How Tesla Went From Near-Failure To Stunning Profitability In Just A Few Years

It's only the 17th quarterly filing in the company's history.

But in the past two years, the firm has seen some remarkable milestones: It's now sold tens of thousands of cars, employs nearly 6,000 people around the world, and has plans to double the world's supply of lithium ion batteries. Meanwhile, shares have climbed over 1000% since its IPO.

The company hasn't always looked this good.

It nearly collapsed during the financial crisis, and had to settle with one of its co-founders. A negative review from The New York Times last year prompted CEO Elon Musk to take to Twitter and appear on CNBC and Bloomberg TV to criticize the review. Its stock was battered at the time.

Here, we take a look at the company's origins, the drama among its founders, its near collapse, and the development of its Roadster, Model S, and Model X cars.