siblings are getting the 0% treatment, too, for a longer 72 month term.
Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV

One of the first three-row plugin cars to hit the market (and a frequent addition to these 0% lists), Mitsubishi’s Outlander PHEV offers up to 38 miles of electric range from its 20 kWh li-ion battery, making it a great “lily pad” vehicle for suburban families who want to drive electric but still worry about being able to find a charging station when they need one.
Nissan Ariya

I’ve already said that the Nissan Ariya didn’t get a fair shake. If you click that link, you’ll read about a car that offers solid driving dynamics, innovative interior design, and all the practicality that makes five-passenger crossovers the must-haves they’ve become for most families. With great discounts available at participating dealers, Supercharger access, and 0% interest from Nissan for up to 72 months, Nissan dealers should have no trouble finding homes for their remaining 2024 Ariya crossovers.
Subaru Soltera

Despite being something of a slow seller, this mechanical twin of the Toyota bZ4X EV seems like a solid mid-size electric crossover with some outdoorsy vibes and granola style that offers more than enough utility to carry your mountain bikes to the trail or your kayaks to the river. The company is hoping to help clear out its remaining 2024 models with big discounts and 0% financing for up to 72 months.
Tesla Model 3

Say what you will about Elon Musk – and I say plenty over on the Quick Charge podcast – the fact remains that we wouldn’t be here talking about EVs at all if it wasn’t for his marketing brilliance, bravado, and sheer force of will. Beyond that, Tesla simply offers as superior ownership experience through total software integration, unfettered access to the Supercharger network, and the best EV route-planning software this side of Chargeway.
If you can stomach being associated with Elon (or have an inside line on some spare Honda badges), you can get a new Model 3 for 0% interest or 0.99% with $0 down if you apply the $7,500 Federal tax incentive at the point of purchase.
Volkswagen ID.4

One of the most popular legacy EVs, the ID.4 offers Volkswagen build quality and (for 2024) a Chat-GPT enabled interface. To keep ID.4 sales rolling, VW dealers are getting aggressive with discounts, making this fast-charging, 291 mile EPA-rated range, 5-star safety rated EV a value proposition that’s tough to beat.
This month, get a Volkswagen ID.4 with 0% financing for up to 72 months plus a $5,000 customer cash bonus to stack with it.
Disclaimer: the vehicle models and financing deals above were sourced from CarsDirect, CarEdge, and (where mentioned) the OEM websites – and were current as of 09MAR2025. These deals may not be available in every market, with every discount, or for every buyer (the standard “with approved credit” fine print should be considered implied). Check with your local dealer(s) for more information.
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Environment
Rad Power gives RadRover 6 Plus e-bike an extra battery at $1,399, Exclusive renewed Anker SOLIX F3800 at $1,999, EcoFlow, more
Published
53 mins agoon
April 10, 2025By
admin

