Elon Musk’s robots will drive you around town, pour you a drink (and maybe fly you to the moon someday). For its share price’s sake, we hope these ideas become a reality. Soon.
Tesla’s much hyped “We, Robot” event was nothing short of impressive. But when it comes to down to business, numbers must speak louder.
And on that front, the event fell flat on its face. Investors thought it was “light” on real numbers and timelines, an RBC analyst said in a note on Friday. (Of course, by now, all “Musketeers” know that this is not uncommon at Tesla events.)
Musk showcased a two-seater, steering-less “Cybercab” – a sort of cross between a Cybertruck and Model X – that will go into production in 2026 and cost less than $30,000. There was also a Robovan, but he never got into the $$$.
The Tesla CEO’s vagueness on prices and timelines is starting to spook the very investors who have driven its stock from $140 to $240 a pop this summer.
What we do know
- The stock is down more than 6% in premarket trading to near mid-September lows – that’s roughly $45 billion wiped out from its market value.
- The $30K price tag for the Cybercab is just about the price of Tesla’s cheapest car, the Model 3, as well as a Toyota Prius, the most popular cab in the US. (If Musk launches at this price two-three years down the line – hello inflation?)
We have got to ask this question: are you really ready for robots and robot cars on roads near you? Robotaxis from Alphabet-unit Waymo and Baidu’s Apollo One operate in parts of the US and China, but only under strict state guidelines and with a person in the driver’s seat for supervision.
And let’s not even get into Tesla’s struggles with its Full Self-Driving, aka autopilot, software.
It’s about time Musk started justifying Tesla’s $750 billion market valuation (that’s almost EIGHT times the size of Ford and GM combined). Now, that’s the elephant in the room.
