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Tesla Fleet May Drive Autonomously from LA to NY In 2 Years

Elon Musk tweeted on Sunday that Tesla automobiles will be able to drive themselves from coast to coast, plugging themselves in along the way, in about 2 years. His prediction may be a bit fanciful, but autonomous driving is on its way and will be here sooner rather than later.

Published

9 years ago

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Tillburg 5

Last Friday, Tesla began downloading Version 7.1 of its Autopilot software. The updated programming allows cars equipped with Autopilot hardware to be ‘summoned’ forward or backward at about 1 mph for up to 39 feet without a human operator on board, provided a driver is standing within 10 feet of the car. This is what the company has to say about Version 7.1 on its blog:

“Using Summon, once you arrive home and exit Model S or Model X, you can prompt it to do the rest: open your garage door, enter your garage, park itself, and shut down. In the morning, you wake up, walk out the front door, and summon your car. It will open the garage door and come to greet you. More broadly, Summon also eliminates the burden of having to squeeze in and out of tight parking spots.”

On Sunday afternoon, Elon Musk followed up the announcement with a tweet suggesting that Tesla automobiles would be able to drive themselves from coast to coast in approximately two years.

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That was later followed up by a blog entry on the company site: “Eventually, your Tesla will be able to drive anywhere across the country to meet you, charging itself along the way. It will synch with your calendar to know exactly when to arrive.”

We know that Elon has tweeted recently that Tesla is looking for the world’s best software engineers to work on autonomous driving technology. He says the program has a “super high priority” and will report directly to him.

Musk admits that his expectations may be “mildly optimistic”, since we presume that there are logistical and legal considerations that need to be addressed before fleets of Teslas start driving about the country on their own. First, federal and state regulators may not be willing to move as fast as the redoubtable Mr. Musk may prefer. Second, the hardware needed to make such long distance autonomous driving possible may be substantially different from what’s baked in to every car produced since October 2014. It seems unlikely the new sensor package can be retrofitted to existing cars, just as the current hardware can not be added to cars built before then.

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Elon always says the best time to buy a Tesla is now, because the company never stops improving its cars and if people wait for the new, new thing, they will miss out on the Tesla experience. Now, potential customers will have to decide whether to buy now or wait for the new autonomous features to go into production.

That’s a delicious choice to have. Either way, the buyer gets a great car that’s regarded as years ahead of anything else on the road.

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Investor's Corner

Tesla stock surges on Wednesday, but there’s still more room to go

Published

7 days ago

on

March 12, 2025

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) surged over 7 percent on Wednesday, canceling out some of the losses it has felt this week.

It has been a less-than-ideal start for Tesla in 2025, as the company has wiped out all of its gains felt from the victorious election campaign of President Donald Trump. The stock is down 34 percent so far this year.

The losses have mostly been felt due to reports of decreased demand due to pushback against CEO Elon Musk and his support of President Trump, as well as investor concern over the CEO’s personal use of time between the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and Tesla itself.

In a note this week from Wedbush, analyst Dan Ives wrote:

“Musk needs to step up as Tesla CEO at this critical juncture. In a nutshell, the word ‘balance’ has been missing with Elon Musk and his ability to run Tesla as CEO….while instead focusing all of his energy and time driving his DOGE initiative within the Trump Administration. Since Trump’s White House 2nd term kicked off in January, we have seen Musk and Trump connected at the hip with Musk essentially living at the White House and Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach. There has been little to no sign of Musk at any Tesla factory or manufacturing facility the last two months and perception has become reality for Tesla shares. Trump getting elected President was a huge moment for Musk and Tesla in our view as this will create the fast track for an autonomous federal roadmap…however the DOGE efforts have now intertwined Tesla into this brewing political firestorm.”

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Wednesday’s slight bump for Tesla shares is likely related to the support the company received from President Trump yesterday, who purchased a Model S sedan at the White House and pledged to pay for it with a check.

President Donald Trump buys a Tesla at the White House – Here’s which model he chose

The move was one that signaled a buying spree from high-profile Republicans, including Sean Hannity, among others, who announced their support for Musk and Tesla:

Tesla shares closed at $248.09 on Wednesday, up 7.59%.