Headlining today’s Green Deals is Rad Power’s newly launched Earth Day Sale with up to $699 in savings on a solid lineup of e-bikes, including returning accessory bundles on its latest models. One notable – and popular – standout is the brand’s RadRover 6 Plus Step-Thru Fat Tire e-bike that comes along with an extra battery for double the travel time at $1,399. We’ve also secured an exclusive $680 off deal on the refurbished Anker SOLIX F3800 Portable Power Station that is down at $1,999. Lastly, we’ve got the latest flash offers from EcoFlow’s ongoing Easter Sale and Mega Sale for the rest of the day, which include a bundle for the DELTA 2 Portable Power Station with a waterproof bag for $449, as well as two DELTA Pro Ultra Extra Batteries down at $4,599. Plus, all the other hangover Green Deals are in the links at the bottom of the page, like yesterday’s new low price on the Heybike ALPHA e-bike, and more.
Head below for other New Green Deals we’ve found today and, of course, Electrek’s best EV buying and leasing deals. Also, check out the new Electrek Tesla Shop for the best deals on Tesla accessories.
Rad Power is launching an Earth Day Sale through April 23 with up to $699 in savings on a selection of e-bikes, including the ongoing RadRunner lows we’ve been seeing repeat over the last few events since February. The headliner for this sale though is the popular bundle of the RadRover 6 Plus Step-Thru Fat Tire e-bike with an extra battery for $1,399 shipped. The e-bike on its own would normally cost you $1,599 without the $200 price cut here, only beaten out by the $1,299 rate from September and the $1,199 low we saw at the top of 2025, though these did not offer the extra battery valued at $499. Despite being the third-lowest price we have tracked overall, this is the largest amount of savings we have seen on this model bundled with the battery. Be sure to add both to your cart for the automatic discount to be applied.
I’ve been hopping aboard my parent’s RadRover 6 Plus e-bike during visits and it’s not hard to see why it’s so popular among riders with its durability and lineup of features, which can be elevated further with additional add-on gear, which my parents went all-out on. Without all those extra bells and whistles, it starts with a 750W brushless geared hub motor that is powered by the semi-integrated 672Wh battery to reach top speeds of 20 MPH while carrying you up to 45+ miles when its five levels of PAS are activated – which is doubled to 90+ miles with the extra battery. If you’re going a shorter distance and not in the mood to do any pedaling, there is the option to ride on pure electric power with the throttle, though keep in mind this cuts down its mileage.
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It’s a solid option for folks who enjoy on-street and off-road treks alike, as the fat Kenda Juggernaut puncture-resistant tires stand up well to swampy terrain during my visits while the electrical system is protected thanks to the water-resistant connectors. You’ll also get it arriving stocked with a Shimano 7-speed derailleur, hydraulic brakes, fenders above both tires, an LED headlight and taillight with brake lighting (and auto-on functions for both), and a LCD display.
Rad Power’s other Earth Day e-bike discounts:
Rad Power’s ongoing low prices (while supplies last):
Rad Power accessory bundles on newest e-bikes:
- RadExpand 5 Plus Folding e-bike: $1,899
- 20 MPH for up to 60+ miles
- comes with any accessory under $200
- discounts applied when added to cart
- Radster Road Commuter e-bike: $2,199
- 28 MPH for up to 65+ miles
- comes with any accessory under $200
- discounts applied when added to cart
- Radster Trail Off-Road e-bike: $2,199
- 28 MPH for up to 65+ miles
- comes with any accessory under $200
- discounts applied when added to cart
- RadWagon 5 Cargo e-bike: $2,399
- 28 MPH for up to 60+ miles
- comes with any accessory under $200
- discounts applied when added to cart

Score an exclusive $680 in savings on a refurbished and expandable Anker SOLIX F3800 power station at $1,999
We’ve secured an exclusive deal for our readers at Wellbots on a refurbished Anker SOLIX F3800 Portable Power Station for $1,999 shipped, after using the code 9TO5RB300 at checkout. This renewed unit is getting brought down from its $2,679 price tag to $2,299 with the initial discount, which drops even lower thanks to our exclusive $300 in additional savings. It’s a solid option for those who want to save a bit more, as a new model normally goes for $3,999 at full price and is currently discounted to $2,599 right now, giving you $600 more in savings ($680 in all) while providing you with the brand’s expandable setup that you can invest more into down the road.
Coming with a two-year warranty, this refurbished Anker SOLIX F3800 station is a well-rounded option to cover camping, tailgating, home backup emergencies, and more. It starts at a 3,840Wh LiFePO4 capacity that can be further scaled up to 26.9kWh with its appropriate expansion batteries. It boasts 15+ port options to cover a variety of needs – including RV and EV power too thanks to the included L14-30R and NEMA 14-50 ports – with a steady output of 6,000W that can surge up to 9,000W.
You can recharge its own battery through an AC wall outlet, or connect up to its maximum 2,400W of solar input, which can refill the battery to 80% in 1.5 hours with ideal conditions. This refurbished model comes rated for 3,000 life cycles when charging up to 80% of its battery, giving you over 8 years of a lifespan were you to do so every single day. With the addition of EcoFlow’s home backup kit this station can cover sectional support for your home’s circuit breaker, or you could expand that to whole-home coverage with connections to roof panels when utilizing the home power panel instead.
– Units are Grade A Refurbished by Anker (Like new condition)
– 2 year warranty applies
– 30 day return policy

