Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) first-quarter 2022 earnings call comes on the heels of yet another record quarter that saw the company posting $3.6 billion GAAP operating income and an impressive 19.2% operating margin. As noted by the company in its Q1 2022 Update Letter, the company is currently focused on growing as fast as is reasonably possible.
As noted by CEO Elon Musk in previous statements, Tesla is now focused on an expansion of its production capacity. The past two months are a testament to this as the company launched not just one, but two new vehicle production plants. Both Giga Texas and Giga Berlin-Brandenburg have started delivering vehicles, and both facilities feature battery production facilities.
Despite all these projects Tesla also highlighted that it is nearly debt-free. As of the end of the first quarter, the company’s outstanding recourse debt has fallen below $0.1 billion. That’s extremely impressive for a company that is still growing at Tesla’s pace.
The following are live updates from Tesla’s Q1 2022 Earnings Call. I will be updating this article in real-time, so please keep refreshing the page to view the latest updates on this story. The first entry starts at the bottom of the page.
17:35 CDT – And that wraps up Tesla’s Q1 2022 earnings call! That was very efficient, with lots of questions answered and lots of topics covered. Thank you so much for staying with us on this live blog. We will see you again next quarter!
17:30 CDT – Goldman Sachs analyst Mark Delaney asks about opening the Supercharger Network. The company noted that there are plans to provide third-party vehicle access to the Supercharger Network not just in Europe, but in North America as well. There are challenges involved, but Tesla is working on them. “We want to do the right thing with respect to the whole system,” Musk said.
As for Tesla insurance, it is now the second-largest insurer of Teslas in Texas. The program is progressing well, however. Elon Musk noted that having real-time feedback on driving habits has been resulting in Tesla owners driving more carefully. Premiums are lower, and there’s extremely high retention. A real-time, fast feedback loop is incredibly useful, after all.
“We’re trying to turn a nightmare into a dream with Tesla Insurance,” Musk said, highlighting the idea that Tesla Insurance has turned into a passion project for the company.
17:28 CDT – Wells Fargo’s Colin Langan asks about how raw materials supply are built out. Tesla notes that flexibility is key to “solving” raw material challenges related to battery cells.
17:25 CDT – Piper Sandler analyst Alexander Potter asks if China’s shutdown would affect production outside the country. Elon Musk notes that this is indeed the case. “Some parts sourced in China that might impact production elsewhere,” Musk said.
In a follow-up question, Potter asked about Musk’s potential new compensation plan. The CEO stated that there are currently no plans for a new performance award.
17:22 CDT – Trip Chowdhry from Global Equities Research asks about the Cybertruck. In terms of parts, how does it compare with traditional trucks. Elon Musk noted that Tesla has not done a comparison yet, though Lars Moravy stated that the Cybertruck is simpler considering its use of megacasts. Ignoring battery cells, the Cybertruck would probably have 20-30% fewer parts than conventional pickup trucks.
As for an expansion of Giga Nevada, Elon noted that there are plans to expand the site, but the focus of expansion is currently Giga Texas.
17:20 CDT – Pierre Ferragu from New Street Research asks about Tesla’s free cash flow. He notes that Tesla is sitting on a lot of cash. Musk noted that the amount may be a lot now, but it’s difficult to predict inflation. The CEO stated that Tesla would like to do something useful with the funds. “500 billion might be worth 20 billion today,” Musk said.
Kirkhorn noted that Tesla is just focused on ramping the Robotaxi and Optimus, and make decisions about what’s next after that point.
17:15 CDT – Wolfe Research Rod Lache also inquires about potential obstructions to Ev adoption. Musk notes that cell output is crucial. Tesla might need to help with lithium mining and refining for EV adoption. He also encourages young entrepreneurs to get into the Lithium business. “Do you like minting money? Well, then lithium business is for you,” Musk joked.
In response to a follow-up from the analyst, Musk noted that Tesla is hoping that it does not need to raise prices anymore. “We hope we don’t need to increase the price further,” Musk said, though he noted that Tesla does not control the prices of raw materials. “The current prices are for vehicles in the future,” Musk added.
17:10 CDT – Analyst Dan Levy CSFB notes that one of the Model 3’s goals is to make an attainable car. He notes that given the Model 3’s goal, how does Tesla look at the vehicle’s price progression. Elon noted that it’s difficult to manage inflation, though Tesla is still aiming to make its cars as attainable as possible. Musk added that suppliers are also under heavy pressure.
Musk notes that with the Robotaxi, Tesla should be able to provide consumers with the lowest cost-per-mile transport with Robotaxi and FSD. A Robotaxi ride would cost less than a subsidized bus or subway ticket, Musk stated.
