Tesla Plunges After a Conference Call • Hacker News Board

Re: Tesla Plunges After a Conference Call

#51

Post by ghostbrainalpha » Thu, May 03, 2018, 6:01 PM UTC

frgtpsswrdlame wrote: post #24

mephitix wrote: post #5

I was on this call. It was extremely cringey/embarrassing to hear Elon dismiss valid questions. At the same time, it was fantastic to see a young, smart, retail investor (Gali from Hyperchange) get to ask so many questions directly to the leadership team. I thought before the call that Gali would get to ask only one question, like the other analysts. He was able to ask almost 10! It was surreal. I was left feeling th…

Yeah but his questions weren't really that great. The two questions from analysts he skipped before throwing it to the youtube guy were tough questions asking about specific details that Elon obviously didn't want to answer. Youtube guys questions were softer which is why Elon stayed with him for so long. I have to say I think letting someone like Gali ask questions at all is pretty bad, it specifically degrades what…

So Musk turned a Conference Call that people want to be like a trial... into a commercial for Tesla.

You may not like it as a speculator of the stock, but it might be more in line with his and Telsa's long term interest.

Re: Tesla Plunges After a Conference Call

#52

Post by maxsilver » Thu, May 03, 2018, 6:01 PM UTC

tensor wrote: post #31

olivermarks wrote: post #20

Musk sounded exhausted. If Smith & Wesson launched a consumer flamethrower there would be outrage...Musk has been able to distract with lots of shiny objects but the clock is ticking, even amongst his niche fan base...I hope all the people who are working so hard in Musk's various companies come out of this ok...

For the sake of society, I hope Musk succeeds. We've spent too much time as a culture celebrating fairly useless achievements and being unwilling to dare to do the things that will truly take us forward.

The important part of Musk's plan has already succeeded. He made electric cars cool and competitive. If Tesla folds tomorrow, there will still be a large market for electric cars, and multiple other companies serving that.

Depending on your needs, that has arguably already happened. While Tesla is still the "coolest" brand of car, there are better/cheaper electric cars from many non-Tesla companies already widely available today. That will not go away, even if Tesla implodes.

Re: Tesla Plunges After a Conference Call

#53

Post by mephitix » Thu, May 03, 2018, 6:01 PM UTC

frgtpsswrdlame wrote: post #24

mephitix wrote: post #5

I was on this call. It was extremely cringey/embarrassing to hear Elon dismiss valid questions. At the same time, it was fantastic to see a young, smart, retail investor (Gali from Hyperchange) get to ask so many questions directly to the leadership team. I thought before the call that Gali would get to ask only one question, like the other analysts. He was able to ask almost 10! It was surreal. I was left feeling th…

Yeah but his questions weren't really that great. The two questions from analysts he skipped before throwing it to the youtube guy were tough questions asking about specific details that Elon obviously didn't want to answer. Youtube guys questions were softer which is why Elon stayed with him for so long. I have to say I think letting someone like Gali ask questions at all is pretty bad, it specifically degrades what…

I disagree - I thought the questions were good. I wish both sides were able to answer questions, as Elon had promised in the beginning of the call! (He said something along the lines of, we want extra time for Q&A, will keep the call running until there are no more questions)

Having a retail investor at the table is a great thing for Tesla shareholders, IMO because so much of the public is interested in the company. I think the split between retail/institutional is 50/50 (I may be wrong on this).

Here are some interesting things that came out during Gali's questions:

- Tesla network/autopilot: autopilot safety data on quarterly basis. Timeline of network depends on regulators. A lot of autopilot crashes are from experienced drivers.

- More info on getting towards level 5 autonomy (hardware is going to be enough, but needs more powerful computers)

- Model Y production - not starting until 2020

- Supercharging network (V3): compared to Porsche’s 350kw supercharger. Tesla's main goal is to increase range.