EcoFlow flash sale offers DELTA 2 1,024Wh LiFePO4 power station with waterproof bag at $449, more
Running through the rest of the day as part of its ongoing Easter Sale and Mega Sale, EcoFlow has launched the third round of flash sale deals, with the first being the DELTA 2 Portable Power Station bundled with a waterproof bag for $449 shipped. Normally going for $999 outside of these sales, we have seen this power station on its own as low as $399 once before today, but you’re now getting it at $449 with the waterproof bag included to deliver one of the best values we have ever tracked. You’ll also find it matching in price over at Amazon, as well.
Perfect for those upcoming outdoor adventures, the EcoFlow DELTA 2 is an expandable unit that starts with a 1,024Wh LiFePO4 capacity and can go as high as 3,074Wh with the addition of expansion batteries. Its 15 port options cover your devices and appliances with a steady output up to 1,800W, which can surge up to 2,200W with the built-in X-Boost tech that also reduces its recharging times. Within 50 minutes of plugging it into a wall outlet you can have it back to an 80% battery while a full battery takes a little longer at 80 minutes. There’s also the option to connect up to its maximum 500W solar input to take advantage of the sun’s rays to refill its battery in as little as three hours. It also comes rated for 3,000 life cycles up to 80% of its capacity, meaning you could recharge it every day to that amount for over eight years.
The second offer during this flash sale is perfect for those with an existing DELTA Pro Ultra power station and are looking to expand, as you can grab two DELTA Pro Ultra Extra Batteries for $4,599 shipped. Considering that they are currently discounted to $2,499 each right now (down from $3,299 each), you’ll be saving an additional $399 here with the sales pricing and $1,999 off their regular pricing. By adding them to your existing setup, you’ll tack on an additional 12.2kWh capacity for even longer backup power support.
Be sure to check out the full (and differing) lineup of deals from EcoFlow’s ongoing Easter Sale and Mega Sale that are taking up to 65% off power stations through April 14.
Best New Year EV deals!
- GoTrax Everest Electric Dirt Bike (new low): $3,979 (Reg. $6,000)
- Aventon Ramblas Electric Mountain Bike: $2,599 (Reg. $2,899)
- Lectric ONE Long-Range e-bike with $220 bundle: $2,399 (Reg. $2,507)
- Lectric XPedition 2.0 35Ah Cargo e-bike w/ up to $654 bundle: $1,999 (Reg. $2,741)
- Tenways AGO X All-Terrain e-bike with $307 bundle: $1,899 (Reg. $2,499)
- Lectric XPedition 2.0 26Ah Cargo e-bike w/ $505 bundle: $1,699 (Reg. $2,204)
- Rad Power RadRunner 3 Plus Utility e-bike (new low): $1,699 (Reg. $2,199)
- Aventon Aventure 2 All-Terrain e-bike: $1,699 (Reg. $1,999)
- Tenways CGO800S Step-Thru Commuter e-bike with $315 in free gear: $1,699 (Reg. $1,999)
- Aventon Pace 500.3 Step-Over e-bike with free extra battery: $1,599 (Reg. $1,799)
- Aventon Pace 500.3 Step-Through e-bike with free extra battery: $1,599 (Reg. $1,799)
- Heybike ALPHA All-Terrain e-bike (new low): $1,499 (Reg. $1,699)
- Aventon Abound Cargo e-bike: $1,599 (Reg. $1,999)
- Lectric XPeak 2.0 Long-Range Off-Road e-bike with $316 bundle: $1,599 (Reg. $1,915)
- Aventon Level 2 Commuter e-bike: $1,499 (Reg. $1,899)
- Tenways CGO600 Pro belt-drive e-bike with $118 bundle: $1,499 (Reg. $1,899)
- Tenways CGO600 Pro chain-drive e-bike with $118 bundle: $1,499 (Reg. $1,899)
- Rad Power RadWagon 4 Cargo e-bike with free caboose: $1,499 (Reg. $1,799)
- Lectric XP Trike with $420 bundle: $1,499 (Reg. $1,918)
- Rad Power RadRover 6 Plus Step-Thru Fat Tire e-bike with extra battery: $1,399 (Reg. $1,599)
- Aventon Sinch 2 Folding e-bike: $1,399 (Reg. $1,699)
- Velotric 2024 Nomad 1 Plus All-Terrain e-bike with $134 bundle: $1,399 (Reg. $1,799)
- Lectric XPeak 2.0 Standard Off-Road e-bike with $227 bundle: $1,399 (Reg. $1,626)
- Lectric XPedition 2.0 13Ah Cargo e-bike with $296 bundle: $1,399 (Reg. $1,725)
- Rad Power RadExpand 5 Folding e-bike (new low): $1,299 (Reg. $1,599)
- Rad Power RadRunner Plus Utility e-bike (new low): $1,299 (Reg. $1,799)
- Velotric T1 ST Plus Lightweight e-bike with $120 bundle: $1,299 (Reg. $1,549)
- Velotric Discover 1 Plus Step-Thru Commuter e-bike with $120 bundle: $1,199 (Reg. $1,599)
- Lectric XP 3.0 Long-Range e-bikes with up to $455 bundle: $1,199 (Reg. $1,706)
- Lectric XP Lite 2.0 JW Black LR e-bike with $365 bundle: $1,099 (Reg. $1,464)
- Segway Ninebot MAX G3 eKickScooter: $1,000 (Reg. $1,400)
- Rad Power RadRunner 2 Utility e-bike (new low): $999 (Reg. $1,499)
- Aventon Soltera.2 Urban Commuter e-bike: $999 (Reg. $1,199)
- Lectric XP 3.0 Standard e-bikes: $999 (Reg. $1,507)
- Lectric XP Lite 2.0 Long-Range e-bikes with up to $316 bundles: $999 (Reg. $1,315)
- NIU BQi-C3 Pro e-bike: $999 (Reg. $2,200)
- Segway Ninebot F3 eKickScooter (preorder through April 14): $600 (Reg. $850)

