Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) Q2 2023 earnings call comes on the heels of the company’s Q2 2023 Update Letter. Tesla’s second quarter results were quite impressive, with the electric vehicle maker’s Q2 profits growing 20% to $0.91 per share and revenue increasing 47% to $24.93 billion.
Tesla’s total gross profit for the quarter experienced a 7% growth, amounting to $4.53 billion, while gross margins stood at 18.2%, marking a decrease from 19.3% in the first quarter. Excluding regulatory credits and leases, auto gross margins were reported at 18.1%, down from 18.3% in Q1.
The following are live updates from Tesla’s Q2 2023 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 – That wraps up the Q2 2023 earnings call! Once again, thanks for staying with us for yet another live blog! Until the next one!
17:32 CDT – A Goldman Sachs analyst asked about when automotive cogs would be under $36,000. CFO Zachary Kirkhorn noted that it’s hard to say, as there are innumerable factors to consider. The executive noted that commodity prices are dropping, however. “The trend is in being more efficient,” the executive said.
Kirkhorn also clarified that Giga Berlin and Giga Texas are still in their early phases. As the facilities get more optimized, their costs should be improved as well.
17:27 CDT – Oppenheimer asked about the operating system of Dojo. Musk noted that Dojo’s software is a combination of open-source and custom software.
17:24 CDT – Deutsche Bank asks about the estimated release date for a non-beta version of FSD. Musk did not commit to an exact date, though he did predict that FSD will be better than a human by the end of 2023. Musk also mentioned that the price of FSD is actually pretty low, considering the impact of autonomy.
17:18 CDT – Musk noted that it may be reasonable to sacrifice margins considering the potential of autonomy. Autonomy will have significant effects on the car market, the CEO predicted.
17:16 CDT – An analyst question about Dojo is asked, and its effects on Tesla’s financials. Musk noted that Tesla does not specify Dojo’s costs for now, though the company will likely be spending well over a billion on the supercomputer the next year.
As for potential competitors, Musk noted that the costs of developing such hardware are substantial. “In order to copy us, you’d need to spend well over a billion on a training computer,” Musk said. Kirkhorn noted that the numbers that the CEO mentioned for Dojo are between R&D and capital spending.
17:09 CDT – Elon Musk gives a shoutout to ARK Invest, stating that the firm’s analysis is among the best. He also pledges to give long-term value to shareholders. “I’m confident will deliver in the long term, but can’t control the short term,” Musk said.
17:05 CDT – A question about Tesla’s demand is asked. Musk noted that Tesla is fortunate enough to have real-time data on its vehicles’ demand and production. “We’re in turbulent times. I’m very confident in Tesla,” Musk said. The CEO also noted that he sees a least a 5x growth in Tesla, maybe a 10X growth in the future.
17:00 CDT – When asked about Tesla’s estimated demand for Optimus, Musk joked that the humanoid robot’s production would be immense. There are a lot of challenges with Optimus’ ramp, however, as even its actuators have to be custom-made. No suppliers produce the actuators that Tesla needs for its humanoid robot.
What is exciting is that Tesla will be trying out Optimus in its own factories. Elon Musk predicts Optimus will be useful by next year. Elon Musk also talked about using Neuralink to provide bionic parts to amputees, using Optimus parts. Now that’s futuristic!
16:56 CDT – In response to a question about the repairability of megacasted vehicles, Elon Musk joked “There might be why everyone is copying us.” Tesla executives also explained that the repairability of traditionally-produced vehicles is overestimated.
sThe company is working on repairability, of course, and estimates suggest that it is 10x cheaper and 3x faster to fix a vehicle with a megacast. This means that collision repair will be cheaper and faster over time. “I think basically it will be how all cars will be made in the future,” the executive said.
16:54 CDT – A question about the Cybertruck’s demand is asked. Musk’s response is clear. “Demand is so far off the hook, you can’t even see the hook,” the CEO said, though he also set expectations by reminding customers that there is a lot of new technology in the Cybertruck. Mass production is still set for next year.
16:53 CDT – In response to a question about FSD transferability, Musk provided a clear answer. As of Q3, FSD can be transferred to a new car. “It’s a one-time amnesty,” Musk joked.
16:52 CDT – In response to a question about Tesla’s costs and effects from the IRA, Zachary Kirkhorn noted that the company is working on reducing costs in Texas and Berlin, with both facilities seeing improvements during Q2.
16:48 CDT – A question about Tesla Energy was asked. Tesla notes that the Energy Business is gaining some momentum, especially as the Megapack is seeing a lot of demand. Megapack margins remain strong and within expectations, and Autobidder is continuing to grow. Tesla surpassed half a million Powewalls installed as well.
16:46 CDT – First investor question is asked, and it’s about 4680 battery cells. A Tesla executive noted that Tesla is currently focused on yield, though a 25% reduction on cell cost has been achieved. Giga Texas’ 4680 production increased 80% as well. By the time the Cybertruck scales, Tesla expects its 4680 program to be at a pretty good level.
