Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jul 15, 2025

Elon Musk accuses a major Saudi investor of 'ass-covering' in a trial over his 'funding secured' Tesla tweet

Elon Musk accuses a major Saudi investor of 'ass-covering' in a trial over his 'funding secured' Tesla tweet

Elon Musk testified for a second day in a shareholder trial, blaming Saudi investor Yasir Al-Rumayyan for "backpedaling" on taking Tesla private.
Elon Musk said he'd tweeted about planning to take Tesla private in part after assurances by a major Saudi Arabian investor, whom he accused of later "backpedaling" and "ass-covering" to slink out of an alleged agreement.

In an ongoing civil trial in San Francisco federal court, Musk continued to defend his 2018 tweet about having the "funding secured," for a Tesla transaction, saying that Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of Saudi Arabia's Private Investment Fund, had "verbally" expressed support for the plan.

Musk said that in a meeting in July 2018, Al-Rumayyan told him, then-Tesla chief financial officer Deepak Ahuja, and Musk's then chief-of-staff Sam Teller that the Saudi investors "were committed" to a plan they were discussing to take the carmaker private.

He said that Al-Rumayyan told them that "they would do whatever it took to get it done," and that he'd been "unequivocal" about supporting the deal. Then in a conversation after Musk's tweet, Al-Rumayyan softened his stance to say that the Saudi PIF were interested in looking into possible investment opportunities with Tesla, Musk said.

"At this point, Yasir is obviously backpedaling from what he told me, and Deepak and Sam, that they were committed to the transaction," Musk said in his testimony on Monday in the ongoing civil trial, in which Musk is facing investors' claims that he misled them about wanting to take Tesla private and having secured the funding to do so.

"This is ass-covering, for lack of a better word," he added, suggesting that Al-Rumayyan may have been concerned about potential legal exposure.

Al-Rumayyan, Musk, and attorneys for Musk and Tesla shareholders did not respond to a request for comment from Insider ahead of publication. Spokespeople for PIF and Tesla also did not respond to a request for comment. The request was made outside of regular working hours in Saudi Arabia.

In text messages between Musk and the investor that were revealed last year as a part of the pretrial discovery process, the Tesla CEO accused Al-Rumayyan of throwing him "under the bus." At the time, the texts show Al-Rumayyan said PIF couldn't commit to a project "that we don't have sufficient information on."

In 2020, the sovereign wealth fund sold 99.5% of its Tesla holdings after hedging its position on the electric-car in 2019 shortly after Musk agreed to pay a $20 million fine with the Securities and Exchange Commission over his tweet.

Musk is set to take the stand for a third day on Tuesday. The billionaire claims he planned to take Tesla private at the time of tweeting "funding secured" in August 2018. Tesla shareholders that bought the electric-car maker's stock in the days following the tweet are suing him, seeking billions of dollars in damages.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
×