Musk’s Wealth Falls by $15 Billion After Robotaxi Unveiling

Elon Musk’s wealth, the CEO of Tesla, decreased by $15 billion following the unveiling of the first Tesla robotaxi, named Cybercab, according to Fortune. However, despite the significant drop, Musk remains the richest person in the world with an estimated net worth of around $240 billion, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index.

Tesla’s shares, which were around $240 per share before the unveiling, fell to $217 by Friday. On Tuesday afternoon, the shares slightly recovered, reaching a price of $220.

At the event titled ‘We, Robot’, Musk announced that the Tesla Cybercab would be available before 2027 at a price of $30,000. However, Musk later admitted that he tends to be ‘overly optimistic’ when it comes to timelines. In addition to the robotaxi, the company also introduced an autonomous bus-like vehicle called Robovan, and humanoid robots named Optimus were showcased.

While some analysts, like Dan Ives from Wedbush, praised the event, others were more critical. Analysts from Wells Fargo, led by Colin Langan, wrote that the event managed to attract media attention but was lacking in details. They particularly noted that the Cybercab demonstrations were conducted on an indoor track under controlled conditions, while competitor Waymo is already conducting 100,000 autonomous rides weekly in major cities. They also acknowledged progress in the development of the Optimus robots but questioned their application and economic viability.

– The presentation did not offer many details that people expected. The demonstrations were brief and conducted in a simple environment – Langan told Fortune.

Mate, is that you?

During the event, information emerged that the Optimus robots were partially controlled by human hands. Although the robots were capable of walking autonomously thanks to artificial intelligence, many other actions, such as serving drinks or interacting with visitors, were managed using a remote control.

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Videos from social media show rows of robots walking unaided, but it was later confirmed that human operators were needed for more complex tasks. According to sources from Tesla, the robots walked autonomously but relied on human oversight in many other aspects.

Elon Musk avoided discussing the current capabilities of the robots’ autonomy in detail, instead focusing more on future plans. He stated that Tesla’s goal is to create robots that can do ‘anything you want’. However, current development shows that this goal is still far from realization.