Trying to reach volume production of the Model 3 was one of the toughest challenges in Tesla’s history. During the Model 3 ramp, Tesla burned through $3 billion as the company tried to reach a production rate of 5000 vehicles per week. Musk at the time said the Model 3 was a “bet the company” moment.
And in December 2020, Elon Musk revealed that, during the most difficult part of the Model 3 ramp, he reached out to Apple to make a deal. Elon said, he planned to discuss the possibility of selling Tesla to Apple for $60 billion.
@Tesla Loses Over $2.5 Billion Due To Giga Shanghai Shutdown. @elonmusk #Tesla #ElonMusk #Gigashanghai-https://t.co/ql43I5XU6H- pic.twitter.com/l4lBhMgqFv— Tinsae (@tinsaearegay) April 18, 2022
The recent rally in Tesla’s stock price, which has increased the EV maker’s market cap to over $1 trillion, means Musk was considering selling Tesla just 4 years ago for one-eighteenth of its current price.
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And Apple with over $200 billion of spare cash sitting in a bank could have easily swooped up Tesla. However, lucky for Elon Musk and Tesla investors, Apple CEO Tim Cook refused to even take the meeting.
And now, in just 4 years, Tesla is in a completely different position as a company. Not only did the EV maker successfully tackle the Model 3 production ramp at its Fremont California plant and Nevada Gigafactory, but has also repeated the process at its Shanghai Gigafactory for a fraction of the pain, cost, and time.
On top of that, Tesla has also brought a second vehicle to volume production, the Model Y in the company’s Fremont California plant and at its Shanghai Gigafactory. And adding to Tesla’s growth the EV maker has also recently inaugurated two new factories, one in Austin Texas, and another in Brandenburg Germany.
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This is all wonderful however, according to Elon Musk’s recent TED Talk interview, Tesla’s success has also brought with it a different set of challenges. Musk in the interview released a few hours ago asked about how he deals with being the richest person on earth replied saying “he doesn’t think about it that much” however, what makes him lose sleep is…
“Every good hour, even minute thinking about Tesla and SpaceX has such an impact on the company, I really try to work as much as possible, you know to the edge of sanity basically. Because Tesla is getting to the point, will get to the point later this year, where every high-quality minute of thinking is a million dollars impact on Tesla”
It’s difficult to even fathom the pressure a person will be in knowing every minute can translate to a million dollars. This will undoubtedly pressurize any man or woman and when you take into consideration all the parts of Tesla Elon Musk is involved in, it will simply be torture to even choose what to focus on.
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Musk continuing in the interview gave an example of how in a 30-minute meeting he was able to improve the financial outcome of Tesla by $100 million.
“If Tesla is doing 2 billion dollars a week, sort of $300 million a day, 7 days a week…there are many instances where I was able to improve the cash outcome of the company by $100 million in a half-hour meeting”
This is incredible efficiency on Elon Musk & Tesla’s part and we all wish Musk good health so that he will be able to continue his great work for humanity.
Tesla is currently set to report Q1 earnings on April 20 and, we will be sure to keep you updated on how Musk’s work is translating to the financial success of Tesla. Until then, make sure to visit our site torquenews.com/Tesla regularly for the latest updates.
So what do you think? Could anyone other than Musk be able to take the mantle at Tesla and take on this incredible responsibility? And just for fun, how much do you think every minute of quality thinking affects your personal or company’s financial outcome? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
Image: Screenshot from Elon Musk’s TED Talk Interview
For more information check out: Tesla Updates Leasing Conditions In The US: Will No Longer Allow Purchase At End Of Contracts
Tinsae Aregay has been following Tesla and The evolution of the EV space on a daily basis for several years. He covers everything about Tesla from the cars to Elon Musk, the energy business, and autonomy. Follow Tinsae on Twitter at @TinsaeAregay for daily Tesla news.