*By Carlo Versano*
Shares of Tesla jumped more than 15 percent in the pre-market Monday on news that CEO Elon Musk settled a lawsuit with the SEC over Musk's social media use.
Under the terms of the settlement, Musk will step down as chairman of Tesla ($TSLA) for at least three years but can remain in the chief executive role. He and the company must each pay $20 million in fines. Two independent board members will also be appointed.
Federal regulators sued Musk last week, arguing that his infamous Aug. 7 "funding secured" tweet amounted to securities fraud. The lawsuit was filed after Musk reportedly scuttled a last-minute deal with the agency under which he would resign as chairman and pay a fine but not admit to any wrongdoing. Talks restarted soon after, and by Saturday a new settlement was in place.
The settlement takes care of one major headache for investors, who will now look to the car maker's third-quarter production and delivery numbers, which may be reported as early as Monday. Musk [reportedly] (https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/30/elon-musk-tells-tesla-to-ignore-distractions-hints-at-profitability.html) emailed employees over the weekend, telling them to "ignore all distractions" and that the company was approaching profitability.
From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, these are the top stories that moved markets and had investors, business leaders, and entrepreneurs talking this week on Cheddar.
Samsara, one of the hottest tech startups in the freight and logistics space, is raising $100 million in fresh funding, Cheddar has learned. The new round will value the three-year-old startup at about $3.6 billion, or more than double the valuation it achieved through its last round of funding just nine months ago.
As 2018 dwindles, we're reviewing the year's most extravagant fails as part of Cheddar's Hall of Shame.
With oil prices nearing 18-month lows, John Hofmeister, former president of Shell Oil, is worried about the negative impact of lower prices. In fact, he says, if prices drop below
$40 a barrel, the cost of production will exceed the revenue it brings. That said, Hofmeister noted that lower oil prices are having a big impact on the consumer. People are driving more, and the impact hits everything from plastics to clothing and air fares.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Friday, Dec. 28, 2018.
Instagram accidentally released an update to its app on Thursday, enraging users and igniting a firestorm on social media. The social media platform, which hit 1 billion users in June, modified how users view their main feeds ー switching from a vertical scroll to a horizontal swipe, à la popular dating app, Tinder.
When U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions moved to undermine Obama-era marijuana industry protections in January, there was little indication how pivotal 2018 would prove to be for the cannabis industry. As 2019 approaches, Cheddar is now looking ahead to next year and forecasting what's in store for the U.S. marijuana industry.
Body-care brand Busy Beauty wants over-taxed women to spend less time on primping. "We developed a full line of products that let women completely skip the shower if they either don't feel like it or don't have the time," said Jamie Steenbakkers, the company's co-founder and COO.
The chief strategist of Bubba Trading is casting doubt on the demand for Tesla's Model 3. "I don't know that I necessarily agree with there's demand there," Bubba Trading's Todd Horwiz told Cheddar Wednesday. "I think it's a great car. I think it's a great concept. I think it's an extremely overvalued company, and I think the CEO has got some issues that he's got to deal with."
Roughly five years ago, Detroit made history as the largest city to ever file for municipal bankruptcy. But in 2018, the Motor City is teaching itself how to transform from America's factory into an engine for innovation. According to start-up incubator TechTown CEO and president Ned Staebler, adjustments to the city's economy and the value of its labor supply could begin a tech-based rebirth, a future when automobiles are not just considered vessels of transportation, but rather as pieces of the revolution.