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Investor's Corner

Tesla bull ARK loads up on over $20M in TSLA shares after stock slide

Published

1 week ago

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March 11, 2025

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(Credit: Tesla)

Tesla bull ARK Invest loaded up on over $20 million worth of the automaker’s shares on Monday after the company saw its largest slide on the market since late 2020.

Shares dropped over 15 percent on Monday, mostly due to pushback on the stock as CEO Elon Musk heads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). His involvement with the U.S. government directly has sent some investors into a predicament over Musk’s dedication to Tesla.

There are also concerns regarding Q1 deliveries, which will be a big indication of where the year could be headed for Tesla.

The Monday slide was the biggest since late 2020 when shares dropped over 21 percent.

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However, the slide presents a massive buying opportunity for investors, especially those who operate ETFs, like ARK. Long term, ARK believes Tesla shares (NASDAQ: TSLA) will be exponentially more expensive, especially leaning on the thesis that Robotaxi and AI/Optimus will translate to major growth in yet another sector for the company.

ARK bolstered its position on $TSLA in its ARKK Innovation ETF with a purchase of 68,164 shares. Tesla is the largest holding in ARKK with over $531 million in value. Tesla makes up exactly 10 percent of the ARKK ETF.

It also bought another 11,154 shares in its ARKQ Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF.

It’s no secret Tesla shares have taken a substantial hit in 2025, especially as the company’s price on Wall Street exploded following President Trump’s successful election campaign last year.

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So far in 2025, Tesla shares are down over 38 percent. They are up nearly 5 percent as of 2:30 p.m. on the East Coast. Even bullish analysts are hoping some focus returns to Tesla on Musk’s part.

Dan Ives of Wedbush said in a note last night following the broad sell off:

“This is a gut check moment for the Tesla bulls (including ourselves) after this massive sell-off in Tesla shares with fears mounting/accelerating. The bears own the Tesla narrative in the near-term as lackluster sales numbers from Europe, China, and the US in January/February along with Musk protests/brand worries have created many concerns.”

He continued:

“While the DOGE/Trump Musk iron clad partnership has created major brand worries for Tesla…..we estimate less than 5% of Tesla sales globally are at risk from these issues despite the global draconian narrative for Musk. Importantly, we expect Musk will better balance his time between DOGE and Tesla/SpaceX over the course of 2025 and some of these distraction issues will fade.”

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Investor's Corner

Elon Musk praises Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater for accumulating TSLA stock

Published

1 month ago

on

February 14, 2025

By

Credit: Tesla Asia/X

A recent 13-F filing from legendary investor and billionaire Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater Associates has revealed that the hedge fund has added over $62 million worth of Tesla stock (NASDAQ:TSLA) to its portfolio.

Elon Musk has praised the billionaire’s investment in a post on X.

Bridgewater’s TSLA stake:

  • As per Bridgewater’s 13-F filing, it currently holds 153,589 shares of TSLA, which costs $62,025,382.
  • The firm added the TSLA shares in the fourth quarter.
  • Tesla shares gained momentum after its Q3 2024 earnings call, and it only gained more strength after the election of U.S. President Donald Trump.
  • At the end of 2024, Tesla shares were up 62%, as noted in a MarketWatch report.
  • Tesla stock is still up 88% over 12 months despite a steep drop over the past month.

A vote of confidence: 

  • Bridgewater Associates is one of the largest hedge funds in the world, so the firm’s stake in TSLA could be interpreted as a vote of confidence in the electric vehicle maker.
  • Elon Musk has praised the firm’s investment. In a post on X, Musk noted that Bridgewater’s investment was a “smart move.”
  • Elon Musk has been quite consistent on his idea that Tesla could eventually become the world’s most valuable company. He emphasized this point during the Q4 2024 earnings call.
  • “I see a path. I’m not saying it’s an easy path but I see a path of Tesla being the most valuable company in the world by far. Not even close. There is a path where Tesla is worth more than the next top five companies combined,” Musk said.

Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.

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