SpaceX suffered the loss of its spacecraft during its latest Starship test flight on Thursday after an exciting booster catch at the launch pad ended in disappointment, reports AP. The spacecraft, a newly upgraded model making its debut, was destroyed in what SpaceX described as a “rapid unscheduled disassembly.” During ascent, its six engines appeared to shut down one by one, with contact lost 8 1/2 minutes into the flight. Bezos' New Glenn rocket successfully orbits on debut flight This test flight aimed to replicate previous missions, sending the spacecraft on a near-global trajectory across the Gulf of Mexico from Texas. It carried 10 dummy satellites to practice deployment procedures. Moments before the spacecraft's loss, SpaceX successfully caught the returning booster using the launch tower's mechanical arms, known as chopsticks. The booster hovered over the pad before being secured by the arms, marking only the second time this manoeuvre had been accomplished. Despite the achievement, the subsequent destruction of the spacecraft left both SpaceX and spectators gathered in southern Texas disheartened. "It was great to see the booster land, but we’re obviously disappointed about the spacecraft," said SpaceX spokesman Dan Huot, emphasising that this was a flight test involving an experimental vehicle. Elon Musk wants to turn SpaceX's Starbase site into Texas The spacecraft had reached an altitude of 90 miles (146 kilometres) and a velocity of 13,245 mph (21,317 kph) before its destruction. Elon Musk later stated on X (formerly Twitter) that a preliminary analysis suggested fuel leakage might have built up pressure in a cavity above the engine firewall. Plans are underway to enhance fire suppression, venting, and leak detection. The 400-foot (123-metre) rocket had launched late in the afternoon from Boca Chica Beach near the Mexican border. The timing aimed to facilitate a daylight entry over the Indian Ocean. However, the spacecraft fell far short of completing its intended trajectory. SpaceX had incorporated several upgrades into the spacecraft for this test and included satellite mockups matching the size of its Starlink internet satellites. Both the spacecraft and the dummy satellites were intended for destruction upon atmospheric re-entry. Musk envisions Starship launching actual Starlink satellites in the near future, followed by other payloads and crewed missions. NASA has already contracted two Starship flights to land astronauts on the moon later this decade, while Musk’s ultimate goal remains Mars. SpaceX launches rescue mission for 2 NASA astronauts who are stuck in space until next year In a separate development, Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin launched its newest rocket, New Glenn, from Florida earlier the same day. The rocket successfully reached orbit on its maiden flight, deploying an experimental satellite thousands of miles above Earth. However, its first-stage booster was lost after missing the target landing on a floating platform in the Atlantic.

Elon Musk announced that a third individual has received a brain implant from Neuralink, his brain-computer interface company, which is one of several organisations striving to connect the nervous system with machines, reports AP. “We've got ... three humans with Neuralinks and all are working well,” Musk stated during an expansive interview at a Las Vegas event broadcast on his social media platform, X. First human received implant from Neuralink, Elon Musk says Since the first brain implant roughly a year ago, Musk said Neuralink has enhanced its devices with additional electrodes, increased bandwidth, and longer battery life. He added that the company aims to implant these experimental devices in 20 to 30 more individuals this year. While Musk did not share specifics about the most recent patient, updates on previous recipients were provided. The second recipient, who has a spinal cord injury and received the implant last summer, has been using the device to play video games and learn computer-aided design software to create 3-D objects. Similarly, the first patient, also paralysed due to a spinal cord injury, described using the implant to play video games and chess. Despite the attention Neuralink garners, numerous other companies and research institutions are advancing similar projects. For instance, two studies published last year in the New England Journal of Medicine highlighted how brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) improved communication for individuals with ALS. Who is working on brain-computer interface technology? Currently, over 45 brain-computer interface trials are listed in a U.S. database of studies, targeting applications such as treating brain disorders, addressing brain injuries, and other uses. Rajesh Rao, co-director of the Centre for Neurotechnology at the University of Washington, noted that many research labs have already demonstrated that BCIs can enable humans to control computer cursors with high accuracy. Neuralink, however, stands out for two reasons: it is the first to use a robot to implant flexible electrode threads into the human brain, and these threads may record neural activity from more neurons compared to other interfaces. Musk hiring cheaper tech servants from Asia: Alleges Bernie Sanders Nonetheless, Rao explained that the advantages of Neuralink's approach remain unproven, and some competitors have surpassed the company in other areas. For instance, companies like Synchron, Blackrock Neurotech, and Onward Medical are conducting trials using either less invasive methods or more versatile techniques that integrate neural recording and stimulation. What are the benefits of BCIs? Marco Baptista, chief scientific officer at the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, described BCI technology as “very exciting” with significant potential for individuals with paralysis. Through clinical trials, Baptista expects clearer insights into the most effective approaches, though he believes it’s still too early to determine which will prevail. While his foundation supports various research teams financially and with expert guidance, it has not provided funding to Neuralink. “We need to really support high-risk, high-reward endeavours. This is clearly high-risk, high-reward. We don’t know how safe it’s going to be. We don’t know how feasible it’s going to be," Baptista said. How are BCIs tested and regulated? Neuralink announced in 2023 that it had secured approval from U.S. regulators to begin human trials. For high-risk medical devices that require pre-market approval, developers must obtain an “investigational device exemption” from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), explained Dr. Rita Redberg, a cardiologist at the University of California, San Francisco, who specialises in high-risk devices. Neuralink claims to have this exemption, but the FDA has not confirmed details about specific studies. Elon Musk sparks speculation with name change on X; this is the name he chose Redberg noted that the FDA oversees all stages of the process, including patient recruitment, device testing, and data analysis, with a primary focus on safety. Additionally, she highlighted the role of institutional review boards (IRBs), which evaluate the ethical aspects of research involving humans. These boards ensure that risks and benefits are reasonable and that participants are fully informed before enrolling. IRBs, also known as ethical review boards or independent ethics committees, must include at least one non-scientist and a member unaffiliated with the organisation conducting the research. Redberg emphasised their responsibility to safeguard participants by ensuring transparency and informed consent.

Expectations are high for the long-awaited unveiling of Tesla's robotaxi at a Hollywood studio Thursday night. Too high for some analysts and investors. The company, which began selling software it calls “Full Self-Driving” nine years ago that still can't drive itself, is expected to show off the so-called “Cybercab” vehicle, which may not have a steering wheel and pedals. The unveiling comes as CEO Elon Musk tries to persuade investors that his company is more about artificial intelligence and robotics as it struggles to sell its core products, an aging lineup of electric vehicles. Some analysts are predicting that it will be a historic day for the Austin, Texas, company as it takes a huge step toward a long-awaited robotaxi service powered by AI. But others who track self-driving vehicles say Musk has yet to demonstrate Tesla's system can travel safely without a human driver ready to step in to prevent crashes. 5th recall for Tesla Cybertruck within a year, the latest due to rearview display “I don't know why the headlines continue to be ‘What will Tesla announce?’ rather than ‘Why does Tesla think we’re so stupid?'” said Bryant Walker Smith, a University of South Carolina law professor who studies autonomous vehicles. He doesn't see Tesla having the ability to show off software and hardware that can work without human supervision, even in a limited area that's well-known to the driving system. “We just haven't seen any indication that that is what Tesla is working toward,” Walker Smith said. “If they were, they would be showcasing this not on a closed lot, but in an actual city or on an actual freeway.” Without a clear breakthrough in autonomous technology, Tesla will just show off a vehicle with no pedals or steering wheel, which already has been done by numerous other companies, he said. “The challenge is developing a combination of hardware and software plus the human and digital infrastructure to actually safely drive a vehicle even without a steering wheel on public roads in any conditions,” Walker Smith said. “Tesla has been giving us that demo every year, and it's not reassuring us.” Many industry analysts aren't expecting much from the event either. While TD Cowen's Jeff Osborne expects Musk to reveal the Cybercab and perhaps the Model 2, a lower-cost electric vehicle, he said he doesn't expect much of a change on self-driving technology. Safety concerns over Tesla's 'Full Self-Driving' system growing “We expect the event to be light on details and appeal to the true long-term believers in Tesla,” Osborne wrote in a note. Musk's claims on the readiness of Full Self Driving, though, will be crucial “given past delays and ongoing scrutiny” of the system and of Tesla's less-sophisticated Autopilot driver-assist software. Tesla's model lineup is struggling and isn't likely to be refreshed until late next year at the earliest, Osborne wrote. Plus, he wrote that in TD Cowen's view the “politicization of Elon” is tarnishing the Tesla brand among Democrat buyers in the U.S. Musk has endorsed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and has pushed many conservative causes. Last weekend he joined Trump at a Pennsylvania rally. Musk has been saying for more than five years that a fleet of robotaxis is near, allowing Tesla owners to make money by having their cars carry passengers while they're not in use by the owners. But he has acknowledged that past predictions for the use of autonomous driving proved too optimistic. In 2019, he promised the fleet of autonomous vehicles by the end of 2020. However, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives, who is bullish on Tesla stock, wrote in an investor note that robotaxi event, dubbed “We, Robot,” by the company, will be a new chapter of growth for Tesla. Tesla cars performing ‘dance of lights’ to 'Naatu Naatu' goes viral Ives expects many updates and details from Tesla on the robotaxi, plus breakthroughs in Full Self Driving and artificial intelligence. He also is looking for a phased-in strategy for rolling out the robotaxis within the next year, as well as a Tesla ride-sharing app, and demonstrations of technology “designed to revolutionize urban transportation.” Ives, whose organization will attend the invitation-only event at the Warner Bros. studio, wrote that he also expects updates on Tesla's Optimus humanoid robot, which the company plans to start selling in 2026. “We believe this is a pivotal time for Tesla as the company prepares to release its years of Robotaxi R&D shadowed behind the curtains, while Musk & Co. lay out the company’s vision for the future,” Ives wrote. The announcement comes as U.S. safety regulators are investigating Full Self Driving and Autopilot based on evidence that it has a weak system for making sure human drivers pay attention. In addition, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration forced Tesla to recall Full Self-Driving in February because it allowed speeding and violated other traffic laws, especially near intersections. Tesla was to fix the problems with an online software update. Last April in Snohomish County, Washington, near Seattle, a Tesla using Full Self-Driving hit and killed a motorcyclist, authorities said. The Tesla driver told authorities that he was using the system while looking at his phone when the car rear-ended the motorcyclist. The motorcyclist was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said. NHTSA says it's evaluating information on the fatal crash from Tesla and law enforcement officials. The Justice Department also has sought information from Tesla about Full Self-Driving and Autopilot, as well as other items.

