Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) second-quarter 2022 earnings call comes on the heels of the company meeting analysts’ expectations. Despite the challenges it faced in the second quarter, however, Tesla still achieved an operating margin that’s among the highest in the industry of 14.6%. The company also posted positive free cash flow of $621 million.
Tesla’s war chest continued to grow in the second quarter, though many will likely be drawn to the fact that the company sold the majority of its Bitcoin holdings. At the end of the second quarter, Tesla converted about 75% of its Bitcoin purchases, adding $936 million of cash to the company’s balance sheet.
Tesla also ended the quarter with the highest vehicle production month in the company’s history. This was hinted at by Tesla in a rather subtle update on its factories’ vehicle capacity estimates. As seen in the company’s Q2 2022 Update Letter, Giga Shanghai is now listed with an annual capacity of over 750,000 cars, and the Fremont Factory is listed at 550,000 vehicles per year.
The following are live updates from Tesla’s Q2 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.
15:33 CDT – And that’s a wrap! Thanks once again for staying with us on yet another Tesla earnings call. Till the next time!
15:30 CDT – Elon shares his thanks to Tesla’s suppliers again. As it turns out, Tesla already uses a lot of custom silicon. This is no surprise, considering Tesla’s tech pedigree.
15:28 CDT – A question about Tesla’s AI projects was asked. Elon notes that while he does not want to steal any thunder from AI Day, he stated that people should expect existing news on AI Day. “I think we’ll be further ahead than most people think,” he said.
15:25 CDT – Toni Sacchonagi from Bernstein asks about Tesla’s vehicle demand and potential pressures. He wonders if Elon and Zach’s comments were just speculations, or if there’s empirical data available on it, like cancellations and the like.
Elon notes that Tesla has no demand problem. It’s a production problem. “It’s always been a production problem,” he said. “We’re trying to make the backlog lower, not longer,” Musk said.
Sacchonagi posts a follow up question about Elon’s commitment to Tesla in the next few years. Elon jokes that if there’s only good news, then he won’t be on Tesla’s earnings call. Like in Q2, with the shutdowns in China. “I’ll work in Tesla as long as I can help advance the course of sustainability and autonomy,” he said.
15:22 CDT – Colin Rusch of Oppenheimer asks about FSD and its pricing. Elon notes that Tesla will increase the price of FSD, probably once the system hits wide beta. With the wide beta, FSD would be made available to everyone who requests (and pays) for it. Musk notes that assuming FSD materializes, it would be extremely cheap for what it provides.
15:17 CDT – Emmanuel Rosner from Deutsche Bank asks about Tesla’s vehicle demand. Is the company worried about its vehicle sales amidst Elon’s views on the economy? Elon notes that Tesla’s main worry is production.
Kirkhorn adds that there does not seem to be much macroeconomic effects on Tesla’s vehicle demand. As for the company’s backlogs, Tesla has a very long runway. The world is not certain, so there’s a lot of things that is yet to be seen. “Demand is something we don’t spend a lot of time talking about,” Kirkhorn said.
Elon also highlighted that there’s a difference between demand and affordability. He adds that he hopes Tesla could reduce its prices a bit. He also notes that Tesla has a good chance of exiting this year with 40,000 vehicles per week. Kirkhorn adds that it will be a challenge to hit such volumes but it’s feasible.
15:14 CDT – Pierre Ferragu of New Street Research asks about Tesla’s 4680 cells. He asks about the cells’ specifics. Are the 4680s more formidable than what they’re advertised as? Tesla notes that its focus on 4680 cells is all about simplicity. However, Tesla has plans to layer in new material technologies. “We’re not holding back.”
Elon describes some challenges in 4680 production. “When something is revolutionary, there are a lot of unknowns,” he said. Tesla is making progress, but the first order of business is to get the basics right. The main target is high production.
Drew notes that a lot of the uber high density battery innovations are not feasible for mass production. He also reiterates that Tesla is more than willing to share its battery innovations with its partners. This is true. Panasonic and LG are also working on their own 4680 cells. Panasonic is even building a factory in Kansas for it.
Elon discusses batteries further. He states that Tesla sees constraints in refining of the materials to make the battery cells like lithium. He adds that there’s not a shortage of materials on Earth, but there’s a need for more refining. “There no fundamental barrier, its simply a rate question here,” Musk said.
“If our suppliers don’t solve these problems, then we will,” Elon Musk added.
15:04 CDT – Final investor question asks about the Cybertruck and its availability. Elon notes that Tesla is hoping to start Cybertruck production by the middle of next year.
