Source: Securities Times
According to CCTV news, at the invitation of the China Council for the Promotion of Trade, this afternoon (28th), the US$Tesla (TSLA.US)$CEO Elon Musk arrives in Beijing. CCPIT Chairman Ren Hongbin met with Musk and exchanged views on topics such as the next steps for cooperation.
Musk's last visit to China was in May 2023. Over a period of 44 hours, he met with relevant leaders from China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Ministry of Commerce, and CCPIT. He also visited the Tesla Gigafactory in Shanghai late at night, then met with relevant leaders in Shanghai.
Earlier, according to Reuters, flight tracking software showed that US Tesla CEO Musk's private jet arrived in Beijing on the 28th. Two people familiar with the matter revealed that this was an “unexpected visit” that Musk began to carry out in China.
According to the report, a person familiar with the matter said that Musk is seeking to meet with senior Chinese officials in Beijing to discuss the launch of fully automated driving (FSD) software in China and seek approval. The report also said that Musk's current trip to China was not made public, and Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
AI technology promotes autonomous driving
Tesla's financial report for the first quarter of 2024 shows that Tesla's artificial intelligence training calculations related to autonomous driving have increased by 130%. Currently, Tesla already has millions of vehicle data and massive AI training clusters to achieve large-scale autonomous driving, and will continue to expand its scale. This means that Tesla is also in “AII in autonomous driving,” and the development of its artificial intelligence technology is entering a full-speed phase.
Musk previously said that Robotaxi will launch on August 8 this year. Recently, Tesla has also initiated personnel adjustments around the world, and autonomous driving is expected to receive resource preferences. In March, Tesla announced that the FSD (Full-Self Driving, Fully Autonomous Driving) beta version was officially changed to the FSD Supervised version, marking further development of the FSD function. On the first quarter earnings call, Musk said that negotiations are ongoing with a major car manufacturer to license fully automated driving (FSD). He also said that Tesla is likely to sign an FSD license agreement this year; it will take 3 years to integrate it into other cars.
According to the Kaiyuan Securities Research Report, in the Chinese market, domestic NEV brands are rapidly rising, the level of electric intelligence technology continues to improve, and Tesla's technological leadership has narrowed markedly. More importantly, due to supply chain cost reduction and scale effects, etc., cost performance has gradually become the focus of competition for many new energy brands. NEV companies represented by BYD have achieved rapid sales growth, further squeezing the development space of foreign brands such as Tesla in the Chinese market. FSD software charges, robotaxi, cost reduction on the manufacturing side, etc. may be the direction for Tesla to break the game.
First-quarter results fall short of expectations
On April 23, local time, Tesla released a financial report that fell short of market expectations. Financial reports showed first-quarter revenue of US$21.3 billion, lower than the forecast of US$22.3 billion; adjusted earnings per share were $0.45, which analysts had previously predicted at US$0.52. However, Tesla said in its earnings report that it will speed up the launch of cheap models. Tesla CEO Musk revealed that production of cheaper models will begin in early 2025, if not later this year.
However, Tesla said it will speed up the launch of low-cost models. Tesla CEO Musk said in an analysts' conference call that production of lower-cost models will begin in early 2025, if not later this year.
According to Yu Yuan Tan Tian, after arriving in Beijing today, Musk said: “I am happy to see the progress of electric cars in China. In the future, all cars will be electric. Meanwhile, in the Chinese market, Tesla has also been making continuous moves recently, making adjustments in line with the competitive environment in the Chinese market.
On April 21, Tesla China's official website showed that the price of the Model Y dropped to 249,900 yuan, the price of the Model Y long-range version dropped to 299,900 yuan, and the price of the Model Y high-performance version dropped to 354,900 yuan. The price of the Model S dropped to 684,900 yuan, and the price of the Model S PLAID version dropped to 814,900 yuan. The price of the Model X dropped to 724,900 yuan, and the price of the Model X PLAID version dropped to 824,900 yuan.
Meanwhile, according to Tesla China's official website, the price of the Model 3 refreshed version dropped to 231,900 yuan, while the price of the Model 3 long battery life version dropped to 271,900 yuan.
On April 24, “Tesla”'s official Weibo posted news that the Model 3 and Model Y will start a limited-time “0 yuan season”. If you order an existing model 3 model car, you can enjoy “0 down payment” and preferential interest rates, and if you order a model Y designated version, you can enjoy “0 down payment” or “0 interest for a limited time.”
On the same day, the new Model 3 high-performance version officially landed on Tesla China's official website. The starting price was 335,900 yuan. The new car ushered in a complete renewal in various aspects such as appearance, performance, and handling.
Editor/jayden