Best new Green Deals landing this week
The savings this week are also continuing to a collection of other markdowns. To the same tune as the offers above, these all help you take a more energy-conscious approach to your routine. Winter means you can lock in even better off-season price cuts on electric tools for the lawn while saving on EVs and tons of other gear.
- Massive Anker SOLIX Easter Sale offers F3800 Plus from $3,199 and tons more at up to 54% off
- Lectric changes up April sale with larger XP Lite 2.0 long-range e-bike bundles starting from $999, more
- Jackery’s early Easter sale offers Explorer 3000 Pro solar generator with a 500W panel at new $1,947 low, more at 50% off
- Tenways drops the AGO X all-terrain e-bike to new $1,899 low (Reg. $2,499) in spring savings, more from $1,499
- Heybike early Easter flash sale drops latest ALPHA all-terrain e-bike with 60-mile range to new $1,499 low, more
- Hiboy’s Spring Sale returns latest S2 SE Electric Scooter to $300 low (Reg. $550), more from $400
- Automate your lawn care with Worx’s Landroid 1/4 and 1/2-acre robot lawn mowers from $600 (Save up to $149)
- AeroGarden relaunches and drops its Harvest 2.0 indoor hydroponic system to a new $35 low (Reg. $70), more from $28
- Electrified Weekly – Segway Ninebot F3 eKickScooter $250 off, Lectric e-bike bundles $654 off, EcoFlow Easter + Mega sales, more
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Environment
Pennsylvania dairy farm powers its new electric tractor with biogas
Published
1 hour agoon
April 10, 2025By
admin

An 800-head dairy farm in central Pennsylvania is the first in the United States to create a truly circular energy cycle by using recovered biogas to generate the electricity needed to charge the electric wheel loader that pushes feed to its cattle.
Molly Pitcher Dairy in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, uses a Volvo L120 electric wheel loader to feed its 800 head of dairy cattle each daily — and they’re showing other corporate farms that it’s possible to be more productive and more sustainable.
They’re accomplishing this first by deploying quiet, zero-emissions equipment assets that are better for both the health and safety of the farm’s employees and cattle, and second by powering those assets with electricity generated by methane-rich biogas that would otherwise be burned off or vented into the atmosphere.
The dairy uses a 1.5-million-gallon “anerobic digester” to recycles solid and liquid waste generated by the farm’s hundreds of cows (read: poop), producing energy-rich biogas that is used to generate electricity. Molly Pitcher Dairy actually generates enough electricity to power the farm, charge its wheel loader, and have enough left over to sell electrons back to their local grid.
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As for the Volvo L120 Electric wheel loader itself, the machine offers a 6-ton lifting capacity and quiet, precise, vibration-free operation, making it a valuable asset on job sites from construction sites to ports and logistic centers, and on through to waste management and recycling.
Volvo’s L120 Electric delivers between 5-9 hours of continuous on a single charge, depending on the workload. While that’s enough for a typical shift, when the Volvo does need to power up, it can charge from 10-100% in one hour 40 minutes with a 180 kW DC fast charger, or overnight with the same standard L2 (220/240V) outlet that any proper farm already has a welder plugged into.
“This dairy runs 24/7, so the more electric that I can use, the better it is for us economically and for the environment. That is why I was interested in this new electric loader from Volvo,” says the farm’s owner, Keith Jones — but the most important customer feedback at Molly Pitcher Dairy came from the herd. Says Jones, “It took the cows a few passes with the loader to realize it was feeding time because they didn’t hear it driving down the barn aisles. It’s very quiet, and for the cows, that is very nice.”
Molly Pitcher Dairy is one of seven cattle farms across three states owned by the Jones brothers as part of a family business that also includes cattle harvesting and commercial trucking operations.
Electrek’s Take
We’ve written about the greenwashing of poop collecting before, but while experts on one end argue that the LCFS in particular awards credits to farmers at a much higher magnitude than the cost to operate and maintain a methane digester and experts on the other side argue that biomethane still creates burned emission the same way fossil fuels do, the fact remains that the carbon cost of burning biogas is net less than the conventional cost of burning fuel fossil fuels, if only because of the reduced carbon costs typically associated with their refining and transportation (the fact that the biowaste is generated regardless and otherwise wasted should also be considered, but needn’t be in order to realize an immediate “common sense” benefit here).
Don’t get me wrong, there are certainly better ways to power an EV — including wind and solar — but are there much better uses for hundreds of tons of cow poop? You guys are smart. Head down the comments and tell me what they are.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Volvo CE.

