Elon Musk will aim to put to rest any doubts about Tesla’s standing in the electric car race on Wednesday, when the serial entrepreneur convenes an investor day.
Incorporating his trademark flair, Musk promised to reveal “Master Plan 3” at the gathering, which includes “a path to a fully sustainable energy future for Earth,” he said on Twitter in early February.
Read here: Elon Musk may announce Tesla’s plan to make affordable electric cars this week
The event, to be held at Tesla’s factory in Texas, will be webcast at 2100 GMT on Wednesday.
Jessica Caldwell, an auto industry expert at Edmunds.com, said, “Since he’s making promises to all citizens of the Earth, and not just investors, something bigger had better be.”
Caldwell would like to see more clues about Tesla’s plans to boost production. Other key watch items include concrete plans to release a more affordable electric vehicle (for around $25,000), as well as a new vehicle model after the last Tesla launches in 2020.
“He has big ideas. But he’s proved that you have to take what he says with a grain of salt,” Caldwell said.
Musk “should be more specific, at least for the short term,” Caldwell said.
Dan Ives, an analyst at Weinbush, wants Musk to lay out more plans for Tesla’s pickups, the Cybertruck, production for which is scheduled to begin this summer, and semi trucks, whose deliveries begin in late 2022.
Like Caldwell, Ives is keen to hear about a more modestly priced Tesla EV on the way, as well as an update on Tesla’s 4680 electric battery format.
Other matters of interest include Tesla’s purchases of lithium and key raw materials, as well as updates on the state of driver-assistance technology and EV demand.
“As a green tide is hitting globally on the shift to EVs,” Musk will need to prepare a “comprehensive strategic roadmap looking forward,” Ives said.
rebound on wall street
The gathering comes as Tesla attempts to protect its gains in EVs as it faces intense competition in the market.
The growing slate of EV manufacturers includes Chinese conglomerates such as BYD as well as traditional automakers such as General Motors, Volkswagen and Stellantis.
Questions are also being raised about the extent of Musk’s focus on Tesla while also managing Twitter, which the billionaire acquired in late October.
After an ugly 2022, Tesla shares have rallied to start 2023, rising nearly 67 percent so far this year, a surge that has reestablished Musk as the world’s richest man.
“Investors are focusing on what could change the narrative to continue the stock’s recent rally,” Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas said in a note.
Musk previously unveiled the first phase of his “master plan” in 2006, which focused on building a luxury sport vehicle before more affordable autos.
Key vehicle categories in the second phase included solar panels, autonomous driving and ambitious goals to produce Tesla’s fleet.
Musk has been credited with catalyzing a revolution in the global auto industry towards EVs, although he still hasn’t met the key goal he set for Tesla.
Read here: Tesla, GM among carmakers flocking to mining events to secure supplies for EVs
The company’s lowest-priced vehicle, the Model 3, starts at $43,000 in the United States – too expensive for many consumers for a vehicle that was aimed at the mass market.
Musk has also missed his deadline for a fully autonomous vehicle, with the Tesla driver-assistance technology prompting US regulatory scrutiny.
