Welcome to electrified. It's your host Dylan Loomis. Quick shout out to my newest patrons, Steven S. Thank you for choosing to support the channel. Apologies for the late, late upload today was an unexpectedly crazy day at the Loomis household. Bill Gurley and Brad Gerstner uploaded a new video today. If you're not familiar, they're both very well known in the VC space. In the first part of this video, they were talking about Tesla's FSD12. These guys have extensive experience investing in companies. They spend a lot of time in the AI realm. So, it's worth hearing what they had to say. There's this principle known as Occam's razor, which has been around forever in science. But the simplified version of it is a simpler approach is much more likely to be the optimal approach. And when I fully understood what they had done here, it seems to me this approach has a much better chance of going all the way and of being successful. And certainly of being maintainable and reasonable, it's way more elegant.
He's referring to how Tesla got rid of over 300,000 lines of that heuristic manual code. Now in this new model, it's pixels in. So the model itself has no code. It doesn't know this is a stoplight per se. In fact, they just watched the driver's behavior. So the driver's behavior is actually the label. It says when we see pixels like this on the screen, here's how the model should behave, which I thought is just an extraordinary break. And I don't think there's a deep appreciation for the fact that, you know, again, because we've had 11 versions of what came before it, those were just slightly better patchwork models. In fact, I think what, what, you know, we learned was that the rate of improvement of this is order of magnitude five to 10 X better per month as a model versus the rate of improvement of those prior systems. And once again, the audacity to throw out the whole old thing and put a new thing in is just crazy.
Now think about this from a Tesla perspective. Why do they want to drive even more adoption of FSD? Well, you get a lot more information and data about disengagements and all these other things. So that data then, you know, continues to turn the flywheel. So my guess is that Tesla seeing this meaningful improvement is going to focus on penetration. My guess is that they want to get a lot more people trying the product and they're going to play around with price. Why not? Right? Maybe 100 bucks a month is the right, you know, intersection between adoption or penetration and price. But again, I think that all of these things are occurring at an accelerating rate at Tesla. And when I look around, you know, I still hear people saying way more is worth 50 or 60 billion bucks, but you could be in a situation on that business where it just is, you know, gets passed really quickly. And they have a hard time structurally of catching up.
You know, Tesla still has some engineering intervention along the way. But I think they're, I think the engineering team working on this at Tesla is about one tenth the size of the team's at Cruz. Well, I mean, that gets back to, you know, this, the simplicity point, right? Like the this approach is removes so much complexity that you should be able to do it with less people. And and and the fact that you can have something better with less people is is really powerful. Really powerful indeed. The world will find out soon enough. The full video will be linked below. Yesterday, we talked about that lobby group that Tesla was upset with in Australia fast forward to today. And Tesla has announced at the end of this year, they will be leaving that group. Tesla wrote a seven page letter voicing their frustrations. We learned that Tesla pointed out while the FCAI projects a dramatic price hike for gas powered vehicles. It also falsely claimed Tesla's EVs would see significant price reductions as much as 25%, which Tesla said can lead consumers to not buying a Tesla with the belief that they'll be cheaper in the future. Simply put, the federal chamber of automotive industries has been falsely claiming that EV prices will go way down.
Gas prices will go way up. All thanks to new clean car policies from the Australian government. As consumers hear that information, they of course would be much more likely to quickly buy a gas car. In the letter, Tesla said it's also concerned it's inappropriate for the FCAI to foreshadow or coordinate whether and how competitor brands implement price changes in response to environmental regulations like the NVS. The word is Polestar is considering leaving the FCAI as well. What do you know, as I was recording, it turns out Polestar is leaving the FCAI as well, saying that we cannot support it. Polestar said the FCAI campaign driven largely by Japanese car makers led by Toyota, who would have thunk it, is intolerable. With transport emissions forecast to be Australia's largest source of emission by 2030, Australia has a clear role to play and must catch up with the rest of the developed world.