17:05 CDT – A question was asked about the dedicated Robotaxi. Elon noted that a product event for the Robotaxi would be held next year, with volume production happening in 2024.
Elon noted that volume production of 4680 cells should be likely around the end of the third quarter this year. It should also be noted that 2170 non-structural pack capability is available in Texas’ Model Ys, just like their siblings in Berlin.
17:03 CDT – An inquiry was asked about Berlin’s ramp and if it can match Giga Shanghai. Elon noted that Giga Berlin’s ramp should be faster since Tesla has learned a lot since the company had learned a lot with its China-based factory. The CEO also noted that there are special teams to help ramp production in Berlin and Texas. Musk added that with the structural pack, the body shop gets a lot simpler.
A question was also asked about the dedicated Robotaxi. Elon noted that a product event for the Robotaxi would be held next year, with volume production happening in 2024.
17:00 CDT – A question is asked about Tesla’s plan to scale to extreme size. Elon highlighted the importance of raw materials. The CEO noted that at 5, 10, 20 million-vehicle level, Tesla will need to look closer at the macro tonnage of raw materials. Tesla, however, thinks mining and refining lithium appears to be a limiting factor.
Some lithium-related announcements are due in the months to come. Tesla is also recycling about 50 tons per week worth of battery materials today, and it is only going to get more substantial with time. Musk highlights that Tesla’s recycling efforts are not just about batteries. The company is also recycling a lot of aluminum from scrap and regular wheels from conventional cars.
16:55 CDT – A question was asked about how Tesla’s 4680 cars are performing. Senior VP Drew Baglino noted that it would take several years to properly see how the vehicles are, though Elon Musk noted that 4680 structural packs would be comparable with the best alternative packs available this year. Needless to say, Tesla is working on all the areas mentioned on Battery Day.
16:53 CDT – The next question asks about Tesla’s efforts to open direct sales on a state-by-state level. A question was also asked about why Tesla doesn’t use 800v architecture. Musk stated that the US has not really shown much interest in allowing direct sales on a federal level so Tesla has to battle anti-direct sales legislation by state. (Drew Baglino) noted that higher voltage is not necessarily better. Musk noted that the advantages are small but the costs are high.
The Tesla executives Adopting 800v architecture may be worth it in the future, but high volume is needed to make the shift worth it. The Tesla Cybertruck and the Tesla Semi are candidates for 800v architecture. But for the Robotaxi, the advantages are “basically zero.”
16:50 CDT – Kirkhorn adds some details to Elon’s answer, noting that Tesla is renegotiating contracts with its suppliers. “We’re trying to anticipate where things will go,” he said.
16:48 CDT – The third question is about price increases. Musk noted that it may seem unfair that Tesla is increasing its prices despite having record profits, but the demand is there. Musk explains that Tesla’s price today anticipates logistical costs in the future. Cars ordered today will be delivered months later. Tesla is still production constrained.
16:45 CDT – The second question is about Giga Shanghai’s shutdown and the localization of the supply chain in Berlin. Musk noted that Shangai did lose lots of days. “We did lose a lot of important days of production,” the CEO noted, though he stated that “Giga Shanghai is back with a vengeance,” and it would not be surprising if the facility ramps its vehicle production line never before.
“We’ll see record production from Shanghai this quarter, albeit we are missing a few weeks,” Musk said, adding that Q3 and Q4’s production numbers will be far better. He estimates that Tesla could produce 1.5 million cars this year. Musk also noted that it takes about 12 month to go from the start of production to 5,000 vehicles per week.
16:43 CDT – First question from investors is about FSD timelines. Elon’s record here is spotty at best. The CEO reiterated that FSD development has experienced many false dawns and to solve FSD, Tesla would have to solve real-world AI. This is a challenging endeavor, of course, but it’s possible. The company has been laying the pieces for this gargantuan task, as hinted by projects like Dojo.
Musk urged those who wish to get a clearer view of Tesla’s FSD technology by joining the FSD Beta program. This actually makes sense.
16:41 CDT – “Optimus will be worth more than the car business. It will be worth more than FSD. That’s my firm belief,” Musk said, stating that the importance of the Optimus project will be apparent in the coming years.
16:40 CDT – Elon talks about the “Robotaxi,” a dedicated vehicle with no steering wheels or pedals. It will be designed solely for the Robotaxi service and optimized for FSD. Target production is set for 2024. Oh, and Cybertruck production is definitely in 2023.
Elon adds that Tesla aims to achieve 20 million vehicles per year at the end of the decade. But even today, Tesla is already at 5% of this goal.
