New report claims widespread deception by Nikola Motor and founder Trevor Milton:
A new report claims that zero-emissions vehicle startup Nikola Motor has made a series of deceptive public statements and representations about its technology and business. Allegations include that Nikola staged a 2018 video of its signature hydrogen fuel-cell truck driving, and that it has made deceptive claims about its battery development efforts after the failure of an acquisition deal.
The allegations come from Hindenburg Research, which has a short position in Nikola stock. But they follow previous reports of misrepresentations by Nikola and broader expert skepticism about the company's aggressive claims.
The Hindenburg report's most striking claim is that a January 2018 video purportedly showing a Nikola One hydrogen fuel-cell semi truck moving under its own power was staged. According to Hindenburg, the video in fact showed the truck rolling down a long, gentle slope. Hindenburg's report includes a test confirming that the section of road shown in the video could accelerate a coasting vehicle to highway speeds, along with text messages from a former Nikola employee appearing to confirm the tactics.
Also at CNBC theDrive and zerohedge.
Related Stories
Nikola stock plunges 26% after fraud claims complicate hydrogen plans:
Shares of hydrogen truck startup Nikola plunged 26 percent on Wednesday after The Wall Street Journal reported that the company was struggling to find partners to build a planned network of hydrogen fueling stations. Nikola's stock closed at $21.15 on Wednesday, a decline of 57 percent from the $50 peak reached on September 8
[...] Nikola now concedes that the truck never worked and that a promotional video of the truck was made by rolling it down a hill.
Nikola argued that this was old news because Nikola is no longer marketing the Nikola One and has a working prototype of the Nikola Two. But the revelations threw the company into chaos and forced Milton to resign on Sunday.
Previously:
New Report Claims Widespread Deception by Nikola Motor and Founder Trevor Milton
Nikola Motors Opening Reservations for Badger Electric Pickup Truck on June 27
Nikola Semi Startup Shines on Wall Street With $34BN Valuation
Nikola founder bought truck designs from third party:
The original design for Nikola's flagship truck was purchased by founder Trevor Milton from a designer in Croatia, according to two people with knowledge of the matter, despite company claims in a 2018 lawsuit that the vehicle was initially designed by Mr. Milton "in his basement.."
The truck, the Nikola One, is at the centre of a $2 billion lawsuit with Tesla, in which Nikola alleges its rival infringed on its patents. Nikola claims in that lawsuit that Mr. Milton began designing the model in 2013, with other company staff later working on it.
In a rebuttal to the lawsuit filed last week, Tesla alleged that Nikola could not protect the designs because they did not originate from the company itself, but from Adriano Mudri, a designer based in Croatia.
The arstechnica article didn't include any links.
Nikola Founder Bought Truck Design From Designer's College Portfolio: Report:
And Nikola's sub-contracture allegedly doesn't end with technology, as a Financial Times report alleges even Nikola's design for the hydrogen-powered One semi-truck was outsourced from Croatia.
Previously:
Nikola Stock Plunges 26% after Fraud Claims Complicate Hydrogen Plans
New Report Claims Widespread Deception by Nikola Motor and Founder Trevor Milton
Nikola Motors Opening Reservations for Badger Electric Pickup Truck on June 27
Nikola Semi Startup Shines on Wall Street With $34BN Valuation
At this point, Nikola's business plan seems to be resembling the movie The Producers business plan more than anything.
(Score: 4, Funny) by takyon on Monday September 14 2020, @01:37AM (6 children)
https://wccftech.com/nikola-nkla-in-turmoil-what-should-the-shareholders-now-expect-amid-allegations-of-another-theranos-in-the-making/ [wccftech.com]
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @01:44AM (1 child)
This one's bigger -- scam semi-trucks are way bigger than scam diagnostic-chips!
Lucky for GM that (afaik) no money has changed hands yet, they just inked the deal.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @02:01AM
Valid or not, the report could backfire [teslarati.com] in a way that hybrid vehicles don't.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by captain normal on Monday September 14 2020, @04:35AM (2 children)
This story is so last week. Let me see if I've got this right: hedge fund that shorted Nikola stock issues report that claims Nikola lies abut its product, right? Now I'm not saying Elon had anything to do with it, but who stands to benefit most if this is true?