The world might see its first trillionaire sooner than you think. And that puts a spotlight on today's richest 1%. In an annual assessment of global inequalities published earlier this week, Oxfam International said the first trillionaire could emerge within the next decade — as the anti-poverty organization pointed to the growing wealth gap that skyrocketed globally during the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the findings, Oxfam highlighted how the personal fortunes of the world's five richest people — Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Bernard Arnault and his family of luxury company LVMH, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Oracle founder Larry Ellison and investment guru Warren Buffett — have more than doubled since 2020. To measure this jump, Oxfam pulled net worths from Forbes' real-time billionaires list as of March 2020 and the end of November 2023. Such lists fluctuate over time and even within hours — so while Buffett, for example, was the 5th richest person in November, he stood in 7th place per Forbes' Wednesday rankings. Vivek Ramaswamy endorses Trump, suspends 2024 Republican presidential bid Oxfam timed its report to the gathering of political and business elites in Davos, Switzerland, where the World Economic Forum meets annually. Numerous billionaires and multimillionaires also penned a letter calling on global leaders to fairly tax the super rich like themselves. Musk, Arnault, Bezos, Ellison and Buffett were not among the signatories — although Buffett has famously criticized the wealthy's lower tax rates and previously advocated for policy change in the same vein. Here's a look at the wealth of these five billionaires spotlighted this week, and where their fortunes stand today. Elon Musk: $226.6 billion Elon Musk is currently considered the world's richest person, with a net worth of $226.6 billion per Forbes' real-time rankings as of Wednesday. That's down from $245.5 billion as of November 2023. In addition to being at the helm of Tesla, Musk is CEO of rocket ship company SpaceX. In 2022, he also purchased Twitter, which is now called X, for $44 billion. While he no longer serves as CEO of the social media platform, his still holds broad influence — and has faced ample pushback from issues ranging from content moderation and hate speech to alienating advertisers. A weekend of ferocious winter weather could see low-temperature records set in the US heartland Bernard Arnault and family: $175.1 billion Bernard Arnault and his family currently hold a personal fortune of $175.1 billion per Forbes. That's down from about $191.3 in November 2023. The French businessman has served as CEO of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the world's largest luxury group, since becoming the majority shareholder in 1989. He is also president of the board for Groupe Arnault S.E., which is his family's holding company and primarily an investment firm. Jeff Bezos: $173.6 billion Jeff Bezos' net worth stood at $173.6 billion Wednesday per Forbes. That's up from $167.4 billion in November 2023. Back in 1994, Bezos founded Amazon out of a Seattle garage — and his wealth skyrocketed as the company grew into the e-commerce giant it is today. He stepped down as CEO in early 2021, but still has broad influence over Amazon as executive chair and the company's biggest shareholder. Larry Ellison: $134.9 billion Larry Ellison currently has a personal fortune of $134.9 billion, according to Forbes, down from $145.5 in November 2023. Ellison co-founded Oracle Corporation, a software and database management giant, in 1977 and served as CEO until 2014. He is now chief technology officer and chairman of the board. Ellison, who also had a stint on Tesla's board of directors from 2018 to 2022, has ranked high in billionaire lists for several years now. Biden condemns white supremacy in a campaign speech at a church where Black people were killed Warren Buffett: $119.5 billion At the time Oxfam pulled Forbes figures for its inequality report, Warren Buffett was the world's fifth richest person with a net worth of $119.2 billion. While his personal fortune has stayed relatively stable since ($119.5 billion as of Wednesday), Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates have surpassed him in Forbes' rankings with current net worths of $129.5 billion and $120.1 billion, respectively. Over the years, Buffett has gained a reputation for his investment success and aggressive business tactics. He runs Berkshire Hathaway, a holding conglomerate that owns dozens of companies across sectors like insurance, manufacturing, utilities, transportation and retail.

SpaceX prepared to launch the biggest and most powerful rocket Thursday, working nonstop after the first shot at a test flight fizzled earlier in the week. The nearly 400-foot (120-meter) Starship was poised to blast off from the southern tip of Texas, near the Mexican border. SpaceX’s Elon Musk gave 50-50 odds of the spacecraft reaching orbit on its debut. None of the rocket will be recovered. Instead, if all goes well, the first-stage booster, dubbed Super Heavy, would drop into the Gulf of Mexico. The spacecraft on top would continue eastward, passing over the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans before ditching near Hawaii. The whole flight, if successful, would last just 1 1/2 hours. The company plans to use Starship to send people and cargo to the moon and, eventually, Mars. NASA has reserved a Starship for its next moonwalking team, and rich tourists are already booking lunar flybys. A stuck booster valve scrapped Monday’s try. Hundreds of space fans returned to the launch site at Boca Chica Beach on the eve of the second launch attempt, snapping more selfies. “I've been waiting for this, really, for years,” said Bob Drwal, a retired engineer who drove down from Chicago with wife Donna.

