Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla (TSLA.O), made an unexpected trip to Beijing on Sunday. According to someone with knowledge of the situation, Elon Musk was scheduled to speak about the release of Full Self-Driving (FSD) software. Additionally, he would address authorization to send data outside.
According to Chinese official media, Musk visited Premier Li Qiang in Beijing. Li informed Musk that Tesla’s growth in China may be seen as a model of effective trade and economic cooperation between the United States and China.
“Honored to meet with Premier Li Qiang. We have known each other now for many years, since early Shanghai days,” Musk posted on social media platform X, as he appeared in a picture with the premier.
In 2018, Tesla and Chinese authorities came to an agreement for the company to build its first facility outside of the US in Shanghai.
Despite consumer demand, the American manufacturer of electric vehicles has not yet released FSD, the most autonomous version of its Autopilot software, in China, its second-largest market worldwide. This delay persists even though the software was released four years ago.
In answer to a question on X this month, Musk stated that Tesla might make FSD available to consumers in China “very soon.”
Wedbush equity analysts referred to the unexpected visit as “a major moment for Tesla.”
“While the long term valuation story at Tesla hinges on FSD and autonomous, a key missing piece in that puzzle is Tesla making FSD available in China which now appears on the doorstep,” Wedbush stated in a company report sent by email.
Rival Chinese automakers have begun releasing comparable software in an attempt to outperform Tesla, including Xpeng.
Since 2021, Tesla has stored all data collected by its Chinese fleet in Shanghai, complying with Chinese laws, and has refrained from transmitting any data back to the United States.
According to the source, Musk is seeking permission to send domestically gathered data to another country. This is intended to train algorithms for Tesla’s autonomous driving capabilities.
Musk’s trip to China, initially disclosed by Reuters, was not publicly announced; the speaker, lacking media communication rights, agreed to remain anonymous. An instant response was not received from Tesla regarding a statement.
Regarding Musk’s discussion with Li, the Chinese state broadcaster CCTV did not specify if the two had talked about data or FSD.
Earlier in the day, a different story aired on official radio, stating that Li had visited the ongoing Beijing auto show. He made remarks about China’s smart new energy vehicle (NEV) sector becoming the market leader and emphasized the nation’s need to maintain its advantages.
According to state media, Musk also met with Ren Hongbin, a government official overseeing the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, responsible for organizing the car show.
China’s advancement with electric cars is encouraging. In a video shared on social media by an individual connected to state media, Musk declared, “all cars will be electric in the future.”
A leading Chinese auto organization claimed to have examined and determined Tesla’s Model Y and three other vehicles to be consistent with China’s data security regulations. These vehicles were among the 76 car types. The list was released late on Sunday.
Just over a week has passed since Musk postponed his intended travel to India to meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi due to “very heavy Tesla obligations.”
This month, the firm announced that it would fire 10% of its global workforce due to declining sales and a growing price war for electric vehicles (EVs) driven by Chinese brands.
Following a string of crashes, US auto safety officials launched an inquiry on Friday. They are investigating whether Tesla’s December announcement to install new Autopilot safeguards on over 2 million US vehicles was sufficient.
Since entering the market a decade ago, Tesla has sold more than 1.7 million cars in China, and its Shanghai factory is the largest in the world.
GM’S BARRA’S VISIT
Two persons with knowledge of GM’s schedule stated that CEO Mary Barra (GM.N) made an unexpected visit to the event on Friday. This event took place in the largest auto market in the world. GM did not answer a request for comment right away.
Additionally, on Friday, Grace Tao, vice president of Tesla and director of external relations for China, posted a commentary on People’s Daily’s social media account. She claimed that autonomous driving technology will be the next big thing driving the electric vehicle (EV) industry’s growth.
According to Tao, Tesla leads in autonomous driving research and development, leveraging its “end-to-end neural network” technology and data collected from millions of vehicles in motion. This places Tesla at the forefront of innovation in the field.
Industry analysts assert that China’s complex traffic circumstances provide more scenarios essential for training autonomous driving algorithms quickly. These scenarios include a higher number of pedestrians and bicycles compared to many other markets.
Last week, Musk said that Tesla will launch new, less expensive models utilizing its current EV platforms and manufacturing lines. The company will also provide a new self-driving “robotaxi” as well. This month, he said on X that the robotaxi would be unveiled on August 8.
Since the beginning of the year, the value of Tesla shares has decreased by about a third due to growing concerns regarding the EV maker’s growth trajectory. Following the COVID-19 pandemic-related delays in manufacturing and delivery in 2020, Tesla revealed this week that its quarterly sales had decreased for the first time.
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