We are very stupid, says Tesla boss Elon Musk

We’re skeptical about Tesla’s full self-driving option. Customers pay 7500 euros for it and actually get little in return. But Elon Musk doesn’t see it that way. The controversial CEO thinks it’s stupid that we have doubts.

“Something that only savvy investors understand — and many others don’t — is that all the cars we sell can be made fully self-driving with a software update,” Musk said during the earnings presentation. “So there are already a few million cars on which we can sell full self-driving with a 100 percent margin.”

One million Tesla robot taxis

Musk: “The value of full self-driving is increasing with the lightning-fast developments in the field of autonomous driving. The moment the system becomes self-driving, our fleet will increase in value significantly.” He refers to earlier statements of his that Full Self-Driving can ultimately bring in tens of thousands of euros per car because Teslas can be used as robotic taxis .

However, Musk hasn’t talked about this functionality in years. He once promised to develop one million autonomous taxis by the end of 2020, but after that it was silent. Musk has been calling for fully self-driving cars for almost a decade, and within a matter of months. Tesla hasn’t even come close in all that time.

Full self-driving beta remains Stage 2

Full Self-Driving Beta — a trial used by hundreds of thousands of Tesla drivers in the US — is impressive in its own right, but it remains a Level 2 system that needs constant monitoring. Also because it is anything but perfect and makes life-threatening mistakes every now and then.

Developments are not “super fast”

Musk is right when he says fully autonomous cars would be invaluable. You don’t have to be a “smart investor” to understand this. The problem is Tesla’s credibility. And especially from Musk. He exaggerates and is far too firm in his predictions, which come true too late or not at all.

Developments in self-driving cars are progressing “at lightning speed,” Musk says. No not at all. That is disgusting. In recent years, companies have invested around $100 billion in autonomous systems, Bloomberg reported in October, and the results have been disappointing. Some manufacturers and specialized startups have even given up hope.