Twitter CEO Elon Musk has reportedly indicated that the social media platform is now valued at less than $20 billion. According to technology news websites Platformer and the Information, who broke the story first, the estimate of Twitter’s valuation was based on Musk’s offer of equity grants to employees, reports BBC. A poo emoji was automatically sent in response to a BBC request for comment via Twitter’s press office email account, after Musk’s announcement of the strategy in a tweet earlier this month. Read More: Elon Musk apologizes after mocking disabled Twitter employee Meanwhile, Twitter reports that parts of the source code that powers multi-billionaire Elon Musk’s social media platform have been leaked online. It claimed that the code was uploaded to the Microsoft-owned website GitHub, where developers share code, the report said. After Twitter made a request for its removal, it was taken down. Read More: Elon Musk hopes to have Twitter CEO toward the end of year After cutting more than a third of Twitter’s staff and dealing with a loss of advertising since acquiring the company in October of last year, the leak presented Musk with a new challenge, said the report.

 A jury on Friday decided Elon Musk didn’t defraud investors with his 2018 tweets about electric automaker Tesla in a proposed deal that quickly unraveled and raised questions about whether the billionaire had misled investors. The nine-member jury reached its verdict after less that two hours of deliberation following a three-week trial. It represents a major vindication for Musk, who spent about eight hours on the witness stand defending his motives for the August 2018 tweets at the center of the trial. Musk, 51, wasn’t on hand for the brief reading of the verdict but he made a surprise appearance earlier Friday for closing arguments that drew starkly different portraits of him. Not long after the verdict came down, Musk took to Twitter — the bully pulpit he now owns — to celebrate. “Thank goodness, the wisdom of the people has prevailed!” Musk tweeted. Musk’s decision to break away from his other responsibilities to sit in on the closing arguments even though he didn’t have to be there may have had an impact on the jurors, said Michael Freedman, a former federal prosecutor who is now in private practice working for a law firm that has represented celebrities and business executives.“It shows he has a presence,” Freedman said. Nicholas Porritt, an attorney who represented aggrieved Tesla investors, said he was disappointed after urging the jurors in his closing arguments to rebuke Musk for reckless behavior that threatened to create “anarchy.” “I don’t think this is the kind of conduct we expect from a large public company,” a downcast Porritt said after discussing the verdict with a few jurors who gathered to talk to him. “People can draw their own conclusion on whether they think it’s OK or not.” During their discussion with Porritt, the jurors told them they found Musk’s testimony that he believed he had lined up the money from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund without a written commitment to be credible. They also expressed doubt about whether Musk’s tweeting was the sole reason for the swings in Tesla’s stock price during a 10-day period in August 2018 covered in the case.The trial pitted Tesla investors represented in a class-action lawsuit against Musk, who is CEO of both the electric automaker and the Twitter service he bought for $44 billion a few months ago. Shortly before boarding his private jet on Aug. 7, 2018, Musk tweeted that he had the financing to take Tesla private, even though it turned out he hadn’t gotten an iron-clad commitment for a deal that would have cost $20 billion to $70 billion to pull off. A few hours later, Musk sent another tweet indicating that the deal was imminent. Musk’s integrity was at stake at the trial as well part of a fortune that has established him as one of the world’s richest people. He could have been saddled with a bill for billions of dollars in damages had the jury found him liable for the 2018 tweets that had already been deemed falsehoods by the judge presiding over the trial.That determination, made last year by U.S. District Judge Edward Chen, left the jury to decide whether Musk had been reckless with his tweeting and acted in a way that hurt Tesla shareholders. “It may have not been that difficult for the jury,” Freedman said, “because it sort of became like an up-or-down vote.” Earlier Friday, Musk sat stoically in court during the trial’s closing arguments while he was both vilified as a rich and reckless narcissist and hailed as a visionary looking out for the “little guy.” Over the course of a one-hour presentation, Porritt had implored the jurors to rebuke Musk for his “loose relationship with the truth.” “Our society is based on rules,” Porritt said. “We need rules to save us from anarchy. Rules should apply to Elon Musk like everyone else.” Alex Spiro, Musk’s attorney, conceded the 2018 tweets were “technically inaccurate.” But he told the jurors, “Just because it’s a bad tweet doesn’t make it a fraud.” During roughly eight hours on the stand earlier in the trial, Musk insisted he believed he had lined up the funds from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund to take Tesla private after eight years as a publicly held company. He defended his initial August 2018 tweet as well-intentioned and aimed at ensuring all Tesla investors knew the automaker might be on its way to ending its run as a publicly held company.