15:02 CDT – Tesla doesn’t see major problems for the components barring any Covid-related shutdowns.
15:01 CDT – Is Giga Texas producing 4680 cells already? Tesla exec Drew Baglino notes that the ramp is going. In Q2, Tesla’s Kato Road has ramped significantly. “Kato output has grown 35% month over month,” Baglino said. There are new ramp challenges to overcome in Texas and Berlin, however. That said, Tesla expects 4680 cell production in Texas by the end of this quarter.
16:59 CDT – A question about Andrej Karpathy’s departure was asked. Elon notes that Andrej is awesome, but he has decided to contribute more to core AI at an academic level and get back to coding individually. “We’ve got a team of 120 people in our software AI group that are incredibly talented. I’m highly confident that we’ll solve FSD,” Musk said.
16:57 CDT – Tesla executives like Elon, Drew, and others are now just geeking out. It’s pretty cool to hear. You can really tell that these guys are engineers at heart. “There’s a lot of opportunities to improve casting and extend them to more parts,” Elon Musk said.
16:54 CDT – A question about Tesla’s 4680 batteries was asked. Musk reiterates his explanation about structural packs being like the wings of airplanes, which are now used to hold fuel. Dual usage of 4680 is the superior architecture. “The structural pack is beating the non-structural pack,” Musk said, adding that structural packs will be better over time.
16:52 CDT – A question about Tesla’s cryptocurrency holdings was asked. Elon notes that Tesla’s purpose is to accelerate the advent of sustainable energy. “Cryptocurrency is a sideshow to the sideshow. Cryptocurrency is not something we think about a lot,” Musk said. “My primary goal here is to have the day of sustainable energy come sooner.”
16:50 CDT – A question about Tesla’s lowering prices was asked. How aggressively will Tesla lower its prices? Elon notes that the wait after customers order a vehicle is substantial. Tesla then tries to predict the inflation rate when a person takes delivery of the car.
“This is fundamentally dependent on macroeconomic inflation. It’s not something we can control,” Musk said, noting that he believes inflation should decline by the end of the year. There could be a slight decrease in car prices with inflation rate starts declining.
Elon and other Tesla executives note that there is a need for lithium processing. Elon Musk invites people get into the refining business again. “It’s like software margins . You can’t lose,” Elon said.
16:46 CDT – The second investor question asks about Tesla’s unified vector space. Elon notes that it’s not necessary for FSD, but it should improve the performance of the system.
16:45 CDT – Investor questions begin. First question deals with the Chinese competition. Elon notes that he has a lot of respect for China’s EV manufacturers. “They’re smart, they’re hardworking, and anybody that’s not as competitive as them will suffer a decline,” Musk said. That said, “Right now the best Chinese EV manufacturer is actually Tesla China,” the CEO added.
16:43 CDT – Kirkhorn notes that it’s still possible for Tesla to hit a growth of 50% this year. “Tesla is positioned for a record-breaking second-half of the year,” he said.
16:41 CDT – The CFO notes that the Tesla Energy business is still components constrained. Operating costs for Giga Austin and Berlin are also being more manageable. “Operating expenses in Austin and Berlin have wound down,” Kirkhorn said. He also explains Tesla’s decision to sell its Bitcoin. Elon says Tesla still has ALL its Dogecoin, though.
16:40 CDT – Zach takes the floor, reiterating that Tesla still made progress despite the challenges presented in the second quarter. He notes that the Fremont factory reached new production records with help from Reno team. Energy business also achieved record gross profit, particularly the Tesla Solar team.
16:38 CDT – Elon still expects Cybertruck production to start at the middle of 2023. “FSD Beta is on track to be released for all of North America by the end of this year,” Musk said. AI Day is also coming, with the CEO saying that the event will be pretty exciting for many.
16:37 CDT – Elon notes that Tesla has made advances in its manufacturing system. Thanks to megacasts, body-welding casting robots have been reduced by 70%. Body shops now are three times smaller than what is normally the case. “But this journey is not over,” Musk said, saying that the Cybertruck has significant manufacturing improvements.
16:35 CDT – FSD Beta has traveled 35 million miles. That’s “more than any other company combined.”
16:35 CDT – Elon notes that Tesla has enough 2170 cells to satisfy all vehicle production this year. 4680 cells will truly make a difference next year. Giga Texas is ramping, ad Tesla is “expecting Giga Texas to exceed 1,000 car per week milestone in a couple of months.”
