Earlier this week, Tesla reduced the price of the Model S by $3,000. When a price change is applied to any of Tesla’s vehicles, it is usually a race between media outlets to report it first. I believe that many news sites look at it as an opportunity to have a post with high views, and being the first to report it could lead to that. Also, with human beings remaining relatively misinformed about EVs and Teslas’ prices in specific, whenever a price drop is applied, it is a huge deal.
But the reason for misinformation spreads to journalists as well. I found myself shocked at the Fox Business article that implied that Tesla was undergoing some sort of “sales slide.” At least, that’s what they put in their headline.
Baffled at what I had read, I felt compelled to post it on Twitter and LinkedIn (the only two forms of social media I have) and set the record straight. While it is true that the percentage of the Model S sales has gone down, it is untrue that Tesla, or the flagship sedan, is seeing record low numbers because of a “sales slide.”
https://twitter.com/KlenderJoey/status/1316017793070850053
First, Tesla just had its most successful quarter in terms of production and deliveries in Q3. 139,300 cars were delivered, and 145,036 cars were produced at Fremont and Giga Shanghai. Nothing about that indicates a sales slide, especially considering the massive growth during the quarter in both deliveries and production.
The Model S and Model X were delivered 15,200 times during the quarter. Yes, this is a relatively small percentage, just a tad more than 10% of the total deliveries that Tesla performed over the course of the quarter. It is a 33% growth from the last quarter, where the company only delivered around 10,000 of the two vehicles.
In my opinion, it isn’t that Tesla’s flagship sedan is “less popular” or even “slumping” in terms of sales. I think that the Model Y and Model 3 are simply better options for most car buyers. I’ll tell you why.
First, we have their price. The Model 3 and Model Y have better price points, and they are Tesla’s first two mass-market vehicles. This means that the prices will fit more budgets, and it will be a more popular vehicle because of that.
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Secondly, the Model 3 and Model Y technology is significantly better than the Model S and Model X. Of course, the Model S has a lot of power, and the Model X has those awesome falcon-wing doors that everyone freaks out about. But in terms of sheer technology, the Model 3 and Model Y are just better options. They are minimalistic, they are newer designs, and they are also operating with better batteries than the Model S and Model X.
The Model 3 is, as far as we know, still utilizing the 2170 cells, while some speculation suggests that Tesla could already be putting the 4680 cells in the Model Y. These cells are not only more affordable, but they’re also more efficient, offer better power, and their energy capacity is greater.
The Model S and the Model X are still using the 18650 battery cells, which are still great batteries. The Model S has an EPA record 402 miles of range, and they both have 100 kWh battery packs in their performance models, which makes them a better option for the speed demons out there. Nevertheless, battery tech has gotten better since the Model S and Model X have been built, and neither of these cars has undergone a refresh, which brings me to my next point.
Buying a Model 3 or a Model Y ensures that a car buyer has the most up-to-date Tesla technology available. In addition to the already more minimalist design that the 3 and the Y offer, these two cars’ look is fresh in people’s minds. The Model 3 literally just underwent a refresh last night, and the Model Y is only seven months old as of right now.
Meanwhile, the Model S and Model X have relatively the same design as they did when they were released. The only things that have really changed are the available colors and the grille, which are minor cosmetic modifications. I love the look of the S and the X, but some people out there need the most updated versions of things. That is why we see so many people waiting for Apple to release a new phone, even though theirs works perfectly fine.
There’s nothing wrong with wanting something new. I get it. Believe me, I will be one of the first people in Pennsylvania to have a PS5, but that’s a $500 purchase. A car is $35,000 at the least if you want a Tesla.
All of this brings me to my point: These large-scale media networks reporting price cuts should just report the price cuts. Nothing more, and nothing less. There is no reason for these media outlets who have no idea what they’re talking about to sit there and suggest that the Model S is having a sales slide when they are still selling a healthy amount of vehicles.
