Investor's Corner
Tesla’s CAPEX efficiencies could pave the way for a fleet of ‘Alien Dreadnought’ factories
Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) Q3 10-Q Form for 2020 provided some interesting tidbits about the electric car maker’s plans for the coming years. Among these is the fact that the company is planning to increase its capital expenditures to about $4.5 to $6.0 billion in the next two fiscal years. These would be the highest expenditures that the company would be spending on its projects yet, with the amount rivaled only by 2017, when Tesla was dealing with the Model 3 ramp.
“Owing and subject to the foregoing as well as the pipeline of announced projects under development and all other continuing infrastructure growth, we currently expect our capital expenditures to be at the high end of our range of $2.5 to $3.5 billion in 2020 and increase to $4.5 to $6.0 billion in each of the next two fiscal years,” Tesla wrote.
While Tesla’s 10-Q Form noted that CAPEX will be higher than ever in the next couple of years, the company’s estimates still suggest that it has reached an incredible level of efficiency in terms of its expenses. It makes sense for Tesla’s CAPEX to be higher than it ever was, after all, since the company will be making more vehicles than ever before, and it would also be building factories in Berlin, Shanghai, and Texas. The company will be ramping its battery cell production capabilities as well.
As noted by Galileo Russell of YouTube’s Hyperchange channel, Tesla’s expectations for its CAPEX in 2021 and 2022 suggest that the electric car maker has become about five times more efficient on spending per unit of vehicle production compared to 2017. Interestingly enough, Elon Musk responded to the Tesla investor’s observations, lightly noting on Twitter that the company’s CAPEX efficiency back in 2017 was “trash.”
A look at Tesla’s capital expenditures over the years shows that Musk was telling the brutal truth. Back in 2017, Tesla’s CAPEX peaked at about $1.2 billion in one quarter as the company was launching the Model 3 in the Fremont Factory. Today, Tesla’s CAPEX has not broken this record, despite the electric car maker undergoing the Model Y ramp, the buildout of Gigafactory Shanghai, Giga Berlin, and Giga Texas, as well as an expansion of its battery production capabilities.
With this in mind, capital expenditures of $4.5 to $6.0 billion annually within the next two fiscal years seem to be a steal. This was mentioned by Russell on Twitter, and Musk responded by stating that the Tesla team has done excellent work over the years to make such progress possible.
What is rather remarkable is that Tesla is nowhere near done in the optimization of its operations. Over the years, and as the company attempts to hit its goal of producing millions of vehicles annually, there is a pretty good chance that Tesla would still improve and optimize its capital expenditures further. This would work in the company’s favor, especially as it attempts to build more factories and start the production of its upcoming electric vehicles like the Cybertruck, Semi, and the highly-anticipated $25,000 car.
If Tesla could accomplish these, the company would likely end up mastering the art of building electric car factories in a way that is frighteningly quick and capital-efficient, much like how it mastered the mass production of premium electric cars like the Model 3. This goes in line with Elon Musk’s statement back in July, when he noted on Twitter that the “Gigafactory is the product even more than the car.” The fact that every Tesla facility seems to be larger and more optimized than its predecessor highlights this idea.
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During Battery Day, Elon Musk and Drew Baglino remarked that Tesla would need to produce an insane amount of batteries to achieve its goal of accelerating the advent of sustainable energy. This requires the company to build numerous factories at a rate that’s higher than ever before. With this in mind, there seems to be a good chance that Elon Musk’s “Alien Dreadnought” concept may see a resurgence in the near future. With a lineup of hyper-advanced factories that produce clean energy products at an optimal cost, after all, Tesla’s upcoming facilities may very well be considered as fleet of extraterrestrial machines that build machines.
Watch a discussion of Tesla’s CAPEX efficiency improvements in the video below.
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SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX) reported a beat in revenues and EBITDA in its first earnings call report while also minimizing losses as its business continues to gain momentum.
After its IPO in July, SpaceX saw some tough losses on Wall Street due to a major selloff after a delay in its 13th Starship test flight. The ship launched later that week and completed what was arguably the most successful IFT operation in the Starship program’s history.
Nevertheless, the company is continuing on and reported some encouraging financials while also promoting what appears to be a robust outlook moving forward in its Space, AI, and Connectivity divisions.
SpaceX to report first-ever earnings today: here’s what to expect
Earnings Results
- Revenues: $7.8 billion reported vs. $6.7 billion expected
- Adjusted EBITDA: $3.5 billion vs. $2 billion expected
- Net loss of $541 million, an improvement of $467 million from net loss of $1.0 billion
Additionally, CFO Bret Johnsen had these comments:
“2026 has been a momentous year so far, and the second quarter demonstrated the true power of SpaceX. Revenue growth accelerated across all our business segments and we delivered strong operating leverage, with significant margin expansion led by our new AI compute agreements. Our unparalleled leadership in launch, Starlink subscriber growth, new enterprise and government partnerships, and best-in-class AI infrastructure underscore our ability to drive meaningful scale and deliver attractive returns. As a newly public company, we are delighted to welcome our broad base of shareholders and bondholders. We ended the second quarter with $100 billion of cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities, and $47.5 billion in backlog. This financial strength gives us substantial capacity to invest in Starship, Starlink Broadband and Mobile satellites, and our AI platform, while maintaining a disciplined long-term capital allocation framework.”
