Tesla is Worth Half a Billion
Techcrunch points out that Tesla is valued at half a billion dollars, now that Daimler bought 9% of the company. Daimler paid $50 million, ...

Daimler and Tesla have worked together before, with Daimler purchasing battery packs and chargers for their first 1,000 electric Smart cars.
TechCrunch says the $350 million federal loan Tesla applied has been informally approved and is close to being announced. They also point out that a short time ago, Tesla was down to $9 million in cash last year.
The Model S will likely benefit the most from the investment by Daimler.
"The Model S program is likely to be built quicker and significantly better" because of Daimler's support, said Michael van der Sande, senior vice president of global sales, service and marketing for Tesla.
The Model S may have 1,000 pre-orders, but that's a lot of value.