16:33 CDT – Elon’s opening remarks. He highlights Shanghai’s shutdown. But despite this, it “was still a record-breaking quarter for Tesla.” This means that Tesla can have a really impressive second half of the year. He admitted that supply chain challenges are still prevalent. “It’s been kinda supply chain hell for several years,” Elon said.
16:31 CDT – And it starts! Tesla VP of investor relations Martin Viecha opens the call. Elon’s present, and so is CFO Zach Kirkhorn and a number of other executives.
16:30 CDT – And it’s time! The music is still playing though. Are we looking at a slight delay?
16:28 CDT – Alright, two minutes left. Wonder if Elon would be in the call?
16:25 CDT – To be fair, Tesla did run into its own fair share of issues in the second quarter. This makes the company’s Q2 results even more impressive. Simply put, +42% of revenue, a gross profit of +47%, EBIT of +88%, and GAAP EPS of +91% translate to a “bad” quarter for Tesla.
16:15 CDT – Greetings everyone, and welcome to another Tesla earnings call live blog! The second quarter has been challenging for Tesla, to the point where analysts were actually on point with their predictions on the company’s results. That being said, Tesla still finished Q2 on a strong note, with a strong war chest, while still being profitable.
That’s an accomplishment. Period.
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.
Tesla has its answer to grow its automotive sales over the next few years, TD Cowen analyst Itay Michaeli says, but it just has to bring it to the U.S.
On Thursday, Michaeli reiterated his $490 price target and the ‘Buy’ rating he already held on Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA). However, its automotive division has struggled to show sequential growth over the past few years, mostly due to its focus on AI and Full Self-Driving. Tesla already axed two of its lower-volume vehicles with the Model S and Model X earlier this year.
However, Tesla does not need to engineer an entire new vehicle to trigger an upward tick in sales; it just has to bring it from China to the U.S., Michaeli said.
He is talking about the Model Y L, a slightly larger version of the all-electric crossover that is already available in China. U.S. customers have been pleading with CEO Elon Musk to bring it to the country since its launch in Asia last year, but he’s not convinced of it because of the advent of self-driving and its importance in this particular market.
The problem is that Tesla owners have been requesting something larger that could fit a typical American family. The Model Y L is slightly larger than the standard Model Y, but some are concerned that it could still be too small to fit what most people might need.
Instead, they have asked for a full-size SUV from Tesla.
Tesla gives big hint that it will build Cyber SUV, smaller Cybertruck
Nevertheless, the Model Y L still presents a great opportunity for Tesla in the U.S., and Michaeli says that there is an additional sales opportunity of about 100,000 units, with demand potential falling somewhere between 60,000 and 135,000 units.
TD Cowen’s note to investors also analyzed that Tesla’s growth could come from a stock perspective as well, positively impacting the stock price, as it has been widely reliant on vehicle sales, even though Tesla has truly phased itself away from that being an important metric.
Tesla stands to gain greatly from the introduction of the Model Y L in the U.S., but only if Elon Musk sees it as a viable fit for the market. Families may need to see Tesla bring something larger to the U.S., or they might be forced to buy from another automaker that offers something that fits is needs for more interior space to haul around the kids.
Elon Musk
SpaceXAI just launched into your kitchen with their new app
SpaceXAI just powered its first consumer app and it predicts what you want to buy.
SpaceXAI just made its first move into consumer AI, and it involves your grocery cart. On June 3, 2026, Gopuff and SpaceXAI announced the launch of Go, a Grok-powered shopping assistant built directly into the Gopuff app that predicts what you need before you even start searching for it.
Gopuff is an instant delivery platform that operates more than 400 micro-fulfillment centers across the U.S., delivering everyday essentials, snacks, drinks, and household items in as little as 15 minutes. It is not a restaurant delivery app or a marketplace. It owns its inventory, controls its warehouses, and handles its own logistics, which means it has built one of the most detailed consumer behavior datasets in retail over its 13-year history.
Go combines SpaceXAI’s advanced reasoning, voice, and image generation models with Gopuff’s dataset of hundreds of millions of orders and real-time cultural signals from X to prepare a suggested cart the moment a customer opens the app. It learns each shopper’s habits and automatically builds a personalized cart based on time of day, location, order history, and real-time indicators. Returning customers can check out with a single tap.
Rather than searching for specific items, users can describe a situation like a game-day party or the desire for a healthy breakfast and Go will assemble a cart automatically. It can also predict when shoppers are running low on items like coffee or paper towels and have them packed and delivered in under 15 minutes. Grok voice integration lets users talk to the app in plain conversational language and check out completely hands-free.