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Environment
Cracks are forming in Elon Musk’s armor of lies
Published
2 hours agoon
April 10, 2025By
admin

As Elon Musk moves to dismiss a lawsuit from Tesla shareholders claiming he failed his fiduciary duties, OpenAI is now suing Musk and exposing lies, which could help Tesla shareholders.
It looks like cracks are forming in Elon Musk’s armor of lies.
Last year, Tesla investors sued Musk for breach of fiduciary duty and resource tunneling over the founding of xAI, a private AI company under his control.
Musk had previously stated that Tesla would be a major player in AI and that AI products would be critical to Tesla’s future, but in early 2024, the CEO threatened not to build AI products at Tesla if he didn’t get more control over the company by getting more shares.
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He also redirected NVIDIA AI hardware acquired by Tesla to xAI and hired Tesla employees to work at xAI.
In short, Tesla shareholders argue that Musk is in breach of his fiduciary duties to shareholders by creating a private company that competes directly with Tesla. The lawsuit also cites similar issues with Musk’s acquisition of Twitter.
This week, Musk and Tesla board members, who are also defendants in the lawsuit for not stopping Musk, have filed to try to dismiss the lawsuit (via Bloomberg):
The shareholder suit by a group of pension funds and other investors “is long on hyperbole but woefully short on well-pled facts,” the board members said in a court filing Monday. “Yet they cannot escape the undeniable reality: Tesla has thrived under this board and CEO, delivering astronomical returns to stockholders while advancing its mission to create sustainable abundance for all.”
It will likely take a while before the lawsuit moves through the court, but in the meantime, Tesla shareholders have found a strong ally: OpenAI.
Musk has long been tormenting OpenAI with lawsuits. Tesla’s CEO co-founded OpenAI as a non-profit in 2015 to develop an artificial general intelligence that positively contributes to humanity.
In early 2018, Musk resigned from OpenAI, citing “conflicts of interest with Tesla.”
At that time, Tesla’s CEO started pushing the automaker increasingly toward self-driving, which he often described as “real-world AI,” and the automaker began to compete for AI talent with OpenAI.
While he was seemingly on good terms with OpenAI after his departure, a few years later, he started publicly criticizing the organization for moving to a limited for-profit model, which they argued was necessary due to the billions of dollars required to build the compute training hardware to have an impact in the AI sector.
Musk even sued the company over the move and repeatedly publicly mocked them.
It hasn’t been clear how serious the legal actions have been since Musk even claimed that he would drop the lawsuit if OpenAI changed its name:

