Troubled electric vehicle (EV) maker Nikola has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, months after dropping the financial equivalent of a “your couch is on fire” warning about its rapidly dwindling cash reserves.
Once hailed as the Tesla-killer and Wall Street’s golden child, the company quickly went from “zero to hero” to “zero to uh-oh.”
The downfall was capped off by the 2022 conviction of its founder, Trevor Milton, who turned out to be less of a visionary genius and more of a masterclass in overpromising and underdelivering—especially when it came to trucks that didn’t actually work.
Speaking of which, during Milton’s trial, prosecutors revealed that a slick promotional video of a prototype truck “cruising” down a desert highway was about as real as a unicorn riding a skateboard.
Turns out, the truck wasn’t cruising—it was coasting, because it didn’t actually run. Someone just pushed it downhill and called it innovation. It’s like trying to sell a cardboard box as a self-driving car: impressive until you open the hood and find… nothing.
Nikola, headquartered in Arizona (where apparently even cacti are starting to doubt their survival), filed for bankruptcy protection in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.
In true corporate desperation fashion, they’ve also asked the court for permission to hold an auction and sell off what’s left of the business.
With roughly $47 million in cash on hand, Nikola is essentially the guy at the club who’s down to his last two singles but still insists he’s “good for it.”
The company plans to keep its limited service and support operations alive for vehicles already on the road—think of it as a mechanic trying to keep a jalopy running with duct tape and hope.
Fueling operations will limp along through the end of March, but only if the court gives them the green light. Beyond that, Nikola admitted it’ll need more cash to keep things going, which is like asking your broke friend to Venmo you $20 after he already owe you $50.
“Like other companies in the electric vehicle industry, we have faced various market and macroeconomic factors that have impacted our ability to operate,” CEO Steve Girsky said in a statement. Translation: “We’re not failing; the universe just hates us.”
Girsky added that despite their best efforts to raise funds, cut costs, and hoard whatever cash they had left, the company still couldn’t balance its checkbook. It’s like trying to plug a leaky boat with spaghetti—it sounds fun in theory, but it doesn’t work.
“The Board has determined that Chapter 11 represents the best possible path forward under the circumstances for the Company and its stakeholders,” Girsky explained.
In layman’s terms: “Filing for bankruptcy is our version of hitting the ‘reset’ button, except the game might not even turn back on.” At this point, Nikola’s idea of a “best possible path” is less about innovation and more about finding the nearest exit ramp before the wheels fall off completely.
In December 2023, Trevor Milton was sentenced to four years in prison after being convicted of exaggerating claims about Nikola’s zero-emission 18-wheel trucks—a sentence that probably felt like a lifetime compared to the lifespan of his company’s actual working vehicles.
Prosecutors painted Milton as less of a visionary entrepreneur and more of a Utah basement-dwelling wizard who conjured up magical trucks out of thin air (and maybe some spare parts from General Motors).
Evidence revealed that the “revolutionary” truck he bragged about was basically a GM product with a fancy sticker slapped on it—like putting a mustache on a Prius and calling it a race car.
To make matters worse, Nikola’s team apparently spent more time editing videos than engineering trucks. Their doctored clips made it look like the trucks were cruising smoothly down highways, when in reality, they were about as functional as a chocolate teapot.
It’s like filming your kid riding a tricycle and pitching it as a Formula 1 prototype.
Milton resigned in 2020 amid fraud allegations, triggering a stock price nosedive so dramatic it could’ve been mistaken for a SpaceX launch—but in reverse.
Investors took heavy losses after reports debunked Milton’s claims that Nikola had already rolled out fleets of zero-emission trucks. Spoiler alert: They hadn’t even figured out how to roll one downhill without assistance.
In 2021, Nikola coughed up $125 million to settle a civil case with the SEC but refused to admit wrongdoing—because nothing says “we’re innocent” like writing a giant check and walking away whistling.
As Nikola navigates its bankruptcy proceedings, the company is stuck in the ultimate game of corporate limbo, balancing financial woes and the lingering stench of scandal.
At this point, their future looks about as bright as a flashlight powered by dead batteries. But hey, at least they’ve got plenty of experience rolling things downhill—whether it’s trucks or their reputation.
Leave a Reply