Updated 5.15pm (PT): So maybe Elon Musk didn't mean to take a dig at Apple and it's new hires.
"Yo, I don't hate Apple," Musk tweeted, responding to an article published in a German newspaper where he said that if you don't make it at Tesla, you end up at Apple.
Musk also said: "It's a great company with a lot of talented people. I love their products and I'm glad they're doing an EV."
Oh, and he also didn't mean to belittle the Apple Watch, apparently. In another tweet, Musk said, "Regarding the watch, Jony & his team created a beautiful design, but the functionality isn't compelling yet. By version 3, it will be."
Original article...
Tesla chief Elon Musk has taken a swing at Apple, referring to Tim Cook's company as the "Tesla graveyard".
Speaking to German newspaper Handelsblatt, Musk dismissed claims that Apple is currently poaching important staff from the automotive firm.
"Important engineers? They have hired people we've fired," said Musk. "We always jokingly call Apple the 'Tesla Graveyard'. If you don't make it at Tesla, you go work at Apple. I'm not kidding."
Ouch
Nonetheless, Musk was asked if Apple's interest in the car space posed a concern for Tesla. "Did you ever take a look at the Apple Watch?" was his joking response.
"No, seriously: It's good that Apple is moving and investing in this direction. But cars are very complex compared to phones or smartwatches. You can't just got to a supplier like Foxconn and say: Build me a car.
"But for Apple, the car is the next logical thing to finally offer a significant innovation. A new pencil or a bigger iPad alone were not relevant enough."
We have mental images of Jony Ive lunging wildly at Musk - Tim Cook doing his best to restrain him - the moment Musk starts trash-talking the pencil.