Even Tesla knows that the Model S and Model X are not going to be big factors in the company’s future growth. That’s why the company has confined production to Fremont and hasn’t expanded it to Shanghai or even mentioned it with Giga, Texas. There is no need to. Remember, Tesla’s ultimate mission is to accelerate sustainable energy and transportation, not turn a massive profit with really fast cars. If that were the case, I’m sure the Roadster would already be built and roaming around the streets of California being driven by celebrities and Tesla referral code masters.
There is a real danger here with the way media outlets are angling their headlines. Ultimately, Tesla is doing a great job of expanding its presence in the automotive market. If mainstream media was more responsible with its reporting, could Tesla’s popularity be even more widespread at this point?
I use this newsletter to share my thoughts on what is going on in the Tesla world. If you want to talk to me directly, you can email me or reach me on Twitter. I don’t bite, be sure to reach out!
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Tesla has been stumped on how to engineer one crucial part of the Optimus bot, but CEO Elon Musk says the company is “on the cusp” of achieving something great with the project.
During the Q3 2025 Earnings Call, Tesla CEO Elon Musk revealed the company is moving closer to a major breakthrough with the Optimus project, and said they are “on the cusp of something really tremendous.”
However, it seems there is one specific portion of the robot that has truly stumped engineers at the company: the hand, fingers, and forearm.
Musk went into great detail about how incredibly complex and amazing the human hand is, highlighting its dexterity and capability, as its ability to perform a wide variety of tasks is especially impressive:
“I don’t want to downplay the difficulty, but it’s an incredibly difficult thing, especially to create a hand that is as dexterous and capable as the human hand, which is incredible. The human hand is an incredible thing. The more you study the human hand, the more incredible you realize it is, and why you need four fingers and a thumb, why the fingers have certain degrees of freedom, why the various muscles are of different strengths, and fingers are of different lengths. It turns out that those are all there for a reason.”
It’s been pretty apparent that Tesla has made massive strides in the Optimus project, especially considering it has been able to walk down hills, learn things like Kung Fu, and even perform service tasks like serving food and drinks.
However, a recent look at a Gen 2.5 version of Optimus posted by Marc Benioff, the CEO of Salesforce, showed that Tesla was likely using mannequin hands until it developed something that was both useful and aesthetically pleasing:
Very likely that these are non-functional to not give away any major details about next-gen Optimus
The hands are amongst the most complex and important parts of the entire project https://t.co/YgoeNjamvI
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) September 3, 2025
Musk continued on the call last night that the Tesla team was confronted with an “incredibly difficult” challenge from an engineering perspective, and the hands and actuators for that specific part were tough to figure out:
“Making the hand and forearm, because most of the actuators, just like the human hand, the muscles that control your hand are actually primarily in your forearm. The Optimus hand and forearm is an incredibly difficult engineering challenge. I’d say it’s more difficult than the rest of the robot from an electromechanical standpoint. The forearm and hand are more difficult than the entire rest of the robot. But really, in order to have a useful generalized robot, you do need an incredible hand.”
The CEO continued that developing a useful and effective robot was “crucial to the future of the company,” and that he works with Optimus’s design team each Friday night.
News
Elon Musk sets definitive Tesla Cybercab production date and puts a rumor to rest
“The single biggest expansion in production will be the Cybercab, which starts production in Q2 next year.” -Elon Musk
Tesla CEO Elon Musk finally set a definitive date for Tesla Cybercab production and, at the same time, put a substantial rumor regarding the vehicle that has been circulating within the community to rest.
Tesla’s Cybercab was unveiled last October as the company’s two-seater, affordable option that would ultimately be the car used for autonomous travel. It was initially slated for production in late 2025 or early 2026.
Tesla is ramping up its hiring for the Cybercab production team
However, Tesla has finally said it will start production of the Cybercab in Q2 2026, a more concrete date for the company, as it has moved the entire project forward in recent weeks by testing it at the Fremont Test Track and conducting crash safety assessments.
Musk said on the Q3 2025 Earnings Call:
“The single biggest expansion in production will be the Cybercab, which starts production in Q2 next year. That’s really a vehicle that’s optimized for full autonomy. It, in fact, does not have a steering wheel or pedals and is really an enduring optimization on minimizing cost per mile for fully considered cost per mile of operation.”
