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Tesla Q1 2020 Update

ir.tesla.com

181–190 of 391 posts

Re: Tesla Q1 2020 Update

#181
post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Will Elon stop with tweets that hurt Tesla? Appoint a CEO, or COO to run things People have been saying that for years and years. It's beyond stale. Meanwhile Tesla and SpaceX have continued to succeed beyond expectations for over a decade now. If there's occasional twitter volatility in-between simultaneously landing two rockets returning from space... so be it. Besides, if it bothers you that much, you don't have…

Of course what Musk does matters. He's the CEO. And his erratic and reprehensible behaviour is degrading the Tesla brand as well as reaffirming the long held idea amongst shareholders that he is too unstable to be running the company.

Nobody is perfect. Mr. Musk shown that he could build from the ground up and manage several large companies. Could he be even better ? Maybe. But until Tesla and SpaceX can find someone unequivocally better than Mr. Musk, those companies will have to do (and maybe fail) with him.

Re: Tesla Q1 2020 Update

#183

Since, things are slow, my notes.... Misc: - Fremont plant idle since March 23rd - raised 2.3B in February, which seems really well timed now - Musk venting with "FREE AMERICA NOW" tweet makes him seem almost crazy - can see why Elon is going crazy on twitter, he'd almost turned around Telsa and now they may be in the worst cash crunch of their long life - Shanghai Giga reopened on Feb 10th, showing the importance of…

- Will Elon stop with tweets that hurt Tesla? Appoint a CEO, or COO to run things to take pressure of Elon? I have read this from so many people for the last 5 years all the time. Sure, the tweets show that Elon wants faster growth, and frustrated, and I didn't like that tweet either, but if you want a conservative CEO, buy IBM or Oracle stocks, please leave Tesla alone.

How Oracle is surviving at that point is something that really really interests me. How are they still in business given how much they burned the general public with their Java licensing shenanigans and enterprises with their expensive DB offering?! IBM can at least be a body shop/government consultant.

Re: Tesla Q1 2020 Update

#184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Couple with this the massive glut of used cars thats about to get worse, the fact that many cities are seriously considering long term conversion of roadways to be pedestrian only and all the oil field pickups that are about to get repo'd (pertaining to the cyber truck). What I'd really like to know is what will happen to Tesla's vehicles if the company goes under? Like will they get bricked essentially? I sincerely…

I wonder if cities will also start designating streets (or as a softer approach, significant amounts of parking) as EV-only. A city that wants to electrify the vehicles driving there could do that very easily by converting a certain percentage of parking spots to EV-only every year. This will roughly ensure (at least) the same percentage of cars in the city being EVs (since if there's more, using a non-EV becomes ext…

Maybe but I doubt it, I feel like it would be all or nothing in regards to vehicles but who knows, would probably vary a lot. My understanding of the motivation is that it is only partially due to pollution and more to do with livability, comfort, health and that sort of thing.

BYD did just get the largest electric bus order in history from LA https://t.co/YaWN2ZKtBs?amp=1 as part of a green new deal, so you may not be far off in regards to cities moving towards focusing on accommodating electric vehicles.

Re: Tesla Q1 2020 Update

#185

Since, things are slow, my notes.... Misc: - Fremont plant idle since March 23rd - raised 2.3B in February, which seems really well timed now - Musk venting with "FREE AMERICA NOW" tweet makes him seem almost crazy - can see why Elon is going crazy on twitter, he'd almost turned around Telsa and now they may be in the worst cash crunch of their long life - Shanghai Giga reopened on Feb 10th, showing the importance of…

> can see why Elon is going crazy on twitter, he'd almost turned around Telsa and now they may be in the worst cash crunch of their long life With 8 billion in cash, and 3-4 billion per year burn rate, that's a two year buffer assuming no improvement. That doesn't seem like the worst cash crunch of their long life. What am I missing?

Tesla's way of counting cash is . . . quite imaginative to say the least.

If you used conventional metrics their cash is more like $2 BB, and a bunch of that is stuck in China (as in their agreement for Tesla Shanghai stipulates that cash cannot leave the country).

There is a real liquidity problem in there, but the people buying Tesla shares are not exactly the sharpest knives, or they're investing on the Tesla story, not financials.

Re: Tesla Q1 2020 Update

#186
Serious question: I am confused as to why do we see so many comments lamenting, what is essentially freedom of speech of EM? I mean, it's not like he is conclusively wrong about "Free America Now" comment. He may be proven wrong over time or even right.

Re: Tesla Q1 2020 Update

#187

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Most people can't handle that Right, we can't handle a billionaire demanding that everyone risk their lives to boost his stock price. And since when are arguments derived from first principles delivered in 3 word all-caps tweets?

You think Elon Musk's motivation is greed? That people going back to work or not will greatly affect his lifestyle? Is there any nuance when it comes to Elon Musk, or only fan-boys and haters?

Not the OP. I don't think his motivation is greed in a strictly financial sense but he's a complete narcissist. When a government guy comes and shuts his factory down due to a pandemic he apparently can't live with the fact that he's a non-essential business and needs to lay low for a while.

It's the same thing with the mini-submarine paedophile fiasco. Some regular dude who has experience in what he's actually talking about tells him to go away and he can't handle it because he thinks he's Tony Stark or something.

I don't think his eccentric behaviour really leaves much space for nuance, that's not really on anyone commenting here.

Re: Tesla Q1 2020 Update

#188
post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think Tesla falls firmly in “luxury good” and with mass unemployment, Tesla might see much less demand for much longer than just the lockdown.

You're forgetting about Battery Day next month! You will find out that Tesla hits $100/kWh, which means they'll be able to sell an electric car for the price of a gas one, without giving up range. You're also forgetting that what they're selling has no real competition, just like the iPhone didn't skip a beat through the 2008-2009 crisis. Also their full self-driving tech is ahead of everyone, including Alphabet. I t…

Those are all positive factors, but I would imagine that car sales in general (electric or not) are going to take a big hit.

When you've taken a 25% in income this year, I think many people are going to put a hold on big purchases.

Re: Tesla Q1 2020 Update

#189
post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>- Musk venting with "FREE AMERICA NOW" tweet makes him seem almost crazy Musk is on the verge of a three quarter of billion dollar windfall if Tesla's six month average market cap exceeds $100b. I would guess that motivates his desire to open as soon as possible. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tesla-stocks-musk/teslas-...

I doubt it. He's worth $38.5 billion; $26b of that is in Tesla. He can shave off hundreds of millions of dollars from that any day of the week - if he cared to do so. The compensation package is relatively small compared to his existing wealth already contained in Tesla. Wanting the company to succeed is what most likely motivates him, not the compensation package (which is aligned with his existing interests, even i…

Bonus probably goes straight to spacex

Re: Tesla Q1 2020 Update

#190
post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think it's also how genius works. When you're really good at one thing, there's the risk of thinking you're good at everything.

That's not genius. That's arrogance. Truly smart people know that their abilities and success are fleeting and do not extend beyond their own little sphere. And if they do venture beyond they are humble and learn from the wisdom of experts. They never, ever think they are good at everything.

Lots of average people tell us what "truly smart people" are like. No one actually knows.
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