Gary Zhou 
Seven months after polling his tens of millions of Twitter followers if Tesla should accept Dogecoin as a form of payment, CEO Elon Musk has noted that the company would try out dog-themed currency as a payment option for some of the items in the EV maker’s shop.
Similar to his previous tweets about the meme-inspired digital currency, Musk’s Dogecoin update resulted in the cryptocurrency rising 24% to $0.195.
Tesla’s Dogecoin payments to its online shop comes at the perfect time, especially amidst the company’s launch of new merchandise. A number of Tesla’s items in its shop tend to be produced in limited quantities too, which would be perfect for a trial run for the cryptocurrency’s payments.
Tesla already sells a number of small-ticket items such as models of its vehicles, apparel, and fun items such as lightning-shaped decanters, but the company has been launching some interesting new products as of late. These include a Cybertruck-inspired whistle, a Texas-inspired belt buckle, and a children’s version of the Cyberquad.
Elon Musk’s fondness for Dogecoin is no secret, with the CEO dubbing the digital currency as the “people’s crypto” due to its nature. Musk also seems to have a soft spot for the fact that Dogecoin was initially created as a joke of sorts. In previous statements, Musk noted that he owns some Dogecoin himself.
If Musk’s Dogecoin announcement proves true, this would be the second time that Tesla has accepted cryptocurrencies as a form of payment for its products. Earlier this year, the company made history by being the first automaker that accepts Bitcoin payments. This program was eventually suspended, however, over environmental concerns related to Bitcoin mining.
Tesla eventually suspended Bitcoin payment options for Tesla’s vehicles, though Elon Musk noted that the cryptocurrency could be offered once more once the digital currency’s mining becomes more sustainable.