Gopuff co-founder and co-CEO Yakir Gola said: “Today, we believe the greatest friction left in commerce is not delivery or instantaneous access to the essentials customers need. It’s the moment before: the thinking, the deciding, the remembering. We’re combining Gopuff’s demand intelligence with xAI’s frontier reasoning to create an everyday shopping experience that feels like a true extension of you.”
Why SpaceX just made a $60 billion bet on AI coding ahead of historic IPO
The timing carries context beyond the product launch. SpaceXAI was formed after SpaceX completed an all-stock merger with Elon Musk’s xAI earlier this year, folding one of the most advanced AI labs in the world into the same corporate structure as the company preparing what could be the largest IPO in history. SpaceXAI is dipping into consumer-focused AI just as it prepares for its public debut, and while Musk has openly discussed building an everything app, this launch uses Grok to power another company’s product rather than launching a standalone consumer platform. Every consumer-facing deployment of Grok ahead of the IPO roadshow adds tangible evidence that SpaceXAI is not just an infrastructure play but a direct competitor in the AI application layer where OpenAI and Google are already fighting for dominance.
Elon Musk
SpaceX’s amended S-1 is sparking a major Tesla merger conversation
A single line in SpaceX’s amended S-1 just sent Tesla stock down 5% in one day.
A single line buried in SpaceX’s amended S-1 filing is doing more to move Tesla’s stock price than anything Tesla itself has announced in months. The clause, disclosed as SpaceX prepares for what could be the largest IPO in Wall Street history, states that the company “may issue a significant amount of equity in connection with future transactions.” While this may be seen as boilerplate language in S-1 filings, the historical ties between SpaceX and Tesla, and with Elon Musk reportedly discussing a possible merger with close colleagues, investors are interpreting it as something closer to a signal.
The concern among institutional investors like Gary Black, managing director of The Future Fund, pointed directly to the amended filing on X, saying it “strongly suggests more SPCX equity will be issued,” which could potentially be used to acquire Tesla. He estimated such a deal could be 28% dilutive to Tesla shareholders since SpaceX would likely command a significantly higher valuation multiple. Black added that institutional investors he knows hate the idea of a combination because they prefer pure plays over conglomerates, which he said “nearly always gravitate to the lowest common multiple.”
The Tesla and SpaceX merger everyone is talking about is quietly building
The bull case runs the math differently. Tesla influencer and retail shareholder advocate AleXandra Merz pushed back on what she called a widespread misunderstanding of how merger-of-equals deals actually work. Rather than simply splitting the difference between two market caps, a merger exchange ratio is negotiated based on relative fair market values, meaning the lower valued company typically sees its stock reprice upward toward the deal value.
Under her model, SpaceX enters at a $2.5 trillion valuation and Tesla at $1.6 trillion, producing a combined entity worth $4.1 trillion split evenly between both shareholder groups. That implies Tesla’s side of the deal would be valued at $2.05 trillion, a gain of roughly $450 billion from its current market cap. She cited Dow-DuPont and CBS-Viacom as historical examples of how markets reprice both companies toward the announced exchange ratio after a deal is unveiled.
What does a Merger of Equals mean to Elon’s compensation packages?
Well, it changes everything.
Enjoy https://t.co/uekCldyITw pic.twitter.com/kolq1C9qTu
— AleXandra Merz 🇺🇲 (@TeslaBoomerMama) June 1, 2026
The SpaceX S-1 amendments also revealed just how much financial infrastructure already binds the two companies together. As Teslarati has reported, SpaceX purchased $697 million in Tesla Megapacks, $131 million in Cybertrucks, and the two companies have shared supply chain resources, and semiconductor fabrication plans since well before any merger conversation became public. A retail poll by Tesla influencer Sawyer Merritt is finding that 36% of respondents do not plan to buy SpaceX shares at IPO and 15.3% saying their decision depends on the valuation.
Do you plan on buying @SpaceX stock at its IPO?
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) June 1, 2026
Whether the merger happens or not, the amended filing is seemingly moving markets and sharpened a debate that is no longer theoretical. SpaceX is weeks away from trading publicly, and Tesla shareholders are now watching every word of every filing for clues about what Musk plans to do next.
Tesla has its answer to auto growth, it just has to bring it to the U.S.: analyst
Tesla Hardware 3 owners could be made whole this month