“I had no ill motive,” Musk testified. “My intent was to do the right thing for all shareholders.” Spiro echoed that theme in his closing argument. “He was trying to include the retail shareholder, the mom and pop, the little guy, and not seize more power for himself,” Spiro said. Porritt, meanwhile, scoffed at the notion that Musk could have concluded he had a firm commitment after a 45-minute meeting at a Tesla factory on July 31, 2018, with Yasir al-Rumayyan, governor of Saudi Arabia’s wealth fund, given there was no written documentation. In his 90 minute presentation, Spiro emphasized Musk’s track record helping to start and run a list of companies that include digital payment pioneer PayPal and rocket ship maker SpaceX, in addition to Tesla. The automaker based in Austin, Texas, is now worth nearly $600 billion, despite a steep decline in its stock price last year amid concerns that Musk’s purchase of Twitter would distract him from Tesla. Recalling Musk’s roots as a South African immigrant who came to Silicon Valley to create revolutionary tech companies, Spiro described his client “as the kind of person who believes the impossible is possible.”

An Elon Musk tweet declaring he had the financing to take Tesla private in 2018 caused billions of dollars in investor damages after the deal collapsed, according to estimates presented Tuesday at a trial examining the haphazard handling of the buyout proposal. The mind-bending estimates laid out by two experts hired by attorneys representing Tesla shareholders underscored the challenges facing a nine-person jury as the three-week trial winds down this week. U.S. District Judge Edward Chen expects to turn the case over to the jury Friday. Depending on the verdict, Musk and the electric automaker that he runs could be facing more financial fallout for his unpredictable behavior on the Twitter platform, which he now owns. Without acknowledging any wrongdoing, Musk and Tesla reached a $40 million settlement with securities regulators after Musk’s troublesome tweets in August 2018. In this class-action lawsuit on behalf of Tesla shareholders, the jurors must first determine whether two tweets that Musk abruptly posted on Aug. 7, 2018 steered Tesla investors in the wrong direction. If the jury decides to hold Musk accountable for the tweets that Chen has already deemed falsehood s, they will will face what may be an even more formidable task — trying to calculate how much Musk — one of the world’s richest people — and Tesla should have to pay for the misleading tweets. Read: Ex-Twitter execs to testify on block of Hunter Biden story One of Tuesday’s two experts, economist Michael Hartzmark, reviewed a report peppered with terms such as “but-for” and “consequential inflation” that made a case for calculating the damages suffered by Tesla shareholders during a 10-day period in August 2018 at anywhere from $4 billion to $11 billion, or $22.55 to $66.67 per Tesla share at that time. Another expert, University of Maryland finance professor Steven Heston, reviewed an even denser report analyzing the impact of Musk’s tweets on more than 2,000 types of Tesla stock options, drawing largely upon a formula known as the Black-Scholes model widely used by companies to value executive compensation packages. When pressed by a Musk lawyer about the reliability of his model, Heston acknowledged: “All models deviate from reality, which is why they are models.” Heston, who said he was paid $300,000 to $350,000 for his work in the case, demurred on trying to make a concrete estimate on the investor damages, saying that was a job for the jurors. Read: Trump to be allowed back on Facebook after 2-year ban The crux of the case hinges on an Aug. 7, 2018, tweet in which Musk declared “funding secured ” to take Tesla private. Musk abruptly posted the tweet minutes before boarding his private jet after being alerted that the Financial Times was about to publish a story that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund had spent about $2 billion buying a 5% stake in Tesla to diversify its interests beyond oil, according to his testimony. Amid widespread confusion about whether Musk’s Twitter account had been hacked or he was joking, Musk followed up a few hours later with another tweet suggesting a deal was imminent. During roughly eight hours of sworn testimony, Musk repeatedly insisted he was looking after shareholders’ best interests and believed he had a financing commitment from the Saudi fund that was recanted after his “funding secured” tweet. Musk also testified he could have still pulled off the buyout by raising money from other investors and selling some of his stock in SpaceX, a rocket ship maker that he founded. After consulting with Tesla’s major shareholders, Musk decided the electric automaker should remain publicly traded — a decision that has paid off for him and other investors. Tesla’s shares are now worth more than eight times what they were at the time of Musk’s buyout tweet, after adjusting for two stock splits that have occurred since then.