Such a campaign is not aligned with Polestar's focus and we cannot support it. The FCAI has not released the full modeling underpinning its assertion to the general public or to its own members. Rather, it appears the FCAI has cherry-picked what it thinks will progress the position of only some members. It should come as no surprise that the FCAI represents car manufacturers in Australia and its board is made up of the bosses of the leading car brands in Australia which make gas vehicles. There are other industry players on Tesla's side here, the Electric Vehicle Council chief said the idea that any model would shoot up by any significant amount can only be supported if you base your modeling on completely unrealistic assumptions, which is exactly what we see the FCAI has been doing. That an industry body would openly canvas their members increasing prices in a coordination manner is a clear red flag. Honestly, it's the exact same thing we're seeing in the United States, the legacy auto industry pushing back against governmental regulations trying to reduce car emissions. Tesla is asking the FCAI to correct all of its claims and they've also called upon the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to investigate their claims.
Here's some very unfortunate news, the Federal Trade Commission just reported that for 2023, their database took in 2.6 million reports of fraud and 1 million reports of identity theft. In 2023 alone, 2.7 billion dollars was lost to imposter scams. And guys, just look at the trend, this stuff is sadly increasingly becoming more common. The silver lining, there is something we can do to dramatically reduce our chances of becoming a statistic. That's why I've partnered with Delete Me, the sponsor of this video. Delete Me sweeps all of the data brokers gathering and selling your personal data and deletes it from the web, saving you tons of hours and annoying phone calls and follow-ups. I just got an updated report from my personal privacy advisor and Delete Me has now reviewed over 4,000 listings, saving me over 30 hours of work and has removed 209 listings with my personal info since September last year. Look at this, all of these different data brokers buying and selling our information.
What's cool about Delete Me is they'll actually tell you removal is in progress for certain data brokers and if you keep scrolling down, you'll see all the ones where you're actually clean. So if you'd like to do what you can to avoid scam calls, phishing attempts and identity theft, becoming a statistic, you can head to joindeleteme.com slash electrified to get 20% off using my code electrified. The link will be below and as always, thank you for considering supporting electrified. This user Jake on X was saying that he was shooting an AK-47 at the cyber truck. One of the bullets did actually penetrate the rear portion of the cyber truck. I think this was a good opportunity to remind everybody that the doors are actually about 1.8 millimeter thick, but the rest of the body is 1.4 millimeters. So it's really just the doors that are bullet proof, bullet resistant, whatever you want to say. It should be noted though, the one that pierced the back part of the cyber truck did not actually make it into the vault.
We talked earlier this week that Tesla might need to make up some sales in newer global markets if things continue to slow down in China and the EU. This will help at least a little bit. We have Model Y deliveries set to go to customers beginning next week. Malaysia was actually one of the first countries in the world to get the Model 3 Plus deliveries have been going on there now for a few months. Now the Model Y in all three different variants will join the party. The Malaysian auto industry did just under 800,000 units in 2023.
After months of investigation, the European Commission is saying it found evidence that China has been unfairly subsidizing the EVs it exports to Europe. Possible remedies on the table include retroactive tariffs on Chinese EVs. Unfortunately, they did not explain how these retroactive tariffs might work, but I have a feeling that's going to raise some problems. Europe may now be enforcing its own tariffs. While this probe will continue through November, the EU could impose provisional duties as early as July. The Commission also said it would require customs registrations of Chinese EV imports starting on Thursday, meaning they could be hit by retroactive tariffs from that point if the EU's trade investigation later concludes they're receiving unfair subsidies.
But we just heard that the Commission does think they're receiving unfair subsidies. For now, the Commission said it does not have an idea of what the tally of retroactive tariffs might be. This is another one. It's pretty plain to see what's going on here. Europe is concerned for and looking out for its homegrown automakers. They're in a tough EV transition right now. Most of them haven't really laid out solid plans for the future. Now the Chinese are looking to flood that market with lower price TVs. So the European Commission is saying that, hey, the Chinese government is unfairly giving its homegrown automakers too many subsidies. It would effectively be like if our government started giving Tesla money for producing the Model Y at Gigatexas and then Tesla went ahead and started exporting that into Europe. Clearly, in the short term, the consumer would win, but the question becomes what are the long-term ramifications for the auto industry?
