--- title: "Founder of Tesla Competitor Nikola Steps Down Amid Fraud Scandal" description: "Nikola founder and executive chairman Trevor Milton is officially stepping down from the company's board of directors following fraud allegations." date: "2020-09-21" modified: "2020-09-21" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/founder-tesla-competitor-nikola-steps-down" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" tags: - "nikola" - "nikola motors" - "Nikola One" - "the digest" --- # Founder of Tesla Competitor Nikola Steps Down Amid Fraud Scandal ![Nikola founder and executive chairman Trevor Milton is officially stepping down from the company's board of directors following fraud allegations.]() *\Image: Nikola Motors\* ## Ouch Nikola Motors founder and executive chairman Trevor Milton is stepping down from the company's board of directors following fraud allegations, [*The Verge* reports](). His company, Nikola, made a major splash in 2018 with a zero-emissions semi truck powered by both electric and hydrogen fuel cells — though Milton himself has risen to prominence in part by [butting heads with Tesla CEO Elon Musk](). In a statement [posted to Twitter](), Milton said that "the focus should be on the Company and its world-changing mission, not me. I intend to defend myself against false allegations leveled against me by outside detractors." ## Remember the SEC? According to an [Earth-shattering report]() released by short selling investment firm Hindenburg Research this month, Nikola is little more than an "intricate fraud built on dozens of lies over the course of its Founder and Executive Chairman Trevor Milton’s career." Nikola is now facing an investigation by both the US Securities and Exchange Commission [and the Department of Justice](), [according to *Bloomberg*](). Following [the announcement]() of Milton's resignation, the company's shares fell by 22 percent in US pre-market trading. The electric carmaker, which [has yet to make any revenue](), called the Hindenburg report ["false and defamatory."]() Despite the denial, the company did not end up disputing that a semi truck it showed off in a 2018 video was not able to propel itself — it essentially just rolled down a hill. ## Cheerleader In Milton's statement, he added he would be "cheering from the sidelines." General Motors recently [took over production]() for Nikola's "[Badger]()," a much-hyped electric-hydrogen pickup. Now, GM VP Stephen Girksy has taken over as chairman of the board for Nikola. **READ MORE:** [Nikola’s founder steps down from board as company faces fraud allegations]() \[*The Verge*\] **More on fraud:** *[Tesla Competitor Admits It Rolled Semi Truck Prototype Down a Hill in 2018 Promo Because It Couldn’t Drive]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()