Tesla on Wednesday posted record net income in the fourth quarter of last year, and the company predicted that additional software-related profits will keep its margins higher than any other automaker. The Austin, Texas, maker of electric vehicles and solar panels said it earned $3.69 billion from October through December, or an adjusted $1.19 per share. That beat estimates of $1.13 that had been reduced by analysts, according to FactSet. The company’s profit was 59% more than the same period a year ago. Revenue for the quarter was $24.32 billion, which fell short of the $24.67 billion that analysts expected. CEO Elon Musk said that despite price cuts of up to 20% on some of its vehicles announced earlier this month, demand for Tesla products is strong and sales are constrained by production. Some analysts have said the price cuts were a sign Tesla's sales are softening. But so far in January, Tesla has seen the strongest orders year-to-date in its history, Musk said on a webcast with analysts. Read more: Elon Musk defiantly defends himself in Tesla tweet trial “We think demand will be good despite probably a contraction in the automotive market as a whole,” he said. “Demand far exceeds production,” Musk said, adding that Tesla is even making small price increases. Tesla said in its investor letter Wednesday that it would produce about 1.8 million vehicles this year, and Musk predicted that sales would also hit that number. Previously Tesla has said its deliveries would grow at a 50% annual rate most years. But 1.8 million would be about a 40% growth rate. Musk said it’s possible Tesla could build 2 million vehicles this year. “There would be demand for that, too,” he told analysts. On Jan. 13, the company cut prices in the U.S. and China, its two biggest markets, leading many analysts to believe that demand had fallen due to high prices and rising interest rates. Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas wrote in a note to investors early Wednesday that demand is a problem. “In our view, the price cuts are indeed a response to slowing incremental demand relative to incremental supply,” he wrote. Tesla's automotive gross profit margin, which is revenue minus cost of goods sold, fell from 30.6% in the fourth quarter of 2021 to 25.9% in the same period in 2022 as previous discounts took hold. Shares of Tesla were up slightly Wednesday, closing at $144.43. They rose another 5.5% in extended trading following the earnings report. Morningstar Equity Strategist Seth Goldstein, who covers Tesla, said Musk addressed fears about demand falling by releasing the 1.8 million sales projection. At least for this year, though, he sees Tesla's profit margins eroding further due to the price cuts. “Longer term I think the profit margins will bounce back,” he said. Average sale prices, he said, rose in the fourth quarter even with price cuts in China, Goldstein said, and the company was able to increase productivity at new factories in Texas and Germany. But that wasn't enough to offset higher raw materials and shipping costs, he said. Read more: Tesla says it sold a record 1.3 million vehicles last year Tesla also said it has rolled out its “Full Self-Driving” software to about 400,000 users, and that it recognized $324 million in revenue from “Full Self-Driving” software during the quarter. Despite its name, “Full Self-Driving” cannot drive itself, and Tesla warns drivers that they must be ready to intervene at any time. The company said it knows there are questions about macroeconomics in the face of rising interest rates. “In the near term we are accelerating our cost reduction roadmap and driving towards higher production rates, while staying focused on executing against the next phase of our roadmap,” the letter said. Musk was asked how Tesla would mitigate brand damage since his $44 billion takeover of Twitter, based on Morning Consult poll results showing a steep favorability decline among Democrats. But Musk said he has 127 million followers on the social media platform, and his following keeps growing. “That suggests that I’m reasonably popular,” he said, adding that the number of followers speaks for itself. For the full year, Tesla made $12.56 billion in net income, or an adjusted $4.07 per share. The company's stock tumbled 65% last year on fears that Musk was distracted by his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter. But so far this year they’re up about 35%. Price cuts that began Jan. 13 fueled concerns on Wall Street that demand for Teslas was falling as intense competition arrives from startups and legacy automakers.

