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Elon Musk has hinted that the peer-to-peer car-sharing platform Turo was somehow connected to the Tesla cybertruck explosion on January 1, 2025, outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas. Taking to his social networking site X, Musk wrote:
“Appears likely to be an act of terrorism. Both this Cybertruck and the F-150 suicide bomb in New Orleans were rented from Turo. Perhaps they are linked in some way.”
Turo allows owners to rent their cars to regular people, and it works almost like Airbnb. It was also used by the driver who rammed a Ford pickup truck into a crowd in the French Quarters, New Orleans, on New Year's Day. The incident killed at least 15 people and injured a dozen others, as per CBS News. The assailant, who was fatally shot down by the police, has been identified as 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar.
Sheriff Kevin McMahill of the Las Vegas Police Department said the authorities were examining whether the Tesla Cybertruck explosion could be connected to the incident in New Orleans, where improvised explosive devices were found near the scene.
Apart from Elon Musk’s tweet, no official connection between the two incidents has been confirmed. President Joe Biden, who was briefed on the two incidents, shared that law enforcement is investigating whether they were linked.
More about Turo in the wake of Tesla cybertruck explosion
Turo is a car rental alternative that allows individuals to rent cars directly from the owners and potentially save money compared to traditional rentals. It was founded in 2009 and valued at $1.5 billion in 2020, per Pitchfork.
Turo is an app-based experience that offers 1600+ unique makes and models of vehicles, including cars, convertibles, minivans, SUVs, pickup trucks, exotic/luxury rides, and cargo vans.
People can choose the exact car they want without waiting in long queues. It offers reasonable delivery options and over a thousand pickup locations. From individuals to local small businesses, everybody can use Turo. The platform is also flexible regarding the time and place of car rentals beyond the conventional facilities.
It also has a customer rating system where the host/owner and the cars can be reviewed. According to the website, Turo works in three easy steps. First, the renter needs to enter the where and when of their car requirement and then find the most suitable one using the filters and reviews.
Next, a pickup location needs to be set so that the renter can either pick up the vehicle themselves or have it delivered to their preferred destination, such as airports, train stations, hotels, or homes. Finally, after all the necessary details have been lodged, the rental is complete, and the user can hit the road. Customers can contact the host directly in case of queries or support.
Turo, headquartered in San Francisco, is available 24/7 in the USA, the UK, Australia, France, and Canada. The keys can be handed over in person via the Turo app or a lockbox code. The platform offers three types of physical damage protection insurance: minimum, standard, and premium. Turo also has a third-party liability insurance policy from Travelers Excess and Surplus Lines Company that covers all trips.
American Express, BMW, Liberty Mutual, Kleiner Perkins, and Google Ventures are some of Turo's investors. Celebrities like rapper 2 Chainz and NBA and NFL players have also invested in the app.
Exploring Elon Musk’s tweets amid Tesla cybertruck incident
On Wednesday, around 8.40 am local time, a Tesla cybertruck exploded at President-elect Donald Trump-owned Las Vegas hotel, killing one (the driver) and injuring seven others, who were transported to a hospital.
According to media reports, the cybertruck was carrying bomb-like large fireworks that led to the explosion. Tesla CEO Elon Musk later confirmed the same. As per law enforcement reports, the incident was “intentional” and was being investigated as a “potential act of terrorism.”
Elon Musk replied to his PAC @America’s tweet reporting on the incident and doubled down on the “terrorism” claim, adding it might be connected to the same-day New Orleans carnage.
In another tweet before this, Musk wrote that his senior team at Tesla investigated the matter and “confirmed” the cause of the explosion. He added that the “fireworks” were being “carried in the bed of the rented cybertruck,” which was “unrelated to the vehicle itself.”
“All vehicle telemetry was positive at the time of the explosion,” he wrote.
In his first post about the incident, Musk claimed that his car company has “never seen anything like this.” Meanwhile, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police, Clark County Fire Department, and FBI are continuing their investigation to determine the exact motive behind the explosion.
The bureau’s acting special agent from the Las Vegas office, Jeremy Schwartz, told reporters on Wednesday:
“I know you have a lot of questions. We don't have a lot of answers.”
Brazilian tourist Ana Bruce, who is visiting Las Vegas, told reporters she heard three explosions. She said the first sparked a fire, the second exposed the battery, and the third was a “big one that smoked the entire area.”
She also mentioned evacuating the premises and keeping her distance from them, as the authorities had instructed. Her companion, Alcides Antunes, shared a video he took of the incident, showing the futuristic silver-colored vehicle in flames.
Turo confirmed that the Tesla cybertruck and Ford F-150 pickup truck were rented using their app.
"Our trust and safety team is actively partnering with law enforcement authorities to share any information that could be helpful in their investigations," the statement read.
The company added that it doesn't "believe that either renter had a criminal background that would have identified them as a security threat," nor did it have any information to indicate that the two incidents were "related."
