*By Carlo Versano*
The exodus from Tesla continued Friday morning, after news that two more executives had called it quits.
Accounting chief David Morton [reportedly](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tesla-moves/tesla-chief-accountant-resigns-one-month-after-joining-idUSKCN1LN1MH) resigned just a month after joining the company. The impetus? Reportedly the unrelenting pace of work and the level of public scrutiny at the company. Shortly after, HR head Gabrielle Toledano, who'd taken a leave of absence last month, also said she wouldn't return.
The departures came after CEO Elon Musk gave a wide-ranging, nearly three-hour [interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycPr5-27vSI&feature=youtu.be) to podcast host Joe Rogan and addressed topics ranging from his job at Tesla to the the end of the world.
Musk admitted on "The Joe Rogan Experience" that running a company like Tesla is intense and tricky, saying, "It's very difficult to keep a car company alive." The CEO didn't give any indication that he's seeking a lieutenant to help him handle the workload.
At one point, Musk and Rogan shared a spliff, though Musk said doesn't make a habit of smoking weed, which he called "a cup of coffee in reverse." He said he's found the substance hurt his productivity. Marijuana is legal in California, where the interview took place.
Musk also told Rogan that Tesla remains his focus, though he did ruminate aloud on a new idea to build an electric airplane that he thinks would be capable of taking off and landing vertically (VTOL), as Harrier jets do. But Musk also said this isn't really a priority, and he also dismissed the concept of a flying car as impractical.
“Electric cars are important, solar energy is important, stationary storage of energy is important. These things are much more important than creating electric supersonic VTOL,” he said.
Rogan asked Musk about The Boring Company, which Musk said started as a"joke," mostly borne out of his desperation to fix L.A.'s notoriously bad traffic problem.
"I'm not saying it's going to be successful," Musk said, though he noted it has already dug a mile-long tunnel under the streets of Los Angeles.
Shares of Tesla were down as much as 10 percent in early Friday trade, the biggest percent drop for the company since June 2016.
That may have provided some relief to those betting on the company's decline ー on Thursday, it was reported that prolific short seller Andrew Left of Citron Research was filing suit against Tesla and Musk for the now-infamous "funding secured" tweet in early August. Left argued that the CEO committed stock manipulation and securities fraud ー shares immediately soared after that post, but have since fallen more than 30 percent.
Musk did not directly address the suit during the Rogan sit-down.
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
Tesla, the car company run by Elon Musk, reported Wednesday that it sold more vehicles in the past three months after boycotts hit hard earlier this year, but profits still fell sharply. Third-quarter earnings fell to $1.4 billion, from $2.2 billion a year earlier. Excluding charges, per share profit of 50 cents came in below analysts' estimate. Tesla shares fell 3.5% in after-hours trading. Musk said the company's robotaxi service, which is available in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, will roll out to as many as 10 other metro areas by the end of the year.
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