Elon Musk returned to federal court Monday in San Francisco, testifying that he believed he had locked up financial backing to take Tesla private during 2018 meetings with representatives from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund — although no specific funding amount or price was discussed. The 51-year-old billionaire Tesla CEO and Twitter owner is facing a class action lawsuit filed by Tesla investors alleging he misled them with a tweet saying funding was secured to take his electric car company private — for $420 per share. But the deal never came close to happening, and the tweet resulted in a $40 million settlement with securities regulators. Read more: Elon Musk depicted as liar, visionary in Tesla tweet trial The trial hinges on the question of whether a pair of tweets that Musk posted on Aug. 7, 2018, damaged Tesla shareholders during a 10-day period leading up to Musk's admission that the buyout he had envisioned wasn’t going to happen. Speaking in a soft halting tone, Musk said Monday he “had trouble sleeping last night and unfortunately I am not at my best.” He added that it was important for jurors to know that he “felt that funding was secured” due to his ownership of “SpaceX stock alone." “Just as I sold stock in Tesla to buy Twitter. ... I didn't want to sell Tesla stock but I did sell Tesla stock,” he said of the sale to make up for lack of funding from other sources for his $44 billion deal to take Twitter private. Musk sold nearly $23 billion worth of his car company’s shares between last April, when he started building a position in Twitter, and December. “My SpaceX shares alone would have meant that funding was secured,” Musk said of the 2018 tweets. Even before Musk first took the stand on Friday, U.S. District Judge Edward Chen had declared that jurors can consider those two tweets to be false, leaving them to decide whether Musk deliberately deceived investors and whether his statements saddled them with losses. Musk has previously contended he entered into the Securities and Exchange Commission settlement under duress and maintained he believed he had locked up financial backing for a Tesla buyout during meetings with representatives from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. Read more: Elon Musk sells $3.58B worth of Tesla stock, purpose unknown At a July 31, 2018 meeting, the Saudi Public Investment Fund’s Yasir Al-Rumayyan “confirmed unequivocally that they would support Tesla going private. That was part of what ‘funding secure’ meant,” Musk said Monday. “But in addition there was SpaceX stock, which could also be used.” In the first of the 2018 tweets, Musk stated “funding secured” for what would have been a $72 billion — or $420 per share — buyout of Tesla at a time when the electric automaker was still grappling with production problems and was worth far less than it is now. Musk followed up a few hours later with another tweet suggesting a deal was imminent. Nicholas Porritt, a lawyer representing Tesla shareholders, asked Musk if he “went with 420 because it was a joke your girlfriend enjoys.” Musk replied he thinks there is “some karma” around the number 420 — which is also a slang reference to marijuana — although he added he doesn't know “if it's good karma or bad karma at this point.” He then said the number was a "coincidence" and it represented a 20% premium of Tesla's share price at the time. After it became apparent that the money wasn’t in place to take Tesla private, Musk stepped down as Tesla’s chairman while remaining CEO as part of the SEC settlement, without acknowledging wrongdoing. On Friday, Musk had testified he thinks it is possible to be “absolutely truthful” on Twitter. "But can you be comprehensive? Of course not.” On Monday, he again emphasized: “My tweet was truthful, absolutely truthful." Asked by his lawyer, Alex Spiro, if he understood the charges against him, Musk said he's being "accused of fraud. It’s outrageous.” Shares of Tesla climbed $8.76. or 6.6%, to $142.18 on Monday. He said he never deceived investors.