16:44 CDT – Tesla CFO Zachary Kirkhorn takes the stage. He also congratulates the company for yet another record quarter. Kirkhorn notes that Q2 is another record quarter in terms of profit. He also mentioned several of the company’s projects, from the Cybertruck to the next-generation platform. He did, however, also stated that Tesla increased its spending on AI projects, such as FSD, Optimus, and Dojo.
16:41 CDT – The CEO also discussed the rise of Tesla’s North American Charging Standard (NACS). In this light, FSD may also be licensed by “major OEMS” in the future. Discussions are already ongoing. In closing, Musk thanked the Tesla team for their hard work once more.
16:39 CDT – Musk confirms that the FSD Beta program has now traveled 300 million miles! He also praised the Cybertruck, noting that Tesla worked hard on every millimeter of the vehicle. “This is the first truck that will have 4 doors, over a 6 ft bed, and can still fit in a 20 ft garage,” Musk said, highlighting that the pickup truck will be delivered this year.
16:36 CDT – Similar to past quarters, Musk highlights Tesla’s work in autonomy, noting that the company’s Robotaxi will have “quasi-infinite demand.” This may sound like another lofty Musk prediction, but with Dojo, Tesla’s FSD and Autopilot efforts are likely to accelerate. As noted by the CEO, Tesla’s Dojo training computer is designed to lower the cost of neural net training.
16:34 CDT – Elon Musk takes the stage. He mentions several of Tesla’s milestones in the second quarter, such as the Model Y becoming the world’s best-selling car in the first quarter. While there is a lot of macro uncertainty, operating margins are still at 10%. Musk warns that Q3 levels will be a bit lower due to factory shutdowns.
16:32 CDT – Tesla VP for Investor Relations Martin Viecha takes the stage. He provides an overview of the rules. Here we go!
16:29 CDT – And the music is starting! I wonder if we’re starting at Elon Time? The Q2 results were great though, so I have a feeling the earnings call will start on time this quarter.
16:25 CDT – Hi, everyone, and welcome to yet another live blog! Tesla’s Q2 numbers are quite impressive, with the company posting better-than-expected results. The Q2 2023 Update Letter also suggested that serious work is underway to produce the Cybertruck, arguably the most highly-anticipated electric vehicle today.
Here’s the YouTube livestream for Tesla’s Q2 2023 earnings call.
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
Tesla and SpaceX merger talks hit a new stage, and one hurdle remains
Tesla and SpaceX merger talks are reportedly advancing, and a deal could arrive by December.
Tesla and SpaceX are moving closer to a combination, with a deal announcement possible as soon as December, Bloomberg reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. The companies have also discussed a scenario in which the announcement slips into early 2027.
Boards and advisers on both sides are now working through the terms of the deal and the governance structure of the combined company, according to the report. One open item is how many SpaceX shares Tesla investors would receive. Bloomberg had previously reported that the two companies were aiming to announce a deal in the first half of next year and close it before the end of President Donald Trump’s term, so a December announcement would pull that schedule forward by months.
Tesla shares rose as much as 1.9% to $398.35 after the report, while SpaceX gained 0.6% to $140.63. SpaceX carries a market value of about $1.9 trillion following its June IPO, and Tesla is valued at about $1.55 trillion, which would make a combination the largest corporate deal on record. Neither company responded to requests for comment.
The talks became official on October 20, when Elon Musk said on SpaceX’s third quarter earnings call that both companies had formed special committees of independent directors to study a merger, as Teslarati reported. Musk said he could not take part because he is “a conflicted party” and called the process “an odd kabuki dance.” He also noted that Tesla would need approval from 50 percent of all outstanding shares, a bar the company missed in 2025 when a board declassification proposal won support from only 39.4 percent.
China remains the biggest structural problem. Bloomberg’s sources said the companies still need to work out how to isolate Tesla’s large and profitable manufacturing business in China from SpaceX’s U.S. government and defense contracts. JPMorgan analyst Rajat Gupta described those two factors last month as “key dynamics that are at odds with each other” for regulatory and shareholder approval. Musk has repeatedly said Tesla has no plans to separate its China business, a position he restated in August after ARK Invest predicted a merger announcement before the end of the year.
Washington adds another layer. Democrats took control of Congress in this month’s midterms and have pledged to investigate Musk’s business and political activities, which could bring added scrutiny to a deal involving one of the Pentagon’s most important launch and satellite contractors.
The report also lands three weeks before Tesla’s December 3 annual meeting at Giga Texas. That ballot has only three items, led by the re-election of Musk, board chair Robyn Denholm and JB Straubel, and includes no merger proposal. Any deal announced in December would likely require a separate special meeting for Tesla shareholders to vote on it.
The two companies already share a growing list of projects, including the Terafab semiconductor plant in Texas. Tesla’s next generation Roadster, which uses cold gas thrusters built on SpaceX hardware, turned up on display at SpaceX headquarters last month and has become one of the clearest public examples of that overlap.
Elon Musk
Nvidia’s board meets on Jensen Huang, and Elon Musk already has an answer
Elon Musk says it would be an honor to hire Jensen Huang amid Nvidia turmoil.
