Main points
- Tesla faces an important identity decision: Does it want to be an automaker, an artificial intelligence company, an energy company, or all of the above?
- Pressure from competitors led to price cuts, causing the stock price to drop 60%.
- Tesla is delving deeper into robotics with Project Optimus while facing uncertainty over the Cybertruck and future projects.
Tesla appears to be at another inflection point, which will undoubtedly be the beginning of a new chapter in the company’s history. While the master plan Elon Musk laid out years ago has largely come to fruition, Tesla faces decisions about its identity in the coming years.
Tesla may have to finally decide whether it is an automaker, an artificial intelligence company or an energy company.
Tesla model comparison: Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y and Cybertruck
Here’s everything you need to know about Tesla’s vehicles, from the Roadster to the Model Y and Cybertruck.
As competition intensifies to mass-produce affordable electric vehicles, Tesla may have to finally decide whether it is an automaker, an artificial intelligence company or an energy company.
Or will its unpredictable figurehead prompt companies to invest significant resources while pursuing these avenues to their fullest potential? You’ve heard about layoffs, humanoid robots, fully autonomous driving, Cybertrucks, and Tesla Energy, so what exactly is happening with Tesla now?
Tesla
Two hairstyles
Electric vehicle demand and early adoption
Tesla has invested billions of dollars to make its electric cars profitable, with profit margins that have been virtually unheard of in the auto industry for years, driven by huge demand for electric vehicles and tax credits that have helped boost sales and prices. Gross profit margin will reach nearly 30% by 2022. Interest rate hikes in 2021 and 2022 will send Tesla’s profits soaring. Those profit margins, beloved by shareholders, have been under intense pressure from the likes of BYD and Xiaomi, two Chinese automakers that produce consumer electric vehicles at rock-bottom prices.
Speaking at the New York Times DealBook conference last November, Musk said, “A lot of people think the top ten car companies will be Tesla, followed by nine Chinese car companies. I think they may not be wrong.”
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As Tesla began slashing prices in 2023 to drive demand and stay competitive, those margins fell quickly, and Tesla’s stock price fell with them, as investors worried that margin compression could end up in a truly affordable car. competition from electric cars. This is laid out in Musk’s master plan.
The company’s gross profit margin dropped to The fourth quarter of 2023 is slightly above 18%. As of this writing, Tesla’s stock price is down more than 60% from its all-time high as investors express caution about the company’s future.
Considering that Tesla has more than 140,000 employees worldwide, this is not a small number.
Perhaps partly in response to those pressures and the need to minimize costs in a tight profit environment, Tesla this week began laying off about 10% of its global workforce. Considering that Tesla has more than 140,000 employees worldwide, this is not a small number.
“As we prepare for the next phase of growth as a company, it is extremely important to consider cost reduction and productivity improvements from all aspects of the company,” Musk said in a memo shared with employees. “For the rest of the People, I want to thank you in advance for the difficult work we are doing to develop some of the most transformative technologies in automotive, energy and artificial intelligence.”
Tesla
Optimus Prime in the room
Where do humanoid robots fit in?
Tesla has made no secret of its foray into humanoid robotics with Project Optimus Prime. While updates are few and far between now, and the company may still be many years away from a commercially viable model, the robot represents Musk’s optimistic view of the future of robotics, particularly with Tesla’s neural networks When used together, the images and data currently used to train the fully self-driving capabilities of Tesla vehicles that Musk has promised (for years) could soon be a reality.
Musk shared a video on X showing off the Optimus robot’s power, which is crucial for lifting weights and other physically intensive tasks. The key, of course, is that Optimus is able to perform these tasks without risk of injury, without being paid or taking breaks, and can work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Most recently, Musk shared a video of his Optimus robot folding a T-shirt on X, although many, including Marques Brownlee of MKBHD fame, were quick to question the authenticity of the video.
Tesla
Cybertruck’s uncertain future
It’s too early to draw conclusions, but the signs are there
It’s too early to call victory or death for the Cybertruck, and while it’s easy to point out that the production and delivery schedules and numbers weren’t the smoothest and didn’t live up to the numbers previously promised, when has this not happened before? ? What’s going on with Tesla’s new cars? Every new model always comes with its own growing pains, including Model 3 and Model Y, which are now Tesla’s best-selling models, and Model Y will even take the title of the world’s best-selling model in 2023.