16:38 CDT – Elon takes the floor, also for another round of opening remarks. He congratulates the Tesla team for achieving record profitability despite many different headwinds. “Q1 was once again a record quarter on many levels,” Musk said.
The CEO gave recognition to the Giga Shanghai team, which is operating once more despite getting hit hard by the city’s Covid shutdowns. Just like the Kirkhorn, Musk highlighted that Teslas’ debt is all but gone. “We have a reanonable shot at a 60% increase over last year,” Musk added.
Musk also took special care to mention that Giga Berlin and Giga Texas’ initial ramp would be deliberate, but they would be growing fast. “Initial ramp always looks small, but it grows exponentially.” He predicts that Giga Berlin and Texas will achieve high volume next year.
16:35 CDT – Interesting. CFO Zach Kirkhorn is doing the opening remarks. He states that Q1 was challenging, but it was still a successful quarter for Tesla. He highlights Tesla’s key achievements in Q1. He did admit that vehicle deliveries are pretty delayed, so some vehicles delivered today would be priced lower since they were ordered in previous months.
Kirkhorn also noted that $288 million from credit revenue. He notes that the company now has more profitable vehicles, including Model Y. The CFO highlighted that Tesla has achieved a record operating margins of over 19%.
Kirkhorn also set expectations for Q2, stating that Tesla lost about a month’s worth of vehicle production in Shanghai. Giga Berlin and Texas are also just starting up.
16:31 CDT – Looks like we’re starting on time! VP of Investor Relations Martin Viecha opens the meeting. Elon is here. here we go!
16:27 CDT – Less than five minutes left. Will we start in Elon time?
16:20 CDT – Tesla’s Q1 2022 results are extremely impressive. It’s pretty crazy to see that the company is practically debt-free at this point. The ironic part is that Tesla is still rated at Ba1 or below investment grade by Moody’s Investor Service and S&P Global Ratings. Is a facepalm in order?
16:15 CDT – Welcome once more to yet another live blog of Tesla’s earnings call! Elon Musk has stated that he would be present once more, so we all know what that means. Some important announcements are coming! What are your guesses?
Disclaimer: I am long TSLA.
Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.
Elon Musk
California snubs Tesla in its newly passed EV incentive that favors Rivian and Lucid
California passed a $135 million EV incentive that rewards Rivian and Lucid while sidelining Tesla
California just drew a line in the EV incentive sand to put Tesla on the wrong side of it. The state recently passed a $135 million program offering first-time electric vehicle buyers a direct incentive with no application required, but the rules were written in a way that leaves Tesla at a structural disadvantage compared to Rivian and Lucid.
The program caps eligible vehicles at $50,000 for new EVs and $25,000 for used ones. That pricing threshold rules out a significant portion of Tesla’s lineup, though some lower-priced Model 3 and Model Y configurations would still qualify. California-based automakers are exempt from the price cap entirely, regardless of what their vehicles cost. Rivian, headquartered in Irvine, and Lucid, based in the San Francisco Bay Area, both benefit from that exemption. Rivian’s R2 starts at roughly $45,000 but has versions above the cap. Lucid’s Air and Gravity start at $70,990 and $79,990 respectively, well above any threshold a non-California company would face.
California hits Tesla Cybercab and Robotaxi driverless cars with new law
Tesla built its reputation and a significant portion of its early market share in California, where EV adoption has consistently led the nation. The company operates its original factory in Fremont, California, and the state was home to Tesla’s headquarters for most of its existence. That changed in 2021 when Tesla moved its corporate headquarters to Austin, Texas. Since then, the relationship between the company and California Governor Gavin Newsom has been openly adversarial, with Musk and Newsom trading public criticism on multiple occasions.
California’s EV incentive landscape has shifted repeatedly in recent years, and Tesla has previously lost eligibility for state-level programs as its vehicles exceeded income-adjusted price thresholds. The federal $7,500 EV tax credit, which Tesla models have qualified for and lost depending on policy cycles, is no longer available after it expired without renewal, making state-level programs more meaningful to buyers than they have been in years.
The practical impact for buyers is more nuanced than the headline suggests. California residents purchasing a Tesla under $50,000 for the first time can still access the incentive. But the exemption written for California-based manufacturers is a structural advantage that rewards where a company plants its headquarters flag rather than where it builds its products, and Tesla moved that flag to Texas.
Elon Musk
SpaceX’s newest logo confirms everything about what it’s become
SpaceX officially absorbed xAI under the SpaceXAI brand, completing the largest private merger in history.
SpaceX made its corporate transformation official in May 2026 when Elon Musk posted on X that xAI would cease to exist as a standalone company. “xAI will be dissolved as a separate company, so it will just be SpaceXAI, the AI products from SpaceX,” he wrote.