- Interested in having supercharger network partner with another auto maker

- Tesla Semi - building out batteries/renewable energy to lower cost

- Nikola lawsuit

- Tesla Energy: prioritize power wall backlog now. Gigawatt/hour project coming out soon. How it compares to competition

- Tesla thanking China - possibly building Gigafactory in China

Re: Tesla Plunges After a Conference Call

#54

Post by bartozone » Thu, May 03, 2018, 6:01 PM UTC

Elon did come across very Trumpian on the call, which, in the longer term may serve his interests well. He's pretty upfront about not caring about what the public markets think of him (or Tesla), and acts accordingly. Maybe if he can devalue analysts, and their questions, in the long run these calls will have less impact on value of the company.

I mean ... if I were an institutional investor in Tesla, I'd really wish he would have answered those questions. He must have known what the outcome would be.

Re: Tesla Plunges After a Conference Call

#55

Post by JumpCrisscross » Thu, May 03, 2018, 6:01 PM UTC

kneel wrote: post #47

danso wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Er, why is asking for something fundamental to running a business (i.e. "How much money do you have/need?") a partly boring/boneheaded/uncool question?

Because he's Elon Musk and he doesn't care about investor returns, he wants to build rockets, cars, tunnels, and explore space. No matter what he does he'll more than likely be fine on the money side.

> he's Elon Musk and he doesn't care about investor returns

Then he shouldn't be the CEO of a public company which continues to sell stock and debt to investors on the promise of a return.

Also, Elon Musk very much does care about returns. He has a great track record in that department. He's just learned it's not something that's healthy to focus on in the short-term. Unfortunately, running out of cash forces the compression of time horizons. The latter is what investors are rightfully worried about.

Re: Tesla Plunges After a Conference Call

#56

Post by Diederich » Thu, May 03, 2018, 6:02 PM UTC

namlem wrote: post #15

danso wrote: post #6

Is Musk still working long hours and sleeping at the car factory? Maybe he's a little under the effects of sleep deprivation.

Or he's just in a manic episode of his BPD.

BPD is 'Borderline Personality Disorder', not 'BiPolar Disorder'. Very different things.

Re: Tesla Plunges After a Conference Call

#57

Post by stordoff » Thu, May 03, 2018, 6:03 PM UTC

namlem wrote: post #15

danso wrote: post #6

Is Musk still working long hours and sleeping at the car factory? Maybe he's a little under the effects of sleep deprivation.

Or he's just in a manic episode of his BPD.

Which sleep deprivation _may_ induce.

Re: Tesla Plunges After a Conference Call

#58

Post by pbreit » Thu, May 03, 2018, 6:03 PM UTC

danso wrote: post #28

imdsm wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To be fair, he's not entirely wrong. I guess people just don't expect this type of response. But then, acting within the confines of normality isn't really the trait that may bring the dawn of a new era of humanity. Interestingly though, markets are reaction to this response emotionally.

Er, why is asking for something fundamental to running a business (i.e. "How much money do you have/need?") a partly boring/boneheaded/uncool question?

Been running it fine for 10 years. Does sound boring.

Re: Tesla Plunges After a Conference Call

#59

Post by danso » Thu, May 03, 2018, 6:03 PM UTC

kneel wrote: post #47

danso wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Er, why is asking for something fundamental to running a business (i.e. "How much money do you have/need?") a partly boring/boneheaded/uncool question?

Because he's Elon Musk and he doesn't care about investor returns, he wants to build rockets, cars, tunnels, and explore space. No matter what he does he'll more than likely be fine on the money side.

Was he not CEO when Tesla went public in 2010?

Re: Tesla Plunges After a Conference Call

#60

Post by Nokinside » Thu, May 03, 2018, 6:03 PM UTC

mmsimanga wrote: post #40

Having watched clip in the article and given I don't have any Tesla stock. Additionally having been an operations manager I have some sympathy for Musk. Every Tom, Dick, and Sally has an opinion but very few have the know-how to help. But in today's world who needs to be an expert to comment or pass judgment. On the one hand we have CEOs who chase the quarterly earnings at the cost of long-term sustainability. Musk s…

Firstly, this was not some PR event. Musk had large number of people knew what they were talking about wanting to ask tough questions. What Musk is interested in is not relevant.

Secondly, Musk can't avoid short term investor questions because unless he answers them, there may be no longer term. This kind of clear avoidance of difficult questions can easily add one percentage point to Tesla's future loans and reduce the amount he can collect.

Tesla is down almost 12% from the beginning of the year.