Long-time TSLA bull ARK Invest expects Tesla’s Robotaxi Network to scale before competitors also offering autonomous ride-hailing platforms.
ARK doesn’t expect Tesla to be the first to offer expansive fully autonomous ride-hailing services. However, it does expect Tesla to be the first to scale, which may result in the car maker taking up a larger market share in the autonomous ride-hailing industry.
The TSLA bull predicts that Tesla is targeting a larger market than popular ride-hailing platforms like Uber and Didi. ARK’s Director of Investment Analysis & Institutional Strategies, Tasha Keeney, estimates that Tesla aims for a market of over $10 trillion globally.
She explained that Tesla’s edge would be its relatively low-priced robotaxi rides. Elon Musk estimated that robotaxi rides could reach as low as $0.30 to $0.40 per mile with the Tesla Cybercab at scale.
“For comparison, the average cost per ride-hailing mile in Western ride-hailing markets is ~$2.4 compared to that for a personally owned vehicle at ~$0.70 cents per mile,” Keeney noted.
The ARK Director elaborated that the Tesla Robotaxi Network’s lower costs would make it extremely competitive with human-driven ride-hailing platforms. In addition, Keeney argues that Tesla has the means to scale an autonomous ride-hailing service.
First, Tesla has the data to scale, thanks to its fleet of customer vehicles using FSD and Enhanced Autopilot. Second, it has the manufacturing capacity to build cars to grow its fleet. The recently revealed Tesla Cybercab would make the Robotaxi Network grow faster once production starts.
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