Elon McConn, Tesla CEO, addressed its annual conference Tuesday afternoon after stock exchange trading was complete. In his keynote address he informed attendees that production on Tesla's Cybertruck is scheduled to commence by 2023. Furthermore, one of these angular stainless steel pickups would become his daily driver and confirmed some previously reported information such as reduced silicon carbide power electronic components for drive units as previously reported by previous media reports. Finally he gave a presentation regarding their humanoid robot program.
After his annual gathering, Elon Musk spoke with David Faber from CNBC. In this interview, Musk was quizzed on various Tesla topics.
Tesla Commercials on Television?
Musk suggested that Tesla may undertake more formalized marketing efforts during its annual shareholder meeting.
Perhaps it is reasonable to suggest, given that people often dismiss information bias by simply not reaching out to those who aren't already convinced, that such bias exists and should be counteracted." But I believe they may have a point. Musk stated as much when he stated, stating, 'Well, I think it's worth trying, so we will see how effective it really is."
Faber asked Elon Musk for more details regarding what form of Tesla advertising could be expected and was informed that his decision had been made spontaneously without prior planning or strategy.
Tesla's CEO saw some wisdom in advertising. Elon Musk pointed out that some individuals may misperceive Tesla cars as expensive. Furthermore, Musk stated his belief that they are among the safest cars on the roads today.
"The numbers speak for themselves," he stated on CNBC. Perhaps he meant something other than the numerous federal safety investigations of Tesla Driver Assists or that Tesla cars have had more official safety recalls than any other model or make (Tesla Model Y recall rates are 15.6 times greater than industry average).
Musk told Faber he monitored daily order volumes to ascertain how many cars he needs to build, and this may explain the series of price increases and decreases since January 1. Musk explained this was all part of matching demand with pricing; there was obviously a price decrease during Q1, while January is typically the worst time for car buying; with price reductions occurring there then eventually followed by price increases; now is just another change! "We are basically matching demand with pricing". In January alone there was an aggressive price cut before our recently introduced price increase was introduced at once this year!
Tesla continues to produce more cars than they can sell, with an excess of around 9,000 Model S or X vehicles that were costly and unpopular in Q1 of 2023, in addition to another similar number of Model X vehicles.
Economics laws which are not followed.
Musk has consistently stated that Tesla's future lies with its driver assistance features. In an interview with CNBC, Musk reiterated this sentiment by asserting that Teslas would become investments that appreciate in value while earning income on the streets all day and night as "robotaxis."
"Typically, a passenger car can be used 10-12 hours every week; say you drive for about an hour-and-a-half per day plus occasional long journeys, with parking costs added onto that, making owning one an expensive proposition," Faber was informed by Smith. However, "The utility may increase if it has autonomous capabilities like Uber does", according to him.
Musk cited an analysis by Ark Invest, a firm known for making extreme predictions regarding Tesla's share price. Musk quoted Ark Invest as evidence of its unnervingly accurate forecasts regarding Tesla.
Autopilot Is Coming Soon
Musk responded to Faber when she inquired about a timeline for fully autonomous Teslas: "I think that will probably take place this year."
"We have reached a stage where our car can navigate highways in cities where there are few people. For instance, I drove around Greater Austin without intervention by simply dropping random navigation pins at random places. San Francisco presented its own unique challenges; bus lanes and one-way streets provided additional obstacles - something Elon Musk noted when speaking of driving through San Francisco." He commented "it is difficult situation with homeless people".
Tesla has taken an entirely different tack when communicating with regulators rather than journalists. Tesla informed the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) that, contrary to what its name may imply, its software "Full Self-Driving" does not constitute full autonomy and will instead continue as an SAE Level 2 advanced driver-assistance feature which requires drivers to remain in control at all times.
