On today’s episode of Quick Charge, a new lawsuit alleges that Tesla was negligent in retaining Elon Musk as CEO, comparing him to a fast-talking salesman and questioning his input into engineering and safety decisions at the struggling EV brand.
Plus, we explore the executive exodus at Tesla that began in mid 2024, ask why Tesla cars equipped with FSD are driving people into lakes and through railroad crossings, then take a look at the Rivian R2 and upcoming, mid-sized Tesla Model Y “killers” from Lucid.
Are these the most credible threats to Tesla’s Model Y dominance in America’s EV market, yet, or will Tesla’s “negligent” CEO come through on his AI-powered promises?
Source Links
- Tesla Cybertruck owner sues over FSD crash, alleges ‘negligent’ retention of Musk
- Tesla ‘Full Self-Driving’ drives through railroad crossing barriers in viral video
- Tesla loses software director who built its OTA and Robotaxi infrastructure
- Tesla (TSLA) VP of Finance leaves after 17 years as executive exodus grows
- Rivian reveals full R2 lineup and pricing, starting at $57,990 with a $45K RWD model coming later
- Lucid (LCID) reveals Cosmos and Earth SUVs as first midsize EVs, starting under $50,000
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Top comment by David Long
When someone is no longer primarily focused on the company, you don't let their uncommitted, distracted mind run the company.
I get it that Elon wants to play with his shiny new AI toys. That's all well and good. Let him play with xAI and let developments there, if they happen, be leveraged out to SpaceX, Tesla, etc.
HOWEVER - Tesla, the car company and BESS manufacturer needs a CEO that is solely (or at least MOSTLY) dedicated to Tesla. We need a CEO who won't rattle the stock price and make headlines every time he says something different.
Personally, I would have liked to have seen a CEO keep his promise on a $25,000 affordable car that people could buy instead of pivoting to THAT sized car as a Robotaxi that you can ONLY rent. Early models came with a wheel and pedals - so they knew how to do that. But, like so many other things, companies are looking for subscriptions, not buyers.
The Robotaxi service may do VERY well in urban areas and it would be nice to have another competitor. But, based on Tesla's latest rate adjustment in Austin, my commute would cost about $70/day AND be impossible because the AI NAV software doesn't know that the main gate to the base where I work doesn't open until 6AM and I get there at 5, having to use a different gate. In my Tesla, a daily commute costs $4-$7 and that doesn't factor in the electricity my solar panels are generating.
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