Connect with us

Published

on

In this article

The logo of Tesla seen at one of its showroom. Tesla announced its Q1 2021 earnings today.
Toby Scott | LightRocket | Getty Images

Tesla delivered 241,300 electric vehicles during the third quarter of 2021, the company reported Saturday.

The quarter’s deliveries topped expectations. Analysts predicted that Tesla would deliver around 220,900 electric cars during this period, according to estimates compiled by StreetAccount as of September 30.

The company produced 237,823 cars in the period ending September 30, 2021, Tesla said in its report. Of that, 228,882 were its Model 3 and Y vehicles, its more affordable mid-range offerings.

The remainder produced amounted to 8,941 of its Model S and X vehicles.

Last quarter, Tesla delivered 201,250 vehicles and produced 206,421 cars, even as production of its Model S and X vehicles fell below 2,500.

“Our delivery count should be viewed as slightly conservative, as we only count a car as delivered if it is transferred to the customer and all paperwork is correct. Final numbers could vary by up to 0.5% or more,” the company said in a statement.

Tesla does not break out delivery numbers by model, nor does it report sales or production numbers from China versus the U.S. (Deliveries are the company’s closest approximation of vehicle sales.)

The press release announcing the production and deliveries report was dated Austin, Texas. Tesla’s web site still lists its headquarters as being in Palo Alto, Calif., but Elon Musk moved to Texas last year and the company is building a new factory in the Austin area.

Tesla is also planning to host its annual shareholder meeting at its plant, now under construction, near Austin on October 7. Musk previously threatened to move Tesla’s headquarters out of California in the spring of 2020 when the state’s Covid-related health orders required Tesla’s Fremont factory to temporarily suspend operations for a few weeks.

At the time, California Gov. Gavin Newsom told CNBC he was “not worried about Elon leaving any time soon,” and voiced support for Tesla.

Elon Musk‘s electric vehicle maker now produces cars at its Shanghai plant, and U.S. factory in Fremont, California, while continuing to produce batteries domestically with Panasonic at their sprawling facility outside of Reno, Nevada.

During the period ending September 30, 2021, Tesla began to ship some lithium iron phosphate batteries from China to be used in Model 3 vehicles made for customers in the U.S.

Tesla also temporarily suspended some operations at its vehicle assembly plant in Shanghai, where it makes cars for customers in China and Europe. The halts were attributed to a global semiconductor shortage, which has posed a challenge to Tesla all year, and plagued the entire auto industry.

New battery electric models, notably Rivian’s R1T and Lucid Motors’ long-delayed luxury Lucid Air sedan, are now in production and selling to customers in the U.S., an indication that competition is heating up in key markets for Tesla.

At the same time, interest in electric vehicles is rising too, even in the U.S. a laggard in adoption compared to China and Europe.

According to a June 2021 survey from Pew Research, 39% of Americans say that “the next time they purchase a vehicle, they are at least somewhat likely to seriously consider electric.” About 7% of Americans said they have already purchased a pure battery electric or hybrid-electric vehicle.

That demand is only encouraged by rising fuel costs and environmental regulations.

For example, in China, government programs make it far quicker and cheaper to get license plates for electric vehicles than internal combustion engine vehicles. The Chinese government has also offered subsidies, tax breaks and invested in charging infrastructure to encourage EV production and adoption.

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden set a voluntary target for half of all new vehicle sales in the US to be electric models by 2030– including battery electrics, plug-in hybrids, and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. The move is part of the Biden administration’s pledge to reduce U.S. emissions by in half by 2030.

Piper Sandler senior research analyst Alexander Potter, a bull with a $1,200 price target for shares of Tesla, wrote in a note on September 27:

“Tesla’s share of the battery electric vehicle (BEV) market will almost certainly fall – because many peers haven’t started selling BEVs yet. But we fully expect Tesla’s share of the overall market to continue rising, and we stress that declining BEV market share should not be considered a bearish signal… After all, Tesla is competing against vehicles of all types – not just against other electric vehicles.”

Auto Forecast Solutions Vice President Sam Fiorani agreed. He said, “Tesla has such a head start on the competition in the EV market that it is unlikely for anyone to pass them anytime soon. The Cult of Tesla will keep buyers attached to the brand for years to come. Even Audi and Mercedes are finding it difficult to tap into the same type of aura. While their market share will decrease, Tesla will keep the leadership position for years to come without a major misstep from within the company.”

Continue Reading

Technology

SpaceX aims for $800 billion valuation in secondary share sale, WSJ reports

Published

on

By

SpaceX aims for 0 billion valuation in secondary share sale, WSJ reports

Dado Ruvic | Reuters

Elon Musk’s SpaceX, is initiating a secondary share sale that would give the company a valuation of up to $800 billion, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

SpaceX is also telling some investors it will consider going public possibly around the end of next year, the report said.

At the elevated price, Musk’s aerospace and defense contractor would be valued above ChatGPT maker OpenAI, which wrapped up a share sale at a $500 billion valuation in October.

