Tesla And SpaceX Escaped Bankruptcy

In December 2008, Tesla and SpaceX were both running out of money, leaving Tesla CEO and SpaceX founder Elon Musk close to losing both companies to bankruptcy. On December 23, NASA saved SpaceX by awarding it a $1.6 billion contract for 12 cargo flights to the International Space Station. At 6 p.m. the next day, Christmas Eve, Tesla closed a $40 million debt-financing round just before its payroll would have bounced. The two rescues happened within roughly 24 hours.

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