That Elon Musk can sell $10M worth of something as silly as flamethrowers, should be a sign of worry for car manufacturers. The cult surrounding Elon Musk is second to none in the auto world. Which car manufacturer could sell useless merchandise branded with the name of what is really just an experimental side project run by a sister company, not even the brand of the auto company itself?
Tesla investors should worry about stunts like these. Each time Musk sells nonsense products like these he trades brand equity for money. To be explicit, these flamethrowers diminish the value of Tesla.
How much of the Tesla valuation is due to Musk? 20, 30, 50, 90%?
Each stunt like this makes which ever percentage that is a bit bigger.
What happens if or more like when Musk retires from Tesla to focus on SpaceX or another company? He’s running effectively 4 companies atm Tesla, SolarCity, SpaceX and the Boring Company eventually he could want or will have to focus on fewer ventures.
Tesla is effectively the only public traded company if he leaves the stock can tank and tank to the point where it would put them in serious trouble.
It would never have occurred to me to buy a flamethrower, but I would have thought they’d be much more expensive than $500.
I don’t think it reduces Musk’s brand. It’s tech, they’re fun (no one is buying these for a practical purpose) and they look like they’re from a video game. It’s a luxury hardware gadget.
As long as they work, that is. He needs to be careful he doesn’t develop a persona of overpromising and being unable to meet commitments.
The real news is at 1:15. I don't know if he planned this, but if I was in Musk's shoes I'd create a fake flamethrower-rights movement just to ridicule those who would like to ban them so fast even before they could be accounted for a single fire or injured person, while doing nothing about guns.
I realise that this is a marketing stunt, but potentially this could have a serious impact on the Boring Company. A flamethrower is a weapon, even if it's a 'toy' like Elon's flamethrower. This means the Boring Company is probably in violation of any open source license that prohibits use in evil applications - for example, the JSON license (http://www.json.org/license.html). I'm pretty sure that there's a bunch of other OSS licenses that prohibit their use in military applications too.
I don't seriously imagine for a second that anything will actually happen as a result of this. It's just fun to think about.
Interesting, though presumably as long as the flamethrower itself doesn't use the json library, they're clear. Though I now imagine a licence that blocks use by any company that manufactures or distribute weapons, for example. Or is in the coal industry. Is 'licence activism' a thing? Could it be?
It is a thing (most memorably a piece of software which is freeware normally, but you must make a donation if you air travel over a certain amount year), but it's rare. Most definitions of Open Source and Free Software do not include licenses with such restrictions (a core freedom being being able to do whatever you want with the software).
Musk!
He'll sting you with his dreams of power and wealth.
Beware of Musk!
His twisted twin obsessions are his plot to rule the world
And his employees' health.
He'll welcome you into his lair
Like the nobleman welcomes his guest
With free dental care and a stock plan that helps you invest!
But beware of his generous pensions
Plus three weeks paid vacation each year
And on Fridays, the lunchroom serves hot dogs and burgers and beer!
He loves German beer!