SpaceX has been investing heavily in reusable rockets, launch facilities and satellites, while competing for government contracts with newer space players, including Jeff Bezos‘ Blue Origin. SpaceX is far ahead, and operates the world’s largest network of satellites in low earth orbit through Starlink, which powers satellite internet services under the same brand name.

A SpaceX IPO would include its Starlink business, which the company previously considered spinning out.

Musk recently discussed whether SpaceX would go public during Tesla‘s annual shareholders meeting last month. Musk, who is the CEO of both companies, said he doesn’t love running publicly traded businesses, in part because they draw “spurious lawsuits,” and can “make it very difficult to operate effectively.”

However, Musk said during the meeting that he wanted to “try to figure out some way for Tesla shareholders to participate in SpaceX,” adding, “maybe at some point, SpaceX should become a public company despite all the downsides.”

WATCH: What retail investors should know about OpenAI and SpaceX

Want to ‘invest' in OpenAI and SpaceX? How tokenization will change investing

Continue Reading

Technology

Judge finalizes remedies in Google antitrust case

Published

on

By

Judge finalizes remedies in Google antitrust case

The logo for Google LLC is seen at the Google Store Chelsea in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., November 17, 2021.

Andrew Kelly | Reuters

A U.S. judge on Friday finalized his decision for the consequences Google will face for its search monopoly ruling, adding new details to the decided remedies.

Last year, Google was found to hold an illegal monopoly in its core market of internet search, and in September, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled against the most severe consequences that were proposed by the Department of Justice.

That included the proposal of a forced sale of Google’s Chrome browser, which provides data that helps the company’s advertising business deliver targeted ads. Alphabet shares popped 8% in extended trading as investors celebrated what they viewed as minimal consequences from a historic defeat last year in the landmark antitrust case.

Investors largely shrugged off the ruling as non-impactful to Google. However some told CNBC it’s still a bite that could “sting.”

Mehta on Friday issued additional details for his ruling in new filings.

“The age-old saying ‘the devil is in the details’ may not have been devised with the drafting of an antitrust remedies judgment in mind, but it sure does fit,” Mehta wrote in one of the Friday filings.

Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The company has previously said it will appeal the remedies.

In August 2024, Mehta ruled that Google violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act and held a monopoly in search and related advertising. The antitrust trial started in September 2023.

In his September decision, Mehta said the company would be able to make payments to preload products, but it could not have exclusive contracts that condition payments or licensing. Google was also ordered to loosen its hold on search data. Mehta in September also ruled that Google would have to make available certain search index data and user interaction data, though “not ads data.”

The DOJ had asked Google to stop the practice of “compelled syndication,” which refers to the practice of making certain deals with companies to ensure its search engine remains the default choice in browsers and smartphones.

The judge’s September ruling didn’t end the practice entirely — Mehta ruled out that Google couldn’t enter into exclusive deals, which was a win for the company. Google pays Apple billions of dollars per year to be the default search engine on iPhones. It’s lucrative for Apple and a valuable way for Google to get more search volume and users.

Mehta’s new details

In the Friday filings, Mehta wrote that Google cannot enter into any deal like the one it’s had with Apple “unless the agreement terminates no more than one year after the date it is entered.”

This includes deals involving generative artificial intelligence products, including any “application, software, service, feature, tool, functionality, or product” that involve or use genAI or large-language models, Mehta wrote.

GenAI “plays a significant role in these remedies,” Mehta wrote.

The judge also reiterated the web index data it will require Google to share with certain competitors. 

Google has to share some of the raw search interaction data it uses to train its ranking and AI systems, but it does not have to share the actual algorithms — just the data that feeds them.” In September, Mehta said those data sets represent a “small fraction” of Google’s overall traffic, but argued the company’s models are trained on data that contributed to Google’s edge over competitors.

The company must make this data available to qualified competitors at least twice, one of the Friday filing states. Google must share that data in a “syndication license” model whose term will be five years from the date the license is signed, the filing states.

Mehta on Friday also included requirements on the makeup of a technical committee that will determine the firms Google must share its data with.

Committee “members shall be experts in some combination of software engineering, information retrieval, artificial intelligence, economics, behavioral science, and data privacy and data security,” the filing states.

The judge went on to say that no committee member can have a conflict of interest, such as having worked for Google or any of its competitors in the six months prior to or one year after serving in the role.

Google is also required to appoint an internal compliance officer that will be responsible “for administering Google’s antitrust compliance program and helping to ensure compliance with this Final Judgment,” per one of the filings. The company must also appoint a senior business executive “whom Google shall make available to update the Court on Google’s compliance at regular status conferences or as otherwise ordered.”

This is breaking news. Check back for updates.

WATCH: Judge Issues final remedies in Google antitrust case

Judge Issues final remedies in Google antitrust case

Continue Reading

Technology

Amazon had a very big week that could shape where its stagnant stock goes next

Published

on

By

Amazon had a very big week that could shape where its stagnant stock goes next

Continue Reading

Trending