Space Business Highlights
SpaceX shared some of its biggest Space Business Highlights for Q2:
- Space revenues grew 55% sequentially and 29% year-over-year to $962 million, driven by a higher number of large customer launches and a favorable customer shift compared to the prior year
- Total costs and expenses for the Space segment were up by $389 million year-over-year, as we continued to accelerate R&D investments in our Starship program, which we believe will reduce the cost to orbit by 99% or more relative to the historical average, and unlock significant revenue potential across all business segments
- Leading launch provider for the world with 78 launches and 1,041 metric tons of mass to orbit deployed over the six months ended June 30, 2026, primarily allocated to Connectivity for the deployment of our Starlink constellation
- Starship V3 development continued to advance towards full and rapid reusability:
- Completed Starship V3’s first suborbital mission in May, Flight 12, which achieved a successful lift off from our new Starbase pad, a precision landing of Starship’s upper stage, and deployment of modified V2 Starlink satellites
- Subsequent to the second quarter, completed Starship Flight 13 in July, which achieved all flight objectives including deploying 20 production V3 satellites, demonstrating in-space relight of a Raptor engine, and executing the softest ever splashdown of Starship, providing critical views of an intact heatshield
SpaceX will report its earnings today at 4:30 P.M. EDT.
Elon Musk issued a second pointed warning to SpaceX short sellers on Tuesday, just hours before the company was set to release its first quarterly earnings as a publicly traded firm. Responding to a report highlighting elevated short interest, Musk wrote on X: “I try to warn them, but they just double down …”
The comment came as data from S3 Partners showed roughly 95 percent of available SPCX shares to borrow were on loan, translating to about 34 percent short interest as a percentage of the float. The stock has traded under pressure since its record-breaking IPO in June 2026, declining significantly from early peaks.
I try to warn them, but they just double down … 🤷♂️
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 4, 2026
This marks the second such message from Musk in under three weeks.
On July 17, amid post-IPO volatility, he stated: “The survival probability of firms who maintain a significant short position in SpaceX over time is very low.” At that time, SPCX had fallen roughly 30 percent from its peak above a $2.6 trillion valuation, with short sellers reportedly realizing gains of about $8.7 billion.
Musk’s warning aligned with optimistic analyses projecting that Starship-driven cost reductions could enable a multi-trillion-dollar space economy through applications such as orbital solar power, asteroid mining, data centers, and Mars-related projects, positioning SpaceX as critical infrastructure.
SpaceX is scheduled to report second-quarter results after the market close later today, followed by a webcast. Analysts anticipate revenue near $6.9 billion, reflecting growth in Starlink, launch services, and AI-related segments. The earnings release precedes a major lockup expiration on August 6 that could free hundreds of millions of insider shares.
Musk has a long track record of confronting short sellers, particularly regarding Tesla, where he has argued that persistent bearish positions underestimate transformative technologies. Critics view his optimism as overly ambitious given near-term stock fluctuations, while supporters see temporary dips as opportunities in a longer-term expansion of the space economy.
As SpaceX opens its books to public scrutiny for the first time, the high short interest and Musk’s repeated cautions set the stage for heightened market attention on the results and management’s commentary.
Elon Musk’s space exploration company, SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX), is set to report its earnings for the second quarter today in what will be its first-ever earnings call since going public in July.
SpaceX is trading down roughly 25 percent from its IPO. These early stock signals are usually a bit tumultuous, and considering this is the first company actively launching rockets that is available on the stock exchange, investors might have a tendency to be a bit skittish.
However, there are going to be some details that investors will hear for the first time today on the earnings call. Here’s what to look for:
Wall Street Expectations
Revenue is expected to fall somewhere around $6.8 billion, and will be heavily driven by Starlink, which is SpaceX’s widely popular satellite internet platform that has been adopted by numerous airlines, cruise ships, and other maritime operations. It is also available for consumers at home or in their cars.
Earnings Per Share (EPS) expectations fall at a net loss of $0.23 per share. Wall Street sees this as a total net loss of roughly $1.9 billion.
EBITDA is expected to come in between $2 billion and $2.1 billion.
What Investors Want to Know
Tesla uses the Say platform to help work with both retail and institutional investors to answer relevant and quality questions that address concerns or questions that they might have.
However, SpaceX is doing things differently, as the company launched its own Investor Relations website where these questions are being fielded. Just like the Tesla questions, they seem to be less focused on the operational tasks and overall progress of the company, and more novelty.
Here are the top five:
- Has the team thought about what possibilities there are with your mascot Asteroid? Whether it’s starting additional foundations for kids in its name, helping kids learn about space, etc. Kids are our future, and Asteroid would be a fun and easy way to help.
- Baby Asteroid is already making a difference through charity around the world. Could SpaceX take it even further with programs that inspire kids to explore space?
- SpaceX has some legendary vehicle names. Would you ever allow the public to name a Starship, even knowing there is a 99% chance it becomes Shipy McShipface?
- When can we expect to see more footage of the Human Landing System?
- Will Asteroid (your mascot) go to Mars?
SpaceX will report its earnings today, August 4, at 4:30 P.M. EDT.
SpaceX reports beat in first earnings while minimizing losses
Elon Musk sends second warning to SpaceX shorts ahead of first earnings
