Tesla Inc (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk on Friday suggested on Twitter that Tesla could soon be bigger than Apple Inc (AAPL).

What Happened

On Friday, a Twitter exchange began when the user @WholeMarsBlog wrote, "Tesla is going to be bigger than Apple." The @WholeMarsBlog account often promotes Tesla, especially Tesla's "Full Self-Driving."

Musk responded to the tweet, saying, "I think there is a >0% chance Tesla could be the biggest company"

guys i’m telling you. FSD is the biggest thing ever. super bullish on this.

nobody gets it, but I know what i’ve seen. this is a big fucking deal.

Tesla is going to be bigger than Apple @elonmusk

— Whole Mars Catalog (@WholeMarsBlog) March 26, 2021

 In the same Twitter exchange, another user wrote that they loved "the direction of that arrow," to which Musk responded: "Probably within a few months."

Musk then deleted this tweet after it was sent. However, it was unclear whether he was asked to remove the tweet or thought it was not the right time to express such a statement.

Some users took the screenshot of Musk's deleted tweet and re-posted it.

Why It Matters

Musk has gotten into regulatory hot water in the past because of his tweets, such as the infamous “funding secured” message he sent in 2018 that drew the attention of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

On Thursday, the National Labor Relations Board ordered Musk to remove an "unlawful tweet" from 2018 that the board claimed threatened Tesla workers hoping to unionize. 

The CEO's tweet was in response to increased efforts by workers to form a union with the United Auto Workers at Tesla's Fremont factory. 

Musk wrote in 2018, "Nothing stopping Tesla team at our car plant from voting union. Could do so tmrw if they wanted. But why pay union dues & give up stock options for Nothing? Our safety record is 2X better than when plant was UAW & everybody already gets healthcare."