Elon Musk says he would welcome Jensen Huang at one of his companies if Nvidia’s board decides to push out its longtime chief executive.
On Wednesday evening, the financial account ZeroHedge posted “Elon please hire Jensen” on X. Musk replied roughly two hours later: “That would be an honor.” Neither Huang nor Nvidia had responded publicly as of Wednesday night.
Musk’s reply came as Nvidia’s board met to decide Huang’s future. The Wall Street Journal reported that directors were preparing to oust him following reports of two extramarital relationships. One involves Alice Huang, a Singapore-based businesswoman whom U.S. intelligence officials reportedly believe was working for China’s Ministry of State Security. The New York Times separately reported a relationship with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia’s vice president of health care. Huang acknowledged being unfaithful in a memo to employees on Sunday but gave no details.
@zerohedge That would be an honor
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 12, 2026
Under Nvidia’s bylaws, a majority of its 11 directors can remove the CEO with or without cause. Bloomberg reported that the board has been working with an outside firm on possible replacements and may name an interim chief, with CFO Colette Kress seen as the likely pick. Nvidia shares fell more than 8 percent in extended trading, according to CNBC, and the company is scheduled to report quarterly earnings on November 17.
Musk has more riding on Nvidia’s leadership than most tech executives. In August, he told investors on SpaceX’s first earnings call as a public company that it would build its AI infrastructure exclusively on Nvidia hardware, calling Vera Rubin “the best architecture.” SpaceX is also working with Nvidia on the compute payload for Starmind, its planned orbital AI constellation. In October, SpaceX said it had a binding commitment for a roughly $40 billion lease of Vera Rubin GPUs and related equipment, with the leases expected to begin in the first half of 2027.
The scale of that dependence is already enormous. On its Q3 call, SpaceX said it was bringing roughly 200,000 to 220,000 Nvidia GB300 GPUs online each month and expects 2.5 to 3 GW of nameplate compute by the end of the year. That buildout is now reaching new sites like the proposed $24 billion power plant and supercomputer campus at Starbase.
The relationship between the two executives also goes back nearly a decade. Huang has often told the story of personally delivering Nvidia’s first DGX-1 AI supercomputer to Musk in 2016, when no other customer wanted one. “Nobody wanted to be part of it, except for Elon,” Huang said on the Joe Rogan Experience last December.
Musk did not say what role Huang might fill, and his reply stops short of a formal offer. Huang co-founded Nvidia in 1993 and still owns about 3.6 percent of its stock, so any move to a Musk company would depend on whether, and how, he leaves the chipmaker he has run for more than three decades.
Elon Musk
SpaceX’s Anthropic deal has a catch, and Elon Musk just addressed it
Elon Musk says SpaceX’s Anthropic compute deal cuts both ways after Chamath floats higher prices.
Elon Musk pushed back on Sunday against the idea that SpaceX’s compute contract with Anthropic is a one way bet, after venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya argued the company could use a termination clause to charge the AI lab far more.
“It works both ways, of course. If compute becomes plentiful and cheap, SpaceX revenue will drop. No crying in the casino for either party,” Musk wrote on X Sunday evening, replying to a clip of Palihapitiya’s comments shared by AI commentator Rohan Paul.
On the All-In podcast released Sunday, Palihapitiya said either side can walk away from the agreement on 90 days’ notice. If data center supply tightens, he argued, SpaceX could exercise that option and bring the contract back at two to three times the current price, and Anthropic would have little choice but to accept. He called it “the kingmaking move,” according to BigGo Finance.
The clause itself is not new. SpaceX disclosed in its IPO filings in May that Anthropic would pay $1.25 billion per month for dedicated capacity at its Colossus clusters through May 2029, nearly $45 billion in total, with both companies able to terminate on 90 days’ notice, as Teslarati reported at the time. SpaceX’s later compute deals with Google and Reflection AI carry similar exit terms.
What has changed is the political backdrop. Palihapitiya’s thesis rests on incoming Democratic governors pulling tax incentives for data centers and slowing new construction. In Texas, Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa campaigned on a moratorium on new data center approvals, and Deutsche Bank analysts warned last week that SpaceX’s Texas compute capacity could face delays. SpaceX and Tesla shares both fell after the midterm results.
A slowdown would favor companies that already own capacity. SpaceX acquired xAI in February and has been renting data centers to outside AI labs before the space is needed for Grok. At the Baron Investment Conference on Friday, Musk said SpaceX was “getting 50 billion a year for 35 billion dollar investments” and that it can bring a data center online in eight or nine months, compared to two and a half years for competitors. He also said SpaceX is tracking toward an annualized revenue rate above $100 billion in December, with a “best guess” of $500 billion by December 2027.
Musk’s reply points to the other side of the clause. Anthropic has signed large compute agreements with Amazon, Google and Microsoft, and if that capacity comes online faster than new construction slows, the AI lab would have its own leverage to renegotiate or leave. Musk has called Anthropic “obviously currently the leader in AI,” and it remains one of SpaceX’s largest compute customers.
SpaceX shares rose more than 2 percent in overnight trading late Sunday after closing Friday at $134.27, according to Stocktwits.
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