Tesla recently hosted its Q1 earnings call covering the intricacies of its diverse business. Musk from the outset was clear to state it has been a tough quarter, due to both internal and external factors but despite challenges he remained optimistic. He commented “we should be thought of as an AI or robotics company, if you value Tesla as just like an auto company, fundamentally it is just the wrong framework”.

Here are Rho Motion’s four key takeaways from Tesla’s Q1 earnings call.

1. Q1 didn’t go as planned

EV sales for Tesla in the first quarter were below the expected figures, which subsequently had a large impact on the revenue for the quarter. The company sold 386,000 units, 9% down from the first quarter of 2023, and below the expected 450,000 units. Additionally, this was below the 433,000 vehicles produced over the quarter.

Automotive revenue was down 13% year on year, totaling USD17.4 billion, whilst total revenue had dropped 9% year on year. The Tesla team put declines in automotive revenue down to seasonality and uncertain macro-economic conditions.

Drops in revenue over the quarter were reflected in Tesla’s share price. Poor Q4 2023 results, missed Q1 deliveries, and rumours about a U turn on Tesla’s affordable EV led to a slump in Tesla’s stock of 40%.

2. There is a positive outlook for Tesla’s energy storage arm

Musk highlighted that the company’s energy storage business had a positive quarter and has a strong future. He commented “energy storage deployments of Megapack, in particular, reached an all-time high in Q1 leading to record profitability for the energy business”. He continued that it expects it will grow significantly faster than the car business. Its revenue was up 7% from the same quarter last year to USD1.6 billion.

Vaibhav Taneja, CFO, commented “We expect the energy storage deployments for 2024 to grow at least 75% higher from 2023.

3. New models are on their way

Tesla rebutted recent reports of cancelling a next generation model instead bringing forward the timeline of the next generation vehicle (often referred to as affordable/USD25,000 model). Instead of production beginning in late 2025 on a wholesale new platform on a new production line, it will now look to utilise the existing production line capacity. It will share more components with the current Model 3 and Model Y and will begin production in early 2025 or possibly before. More details are set to be released on the 8th of August.

Will Roberts Automotive lead research at Rho motion commented, “The positives of this shift will be to refresh the Tesla line up, bringing a new vehicle with broad appeal, however removing some of the developments which would have been unique to the next generation may hurt its ultimate profitability and cost structure further down the line. The tradeoff of bringing this to market sooner as consumers are crying out for it, is likely worth it.”

Tesla also reported that its 4680 cell production had increased by 18-20% compared to Q4 2024, reaching up to 7GWh this year, as it aims to stay ahead of the Cybertruck ramp. The Cybertruck production is currently at 1,000 a week, and alongside the 4680 production, should result in over 50,000 Cybetruck’s produced during 2024.

4. AI and self-driving tech will play a big part of the company in the future

Musk disclosed the company was in ongoing discussions with a significant automaker in regard to licensing out its full self-driving (FSD) technology. With this the company has been actively expanding its core AI infrastructure, indicating it had massively increased its spending in this area. This in turn will aid the development of its FSD technology. Alongside this it will showcase its Robotaxi in August 2024.

Musk also mentioned that the company’s Optimus humanoid robot could be in Tesla factories by the end of 2024, and for sale externally by 2025. He commented in the future that this section of the company will be more valuable than everything else combined.

Rho’s Evaluation, a changing EV landscape

The electric vehicle industry worldwide is experiencing winds of change, still the industry continues to maintain healthy growth, however some areas and players are experiencing slower than expected growth. Telsa is a prime example of this, an industry giant that isn’t immune to challenging market conditions.  

Tesla took immediate action to try and stem the blow of lower demand and stimulate sales. It cut prices across all its key markets as well as extended the roll out of its full self-driving service. This confirms that Telsa does see demand as an issue.

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Source: Tesla