Oh, Elon

I made a bet with some random twitter person (loser gives to a food bank) about Elon never delivering. We settled on Elon actually producing (not merely buying) a single solitary working ventilator and delivering it to a medical facility in 3 weeks. Offered to double it for another 3 weeks. I would have given him 6 months on the initial bet but he was quite optimistic, as Elon fans tend to be.

It seemed like miraculous news at a moment when the state was desperately searching for ventilators to help save critical coronavirus patients. But was it true?

Newsom’s office now says Musk was supposed to deliver the ventilators directly to hospitals. So far, however, the governor’s office says no California hospital has received them.

It’s also not clear whether Musk actually has any ventilators to give. A report by the Financial Times’ Alphaville column revealed that Musk had purchased Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure (BPAP) machines, which he then plastered with Tesla stickers and shipped to New York.

BPAP machines might have some use but there isn't actually a shortage of them (go order yourself one if you wish!). Nothing miraculous about a rich guy bulk buying some machines that aren't even hard to find. ELON MUSK, ENGINEERING SUPERGENIUS, is not a real thing, and politicians really should stop falling for his bullshit.