A new SpaceXAI logo was announced today, visually embedding the xAI letters inside the SpaceX identity, which can be seen as a deliberate design choice that signals the merger is not a partnership but a full absorption and XAi a core function of the same company. The same way Starlink is not a separate brand but a SpaceX product. The announcement closed the loop on a process that began February 2, 2026, when SpaceX acquired xAI in the largest private merger in history, valued at $1.25 trillion. SpaceX at $1 trillion and xAI at $250 billion.
We are now @SpaceXAI. pic.twitter.com/ema66xDWC9
— SpaceXAI (@SpaceXAI) July 6, 2026
The reason SpaceX bought xAI was stated plainly by Musk at the time of the deal: to build orbital data centers. SpaceX had simultaneously filed with the FCC to launch up to one million satellites designed to function as AI compute nodes in low Earth orbit, escaping what Musk described as the energy constraints limiting AI development on Earth.
xAI provided the AI software stack, with Grok, the X platform, and the Colossus supercomputer infrastructure in Memphis with over 220,000 NVIDIA GPUs, while SpaceX provided the rockets, Starlink, and the capital base to fund it. The two companies needed each other. xAI was burning $2.5 billion in losses on $250 million in revenue. SpaceX was generating an estimated $8 billion in profit on $15 billion in revenue and needed an AI narrative to command the valuation it was targeting for its IPO.
What SpaceX has done, regardless of how the orbital AI vision ultimately plays out, is walk into a public market as something no company has been before: a rocket manufacturer, satellite internet provider, AI software company, social media platform, and supercomputer operator under one ticker. Whether that combination is worth $2 trillion depends entirely on which of those businesses you believe in most.
Investor's Corner
Tesla challenges startups to score a gig inside its most advanced European factory
Tesla is challenging startups to bring their best battery tech directly to Gigafactory Berlin.
Tesla has issued an open challenge to startups across Europe, inviting them to bring their best battery technology directly to the floor of Gigafactory Berlin. The program, called the JUNI x Tesla Battery Cell Giga Challenge, opened applications this month with a deadline of July 24, 2026, and is targeting startups with solutions that can make battery cell manufacturing faster, cheaper, safer, and more scalable at an industrial level.
The timing of the challenge is directly tied to Tesla’s most aggressive European battery investment yet. On May 12, 2026, Giga Berlin plant manager André Thierig announced a $250 million investment to scale the factory’s annual 4680 cell production capacity from 8 GWh to 18 GWh, more than doubling the previous target set just months earlier in December 2025. Thierig confirmed the expansion on X, saying the investment “will enable 18 GWh of annual 4680 cell production and create more than 1,500 new jobs.” Combined with a previously announced battery investment at the Grunheide site now approaches $1.2 billion.
Today, we announced a $ 250m investment for our Giga Berlin Cell factory. This will enable 18GWh of annual 4680 cell production and create more than 1500 new jobs. Good news during challenging times for the German industry. pic.twitter.com/ou4SWMfWh9
— André Thierig (@AndrThie) May 12, 2026
The challenge is looking specifically for startups with proven solutions across five categories: materials, equipment, operations, automation, and artificial intelligence. Applications are screened directly by Tesla’s cell manufacturing team in Grunheide, and the strongest submissions move through technical discussions, a pitch day in front of Tesla stakeholders, and potentially a paid pilot project with the cell team. Tesla is not looking for ideas at concept stage. The program requires applicants to demonstrate working prototypes, test data, or prior pilots before being considered.
The historical context matters here. Elon Musk first announced plans for what he called the world’s largest battery cell production facility alongside the Giga Berlin car factory back in 2020, targeting up to 250 GWh of annual capacity. Those plans were shelved in 2022 when Tesla shifted its battery investment focus to the United States to take advantage of Inflation Reduction Act incentives. The revival of cell production at Giga Berlin, now backed by over $1 billion in committed capital, represents a return to an ambition that was set aside for three years. As Teslarati has reported, the 4680 format is central to Tesla’s long-term cost reduction strategy across vehicles, energy storage, including the Tesla Semi and Cybercab.
By opening the challenge to outside startups, Tesla is acknowledging that reaching 18 GWh at Grunheide will require technology it does not currently have in-house, and it is willing to pay for the right solutions. For a startup in the battery supply chain, a paid pilot with Tesla’s European cell team is as close to a direct commercial path as the industry offers.
Tesla app update makes Robotaxi ownership make a lot more sense
California snubs Tesla in its newly passed EV incentive that favors Rivian and Lucid
