Trump did not declare Tesla ban, as mischaracterised in social media posts

Claim: Social media users shared a video showing Donald Trump declaring a nationwide ban on Tesla production, while accusing Elon Musk of betrayal and calling him a “snake” who would soon go bankrupt.

Verdict: False. What appears to be a fiery speech from Donald Trump is, in reality, a deepfake. Analysis by DUBAWA, utilising AI detection tools, confirmed that the video had been manipulated.

Full Text

Recent developments have soured the relationship between Elon Musk and Donald Trump. In early June 2025, Elon criticised Trump’s proposed $2.4 trillion tax and spending bill, which incorporated cuts to electric vehicle subsidies, calling it a “disgusting abomination.” He also floated the idea of a new political party and shared laced posts about Trump’s link to the Jeffrey Epstein case. 

Trump responded by threatening to cancel federal contracts with Musk’s companies and rolling back EV policies, accusing Musk of turning on him.

Amidst this trend, a Facebook user @Abashwe shared a video showing Donald Trump announcing a ban on producing all Teslas in the United States (US).

“Today, I am here to announce that I will be banning the production of all Teslas in the United States of America, effective immediately. As everyone knows, Elon stabbed me in the back and went crazy on his platform on X, lying about my involvement in the Epstein files. So I can’t have that snake Elon making money in this country while I am the president. Nobody likes Teslas anyway, unless you’re a nerd…” he said.

The footage wraps up with Trump saying, “More importantly, that snake will now go bankrupt and will come back to me begging in a few days again.”

As of June 13, 2025, the video had 2,000 comments, 3,000 shares, 5,900 likes, and 30,000 views.

In the comment section, @SiphoMotlok wrote, “You messed up with the wrong nation, Elon.”

@Rick Pimentel, who seemed lost in the context of the conversation, replied: “This is not how a president should ever talk or behave. What the hell happened?”

 @Destiny Maret also added: “ The fact he’s reacting like this proves it’s true. We all knew it already anyway.”

Some accounts also shared the same post on Facebook, here, here, here, here, here, and here, on TikTok, here, here, and here, and on X, here, here.

In response to growing speculation on social media, DUBAWA investigated further to determine the facts.

Verification

We ran the video through Hive.ai, an AI content detection tool. This tool returned a 99.9% confidence score, indicating that the video is likely a deepfake.

Screenshot of the result from Hive.ai.

Secondly, we analysed the clip using Deepware.ai, another AI detection tool, which affirmed that the video is fabricated. The results showed a Seferbekov score of 98% and an Ensemble score of 93%, indicating strong signs of deepfake content.

Result from Deepware.ai.

We also did not find any official record that supports the claim that Trump issued a directive banning Tesla production, although reports hint that he might sell the Tesla he owns.

To trace the origin of the viral video, DUBAWA conducted a reverse image search. This led us to the original clip, in which Trump was seen thanking Elon Musk for his work with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). In the video, Trump is wearing the same outfit seen in the viral clip, but he did not announce a ban on Tesla production. 

The footage, taken from a press conference held on May 30, 2025, was also found on the White House’s official YouTube channel.

Conclusion 

While it is true that Donald Trump and Elon Musk recently had a public falling-out that garnered widespread conversation online, DUBAWA found that the video showing Trump announcing a ban on Tesla production in the US due to the rift is doctored. This makes the claim false.