Musk tells Tesla trial: ‘Just because I tweet doesn’t mean people believe it’

Elon Musk testified on Friday as part of a trial over a 2018 tweet in which he claimed to have "funding secured" to take Tesla private, a tweet that shareholders allege cost them millions in trading losses.

The Tesla CEO appeared in a San Francisco federal courtroom and defended himself by saying that "just because I tweet something does not mean people believe it or will act accordingly".

Musk's testimony began with questions about his use of Twitter, the social media platform he bought in October. He called it the most democratic way to communicate but said his tweets did not always affect Tesla stock the way he expected.

The class-action trial in San Francisco federal court centers on allegations that the Tesla CEO lied when he sent the tweet, costing investors. Earlier on Friday morning, investor Timothy Fries told the jury how he lost $5,000 buying Tesla stock after Musk sent the tweet at the center of the lawsuit.

The case is a rare securities class-action trial and the plaintiffs have already cleared high legal hurdles, with the US judge Edward Chen ruling last year that Musk's post was untruthful and reckless.

Fries told the jury that funding secured meant to him that "there had been some vetting, some critical review of those funding sources".

Musk, wearing a dark suit over a white button-down shirt, testified for less than 30 minutes before court adjourned until Monday. He spoke softly and in a sometimes bemused manner, a contrast to his occasional combative testimony in past trials.