Tesla shares fell almost 9% on Friday, wiping around $60bn (£45bn) off the company’s value, after the long-awaited unveiling of its so-called robotaxi failed to excite investors.
Shares of the electric car maker fell to $217 at market close following an event in Hollywood, where CEO Elon Musk unveiled a much-hyped driverless vehicle. The stock price is down about 12% so far this year.
Musk said the company would begin building the fully autonomous “Cybercab” by 2026 at a price of less than $30,000, and showed off a van that he claimed was capable of transporting 20 people around the city autonomously, which would , he said, would reshape cities by converting parking lots. in parks.
Before the event, he tweeted: “And all transportation will be completely autonomous within 50 years.”
During the presentation he wrote that parking would no longer be necessary in cities.
However, analysts said the event lacked details and also expressed disappointment at the lack of details on other Tesla projects. Musk has a history of making big projections about upcoming products and not meeting them within the time frame he has set, or not meeting them at all.
after newsletter promotion
Tom Narayan, an analyst at Royal Bank of Canada, said in a note to investors that the event lacked details. “Investors we spoke to at the event thought the event was light on actual numbers and timelines,” he wrote.
“These usually occur at Tesla events. This one seemed focused on the branding and marketing of Tesla’s vision, rather than giving us hard numbers to model. As such, we would expect the stock to trade lower.”
Narayan added that some investors were hoping for a preview of a lower-priced vehicle, with pedals and a steering wheel, that would be launched next year. However, none of them showed up.
Garrett Nelson, an analyst at investment research firm CFRA, said he was disappointed by the Cybercab reveal and the lack of details about a cheaper vehicle.
He wrote: “The event raised many questions, was surprisingly brief, and was more of a controlled demonstration than a presentation. “We were disappointed by the lack of details on (Tesla’s) near-term product roadmap, for example the most affordable model and the Roadster, which Musk said would reach first production in 2025 in his latest conference call.” .
