A few days back, Future Fund’s Gary Black had advised Elon Musk to launch 60-second Tesla ads on Tucker Carlson’s new Twitter show. While it is as yet unclear whether a Tesla-Carlson tie-up is in the works, the EV giant’s CEO does now finally appear amenable to one part of that advice: advertisements.
@elonmusk said that while traditional marketing channels are great, it is sort of preaching to the choir. To help educate potential customers who don't know about many awesome Tesla features, Tesla will start advertising a little.
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) May 16, 2023
At today’s annual meeting of Tesla’s shareholders (AGM), Elon Musk finally succumbed to the inevitable by declaring that “Tesla will start advertising a little.”
Of course, advertisements are a time-tested method of increasing sales in a demand-constrained environment. And, without a shadow of a doubt, Tesla is demand-constrained at the moment. The company was forced to cut the prices of its EVs by an average of between 12 and 15 percent during the first quarter of 2023. These price cuts, however, provided only diminishing returns, with Tesla’s sequential deliveries managing to grow by only 6 percent and sequential automotive revenue falling by around 7 percent.
Elon on how he's doing: "It's been a rollercoaster of a situation; It's rare for me to be at a party; The work pain level can be excruciating, and then i get dumped on in the press. There was a short term distraction (at Twitter), but now it's in a stable place; The larger point…
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) May 16, 2023
Earlier today, we had noted in a post that Elon Musk would either fully commit to Tesla’s overarching vision at the AGM or make way for Zach Kirkhorn. It seems that Musk has chosen the former path, with the CEO of Tesla stressing that “short-term distraction” – a reference to Twitter – was now at an end with the global town square reaching a “stable place.”
BREAKING: @elonmusk says he is NOT stepping down as @Tesla CEO.
"I think Tesla's going to play an important roll in AI and AGI, and I think I need to oversee that." pic.twitter.com/MlAiVF5x6k
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) May 16, 2023
Moreover, toward the end of the AGM, Elon Musk categorically stated that he was not stepping down as the CEO of Tesla.
*ELON SAYS TESLA $TSLA HAS "TWO NEW PRODUCTS" TO UNVEIL -- EXPECTS TO MAKE IN EXCESS OF 5 MILLION UNITS/YR COMBINED
— Stock Talk (@stocktalkweekly) May 16, 2023
As for other major announcements at the event, Tesla teased two new models, with Elon Musk claiming that the company was targeting an eventual combined annual run rate of 5 million units for these new additions to its product lineup. Additionally, Giga Mexico will have a production capacity of 2 million units per annum.
In another striking tidbit, Musk said that the design for the much-delayed Roadster would be finalized this year and that the vehicle would enter production in 2024.
NEWS: @elonmusk says long term Tesla Megapack demand could be ~500 GWh per year.
That would be around $300 BILLION in revenue per year.
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) May 16, 2023
Elon Musk also expects to extract $300 billion in annual revenue from Tesla Megapacks.
Tesla shows off Tesla Bot progress pic.twitter.com/LJtFwP06Am
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) May 16, 2023
Finally, it won’t be a Tesla event without showcasing the famous Optimus bipedal robot.
$TSLA CEO Musk: Warns Tesla shareholders to expect “challenging” year; To devote more time to Tesla, especially on AI - CNBC
- Tesla's AI to have a "ChatGPT moment" next year
- Tesla's AI is "far more advanced than Google"
(More at https://t.co/rxJLsHt6pG)— TradeTheNews.com (@Trade_The_News) May 17, 2023
In a subsequent interview with CNBC, Elon Musk touted Tesla's AI-related prowess, asserting that the company's bespoke solution was "far more advanced" than Google's.
What do you think of the change in the EV giant's strategy? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
About the author: Writing is my one incontrovertible passion. Over the past six years, he has authored over 2,200 distinct articles on financial and tech-related topics, spanning nearly 1 million words. And he has been a member of Wcctech mobile team since 2025. As an alumnus of the University of Toronto, Rotman Commerce Program, I bring nuance, in-depth knowledge, and a unique perspective to every topic that I cover. When I'm not writing, I'm traveling the world, exploring hidden confectionaries and restaurants as an aspiring food connoisseur.
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