OpenAI has been defending itself with the release of some emails that show Musk actually agreed for years that the organization needed to move to a for-profit model.
Now, OpenAI has countersued Musk and released more details that show Musk has been misleading the public for years.
It also explains his latest moves at Tesla and xAI.
Musk’s AI effort went from OpenAI to Tesla to xAI
All the documents released by OpenAI as part of the countersuit paint a much clearer picture of Musk’s involvement with AI and how it evolved over the years.
I’ll start with a clear timeline to make it easier to understand.
- 2010s: Musk has long been fascinated with AI and emerged as one of the most prominent tech voices warning about its dangers.
- 2015: Musk co-founds OpenAI as a non-profit to try to create a safe AGI.
- 2017: Musk privately communicates to many people in OpenAI and the AI community that the company needs to switch to a for-profit model and raise billions to be successful due to the cost of AI hardware.
- 2018: Musk attempted to get control of OpenAI and merge it with Tesla, but this was rejected by OpenAI’s board, which ultimately took investments from Microsoft to start its for-profit arm, as it gave the organization more independence.
- 2018: Musk leaves OpenAI, citing a conflict of interest with Tesla.
- 2018-2022: Musk positions Tesla as “the world’s leader in AI”, hires a ton of AI talent, and claims Tesla will “play an important role in AGI”.
- 2022: Musk sells tens of billions of dollars worth of Tesla stocks, partly to buy an overpriced Twitter.
- 2023: Shortly after the viral launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Musk creates a new private company, xAI, to develop AI products and compete with OpenAI.
- 2024: A judge rescinds Musk’s $55 billion Tesla CEO compensation package, which would have increased his stake in Tesla back to where it was before he bought Twitter.
- 2024: Musk threatens Tesla shareholders that he will not build AI products at Tesla unless he gets more control (aka more shares).
- 2024: Musk hires Tesla employees for xAI and redirects shipments of AI training compute from Tesla to xAI.
- 2024: Musk sues OpenAI to try to block its transition into a capped for-profit business.
OpenAI has all the receipts to prove this. I recommend reading all the emails because they give great insights into Musk’s persona and how he presents himself publicly versus what he says privately.
Here are some of the highlights to prove the timeline above:
Early on in the founding of OpenAI in 2015, it was proposed to be a non-profit linked to Y Combinator, Sam Altman’s company at the time, and Musk was already suggesting to make it a regular C corp:

OpenAI shared many internal emails and text messages between the teams, Musk, and Musk’s executive assistant/future baby mama, Shivon Zilis, discussing the need for much more capital, which will require a move to for-profit.
In 2017, as OpenAI was first configuring a potential for-profit arm, Musk tried to take control by asking for preferred shares and a supermajority:

Musk even filed for a new benefit corporation, a for-profit legal structure that aims to generate profits while positively impacting society and/or the environment.


Musk’s full-time money manager, Jared Birchall, is listed as the sole director of the new corporation.
OpenAI rejected Musk’s proposal as it would have given him complete control, but they insisted they still wanted to work with him.
In early 2018, Musk switched up his proposal to try to get OpenAI attached to Tesla:


This proposal also failed, as OpenAI felt this was also an attempt from Musk to gain complete control.
Musk then left OpenAI and focused his AI efforts on Tesla until he significantly reduced his stake in the company to buy Twitter on a whim.
Then, he founded xAI to become his main AI effort as a private company under his control while telling Tesla shareholders that the company was an “AI and robotics play.”
xAI recently absorbed X (Twitter), resulting in a $125 billion company based on Musk’s made-up valuation.
Electrek’s Take
This is extremely revealing. It clearly shows that Musk’s main goal is to have complete control over AI.
He tried to get control of OpenAI, but couldn’t make it work. He then tried to make it work with Tesla, but he screwed up by giving up some control (I’d argue he still has a firm hold on the public company) through the acquisition of Twitter.
He panicked after OpenAI launched ChatGPT and started xAI as a private company entirely under his control, devaluing Tesla in the process – hence the current shareholders’ lawsuit.
For years, Musk attacked OpenAI and lied to the public about disagreeing with the for-profit transition, when he was actually pushing for it since the very beginning. The only difference is that OpenAI was now a competitor to Tesla, and then xAI.
I want to be clear here. OpenAI is not completely clean, either. It obviously owes Musk something for the company’s original funding, but the emails also reveal that the organization tried to give him shares and pay him back, but Musk refused.
His refusal is likely linked to his believing that he could do more damage by suing OpenAI.
It looks like Musk believes that he is some sort of super genius who deserves to be the one in control of a potential future AGI, and he was willing to lie and cheat his way into making it happen.
Even if his intentions are good, that’s a scary thought.
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