The Blog
Ms Millennial Money Reviews: Tesla’s We, Robot Event
Sarah Penney, Ms Millennial Money
Elon Musk has been on the tip of everyone’s tongue recently, a successful rocket launch, the snub from the UK Business Secretary for the International Investment Summit, and the We, Robot launch event for the new Tesla Cybercab.
The We, Robot event, held on 10 October was highly anticipated and delivered typical Elon Musk. It was dynamic, spectacular and packed with the unexpected. But, the overall verdict from influencers, journalists and analysts was that it missed the mark by failing to deliver substance.
What went well?
- It was a spectacle that got people excited. The launch of a driverless, robotaxi, should be outrageous, right?
- As well as launching the Cybercab, Elon also unveiled the Cyberbus, a driverless vehicle to carry multiple people, large items, etc.
- The price of the Cybercab – at $30,000 it’s very reasonable (if it can really be delivered for this price)
- Optimus robots – the next generation of the humanoid robots, under development by Tesla were in attendance, dancing and serving drinks
How did We, Robot miss the mark?
- Elon was an hour late for the event and only delivered a 20-minute presentation, which didn’t feel well rehearsed
- The keynote speech lacked substance, and the audience were left with many questions about the Cybercab’s specs
- An opportunity was missed to address concerns about the safety of driverless technology
How did the markets react?
In after-hours trading following the event, Tesla stock dipped 8% with the company suffering a case of ‘buy the rumour, sell the story’. A week later and the stock still hasn’t recovered.
The Verdict
Tesla is brilliant at putting on a show and ensuring they’re at the forefront of the global conversation.
The company does investor engagement like no other, they’re extremely creative in engaging retail investors, who make up 45% of all Tesla shareholders and while the stock may have taken an immediate dip, it will recover in time. Tesla has built extreme loyalty amongst its super-fan investors, who relentlessly back the company.
Ultimately, Tesla is inseparable from Elon Musk and he’s a visionary. He’s at least a century ahead of his peers and, like the namesake of his company, Nikola Tesla, he views the world differently and behaves in ways not akin to Wall Street or City types.
Right now, society seems to prefer more conventional businesspeople, perhaps just like Thomas Edison vs Nikola Tesla? But how will we come to view him in decades from now?
What do you think of the Cybercab and the We, Robot event? Comment on our social channels to let us know!
You can watch the full event here.
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