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-09-12/nikola-s-history-of-discrepancies-has-been-hiding-in-plain-sight [bloomberg.com]
https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2020-07-31/europeans-are-building-the-next-tesla-at-a-company-called-nikola [bloomberg.com]
Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts"- --Daniel Patrick Moynihan--
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @05:24AM (1 child)
Musk hates shorts, and shorts hate Musk.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @10:33AM
Who wears short shorts? [youtube.com]
(Score: 2) by Freeman on Monday September 14 2020, @05:01PM
While there seems to have been some shady dealings. It looks like they do actually have a product that works. Unlike Theranos, who hyped it up and never delivered. Well, failed to meet expectations. Like, if Nikola only had that prototype truck that didn't actually run or they had a "functional" truck, but it kept turning itself off every time you pushed on the accelerator due to a lack of current from the batteries.
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @02:33AM (1 child)
Shorts provide a valuable service. LOL, Hindenburg. They have a sense of humor, too. By being able to make money on the stock going down, there's a built-in incentive for them to ferret out scams and such, subject to the constraint that they can't just libel or slander things down. I'm sure there are cases of shorts doing bad things to destroy a stock, but this report, if true, is not one of them. Carry on.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @09:40AM
Indeed, a honest company name.
(Score: 2, Informative) by legont on Monday September 14 2020, @03:00AM
Facebook tried to flag it fake news, sucker Zuker is.
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-12-22/facebook-ditches-its-fake-news-flag-after-realizing-people-shared-flagged-articles-e [zerohedge.com]
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @06:13AM (14 children)
Gotta say, this an another nutherguy submission, the IRC handle of Runaway1956. These Subs are tainted, they are biased, and they are not appropriate for so noble a site as SN. Thus, I will not read, I will not comment, though I may downmod. SoylentNews used to have standards, but now, oh dear, we have become a mouthpiece for the stupidest of Americans.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @07:48AM (5 children)
I concur! Something has to be done to end this barrage of poorly vetted marginal news stories!
(Score: 0, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @07:52AM (4 children)
Currently, the front page has seven nutherguy submissions. We are not sure about the rest.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @08:33AM (3 children)
Someone does not like soylentils expressing their opinions! Here, mod this troll, too!
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @08:47AM (2 children)
I am Spartacus! Mod me, too!!!
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @09:14AM (1 child)
Hey! You can't downmod ACs like that! We are legion! Where We go 1, We go all!!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 15 2020, @10:02AM
Wait! Are you seriously telling me that this is yet another nutherguy submission, full of rightwing disinformation and perception management, and Soylentils cannot object to being fed such fake news? Time for community submissions mods. The Eds have lost their fucking minds.
(Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @12:23PM (2 children)
You are more than welcome
fuck the hell offto submit any better stories that you find. Until then please feel free tofuck the hell offsimply skip this story and wait for the next one.(Score: 3, Touché) by DeathMonkey on Monday September 14 2020, @05:54PM (1 child)
Fairly certain the guy always complaining about "nutherguy" already posts plenty of stories!
Wish he would stop with the AC-puppetry, though....
(Score: 2) by aristarchus on Tuesday September 15 2020, @10:08AM
Much more "fair and balanced" ones, of course. Not that it matters.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @12:34PM (2 children)
Sounds like sour grapes to me.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Monday September 14 2020, @01:24PM (1 child)
Sour grapes, fermenting over a period of years. Yup, it's whine.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 14 2020, @06:22PM
Preferable to takyon submissions, but that is not saying much!
(Score: 3, Informative) by FatPhil on Tuesday September 15 2020, @09:33AM (1 child)
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 15 2020, @10:13AM
Hmm, preferential treatment, for the "differently abled" or "Fox News deluded deplorables"? Nice to know SoylentNews believes in affirmative action, even at the cost of the quality of submissions! Social Justice on, SN!!
(Score: 2) by Freeman on Monday September 14 2020, @02:55PM (1 child)
https://arstechnica.com/cars/2020/09/nikola-stock-falls-25-as-the-company-faces-new-fraud-allegations/ [arstechnica.com]
That YouTube video looks kind of sketchy to me, but I'd guess, probably legit. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heHZYqlLRdE&feature=youtu.be&t=1928 [youtube.com] (Same link as in quote.)
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 3, Informative) by requerdanos on Monday September 14 2020, @11:15PM
Ars update from today (14 Sept):
Ars Technica: Nikola admits prototype was rolling downhill in promotional video [arstechnica.com]