Google Negotiated To Buy Tesla n 2013

In 2013, Tesla Motors Inc TSLA was on the verge of bankruptcy, leading the automaker to look for a sale to Google Inc GOOG GOOGL, according to a report from Bloomberg News.

"By Valentine's Day 2013, Tesla was heading toward a death spiral of missed sales targets and falling shares," the report, an excerpt from a new biography on Elon Musk due out next month said. "The company's executives had also hidden the severity of the problem from the intensely demanding Musk."

When Musk found out the severity of Tesla's issues, he reached out personally to Google's co-founder and CEO Larry Page during early March 2013. The deal valued Tesla at $6 billion and required that Google employ Musk for eight years and invest $5 billion in a new factory.

Related Link: How Can You Be As Great As Elon Musk, Bill Gates & Steve Jobs?

While attorneys were negotiating the deal, Tesla's fortunes turned around with an increasing number of sales. Those sales took off and helped propel Tesla to report $11 million quarterly profit.

In February 2013, Tesla shares traded at $37. Since then, the company has returned 460 percent to close last Friday at $206.79, with a market capitalization of $26 billion -- more than 4.5 times what Google agreed to pay. Year-to-date, shares have traded down 7 percent.

Posted In: NewsTechElon MuskGooglelarry pageTesla
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