While the Cybertruck’s aesthetics and exterior design are certainly divisive, it’s at least clear that the technology and new technology used to build it will likely serve as the framework for the company’s future vehicles.
While the Cybertruck’s aesthetics and exterior design are certainly divisive, it’s at least clear that the technology and new technology used to build it will likely serve as the framework for the company’s future vehicles.
The Cybertruck uses a 48-volt wiring architecture rather than the more traditional 12-volt system used in most vehicles. This shift could significantly reduce the material usage and costs associated with vehicle wiring in electric and internal combustion engine vehicles. A drive-by-wire system replaces power steering, helping the driver feel fully in tune with the Cybertruck’s wheel direction and handling.
Tesla delays Cybertruck deliveries, possibly due to accelerator issues
The news coincides with news of layoffs at the automaker.
Tesla has not yet provided details on Cybertruck delivery numbers, and analysts can only estimate based on VIN numbers and other data. It is believed that Tesla delivered approximately 3,500 units of this futuristic pickup truck in the first quarter of 2024. Musk believes Tesla can reach a production rate of 250,000 vehicles per year sometime in 2025. Tesla’s launch wasn’t helped by a recently discovered accelerator pedal issue, which caused all Cybertruck production to be suspended for seven days.
Whether the Cybertruck will be a commercial success remains to be seen, but shareholders should probably look forward to reallocating resources previously occupied in the Cybertruck design and launch phases toward a more productive mass-market effort.
Robot taxis and redwoods
Key parts of the master plan… still haven’t been revealed
Over the past month, those of us who follow Tesla have felt like Jon Snow about Tesla’s future Robotaxi master plan and their alleged $25,000 electric car project codenamed Redwood . In other words… nothing. What Tesla fans once thought about these topics, although details are scant, has been overshadowed by reports that the Redwood project was canceled entirely, Musk’s posts on the X that contradicted those reports, and the promise of an August 8, 2024 Disrupted by the launch of Robotaxi. Either outright surprise or anticlimactic disappointment.
Elon Musk says Tesla will launch robotaxis on August 8
Musk’s announcement came hours after Reuters published a report that Tesla had canceled development of its $25,000 electric car.
In short, it’s been clear for years that part of the master plan is to create self-driving cars that can transport passengers without a driver present. In one of his more lofty visions, Musk promised that Tesla owners would one day see their cars capable of picking up passengers, acting as “robotaxis” and making money for them while they sleep.
Over the past month, those of us who follow Tesla have felt like Jon Snow about Tesla’s future Robotaxi master plan and their alleged $25,000 electric car project codenamed Redwood . In other words… nothing.
Since then, doubts have grown dramatically about whether current models can achieve Level 5 full autonomy in software, or even have the hardware capabilities to make it happen. Rumor has it that Robotaxi will definitely have to become its own vehicle on an entirely new platform to realize this dream. Alternatively, the Robotaxi capabilities on standard Tesla vehicles may be limited, while the taxis on their own Robotaxi platform may be more complete and capable of performing more complex routes or carrying more passengers.
Some even believe that Project Redwood and Robotaxi are actually the same platform, possibly with the consumer model and business model serving different purposes. The truth is, we know very little and it all remains to be seen.
Tesla Energy could power the future
Home and Commercial Battery Packs
Elon Musk and Tesla remain determined to expand Tesla Energy’s footprint and continue to improve battery technology for energy storage. The intermittency of wind and solar energy can eventually be solved with storage solutions, and Tesla believes its battery packs are an integral part of the future.
The home Powerwall product and the commercial Megapack project are a step in this direction. In certain markets in Texas, Tesla has even entered the utility sector under the name Tesla Electric. It’s a relatively small part of the company right now, accounting for less than 10% of total revenue, but it’s likely to play a huge role in the future.
Tesla’s future could be almost anything.
Tesla finds itself at a crossroads, or maybe a Shibuya crossroads, with many directions to choose from, trying to pull off an orchestrated dance that will land each project smoothly. Only time will tell where the company ends up, and whether it can compete with cheaper Chinese automakers that don’t need profits to survive due to implicit government support. Or Tesla’s future might lie in artificial intelligence, energy or robotics. If you ask a controversial leader, he’ll probably tell you that the future of the company is all of the above.