In that quote, Musk also put a rumor that has been circulating within the community to rest. Some started to speculate whether Cybercab would be sold with a steering wheel and pedals, as many of the elements of the car seemed to hint toward not being exclusively autonomous, including side mirrors being equipped, among other things.
🚨 The 🐐 @JoeTegtmeyer caught this Tesla Cybercab strolling around Giga Texas —
— with a steering wheel?! pic.twitter.com/PUvmpFp3Re
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) February 24, 2025
It has been interesting to see some consider whether Tesla would sell the vehicle with the elements that would enable human control, especially as there have been a handful of images of the vehicle on company property with a steering wheel spotted.
However, Musk doubled down on the autonomous nature of the Cybercab with this confirmation during the earnings call, something that many investors likely wanted to hear because it was, in a way, a vote of confidence for the company’s path to autonomy.
Investor's Corner
Tesla (TSLA) Q3 2025 earnings: Wall Street’s reactions
Tesla’s third-quarter 2025 results delivered the highest quarterly revenue in company history, and Wall Street analysts are taking notice.
Tesla’s third-quarter 2025 results delivered record quarterly revenues, and Wall Street is taking notice.
The automaker reported $28.1 billion in revenue, topping estimates of $26.4 billion, while non-GAAP EPS landed at $0.50 versus $0.54 expected. Despite the slight earnings miss, Tesla’s free cash flow surged to nearly $4.0 billion and total cash on hand jumped to $41.6 billion, a new high.
The following are some of Wall Street’s reactions to Tesla’s third-quarter results.
Mizuho
Mizuho analyst Vijay Rakesh maintained an “Outperform” rating on Tesla and raised the firm’s price target to $485 from $460 per share, pointing to Tesla’s next-generation autonomy roadmap. “We see 2026E better with stronger FSD traction and deliveries. TSLA is focusing on AI5/HW5 with ~40x gains gen/gen, while ramping Robotaxis and FSD into 2026E–27E.”
Rakesh also highlighted that Mizuho sees Tesla as “well-positioned” to lead “physical AI with Cybercab/FSD traction, humanoid longer term, offset by near-term demand headwinds.”
Wedbush
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives reiterated his “Outperform” rating and $600 price target on Tesla. As per the analyst, “Tesla reported its FY3Q25 results featuring beats on the top-line while missing bottom-line expectations as the company benefitted from a pull-forward in its delivery segment with greater strength across EMEA and APAC while making gradual progress with its autonomous and energy businesses.”
He also pointed to Musk’s upcoming compensation vote as a key inflection point: “We believe it will be approved by a wide margin despite some opposition,” Ives noted. “That will be incremental to keeping Musk as a war-time CEO as the company enters a critical AI expansion phase.”
Baird
Baird analyst Ben Kallo reiterated his “Outperform” rating and $548 per share price target for Tesla following the company’s Q3 2025 earnings results. He praised Tesla’s energy segment for delivering record results.
“Energy demand is particularly high given grid constraints in several regions and a rapid build-out of infrastructure. We expect this piece of the business to capture more attention in the remainder of 2025 and moving into 2026 with the tipping points for longer-term initiatives (Optimus, robotaxi, etc.) more opaque,” Kallo noted.
Deepwater
Meanwhile, Deepwater’s Gene Munster struck a more measured tone. “The September numbers and earnings call were largely uneventful,” Munster said, adding that Tesla’s decision to move cautiously with robotaxis in Austin is the right one.
“Shares of TSLA traded down following Elon’s comment that he remains paranoid about the safety of Robotaxi given any accidents would represent a significant step back in terms of the public’s confidence in the fleet,” he wrote. Munster, however, emphasized that Tesla’s cash position is a major strength: “They have enough cash to will Elon’s vision into reality. It may take a lot longer than many expect, but they’ve got the cash to get there.”
Tesla is stumped on how to engineer this Optimus part, but they’re close
Elon Musk sets definitive Tesla Cybercab production date and puts a rumor to rest
Tesla (TSLA) Q3 2025 earnings: Wall Street’s reactions
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