Then just yesterday, our Energy Secretary said China could flood the US EV market with its offerings. We're very concerned about China big footing our industry in the US, even as we're building up now this incredible backbone of manufacturing. She added, China is investing massive amounts for the purpose of big footing, so we need to understand that it's important for people to buy EVs in an affordable fashion, but we can do that and we can keep our country safe. I love the optimism, but the truth is the United States has absolutely not proven that it can sell EVs affordably to its consumers. Taking Tesla out of the equation, there are a handful of maybe affordable options depending on who you would ask, but they're definitely not selling in any type of actual volume. Nor has any one of these other automakers proven they can sell any EV profitably outside of Tesla in the States. Gigabrelin was set to hold a Works Council vote in the middle of March, but E-Game at all was pushing that back, saying that they needed more time to make some nominations. Well, turns out Gigabrelin has won this dispute over the timing of these elections. The article did say Tesla now has about 12,500 people employed at Gigabrelin, and this new Works Council must be elected to make sure that employees are adequately represented. After these new elections, the number of Works Council members will increase from the current 19 up to 39. In case you're new, a German Works Council is not the same thing as a union as we think of them here in the States. After the election, these members will then serve as an intermediary between all of the employees at Gigabrelin and the management, just ensuring that the health benefits, the working conditions, and everything stay on the up and up. A Works Council is indeed something that is mandatory for Tesla in Germany.
We heard that Panasonic had scrapped its plans for a battery factory in Oklahoma, but now they're considering expanding their facility in Kansas. Panasonic said it's assessing whether to add production capacity beyond what it's currently building in DeSoto. They're calling this potential expansion Phase 3, which would include building additional production lines. One source said the scale of the plan is similar to the size of the current plant, which is costing the company about $4 billion. They did say the main customer for any additional batteries would most likely be Tesla. For now though, no final decision has been made. Panasonic said it would likely use the additional capacity to make cutting edge 4680 cells, and on that point, they're touting that their 4680s still leave the industry in terms of technology and safety. That was after specifically mentioning that both Tesla and LG are also developing their own 4680s. A decision on Phase 3 will likely come by the end of the year.
A researcher at Technosystems said Panasonic's plan appears to reflect steady demand from Tesla. As competition in the EV market heats up, Tesla is making a decent profit even after the price cuts. This compared with conventional automakers who are relying on hybrid and combustion cars to make up for losses in their EV business. He pointed out Tesla desperately wants more 4680 batteries. That checks out, as the president of Panasonic said it would not invest in new factories without concrete commitments from car makers. We've already talked about how important this factory will be for Tesla potentially allowing the Model 3 variants to re-qualify for the IRA credits. Tesla's not totally out of the woods with this one yet, but we just had a district judge rule that the Tesla owners that were looking to form a class action lawsuit against Tesla, claiming that Tesla falsely advertised the range of its vehicles.
Well, now those owners are going to have to pursue their claims in individual arbitration. The judge did say she did not dismiss the lawsuits and said she could eventually issue an injunction against Tesla if the drivers successfully arbitrated their claims under California's competition law and other provisions. So at least for now, Tesla is avoiding a class action lawsuit on this front. Here it is, Rivians are to platform. Rivian is expecting this platform to start around $45,000. On the high end, they were touting ranges over 300 plus miles, but the base version will be 270 miles. It will be a 5-seat vehicle. Rivian will achieve those ranges with two different battery pack sizes. The R2 platform will be available internationally after the North American launch. On the high end, the 0-60 time will be under 3 seconds.
It has some cool features like a nice size frunk. The rear quarter windows do pop out. The rear glass drops down into the lift gate for carrying longer objects like a surfboard. The front row seats actually fold flat too, which is pretty nice for camping. Rivian did report the use of high pressure die castings for this platform, so we'll see what that's all about and if it's like a giga cast. There will be two glove boxes in this vehicle and the steering wheel will have a new scroll wheel. Rivian plans to use 46.95 cylindrical cells in a structural pack, so the battery pack will make up the floor of the vehicle. A quick aside, there are other automakers planning to use the 46.95 form factor as well. BMW is planning to use them in their new class lineup. The R2 will come in single, dual, and a tri-motor setup.
It'll have 11 cameras and 5 radars that's compared to Tesla's 8 cameras and 0 radars. Rivian did mention hands-free driving on the highway. Reservations for this vehicle are open now and RJ said later this month Rivians will have access to the Tesla Supercharger network. The thing is though, right now on the R2 design, they have the charge port on the rear passenger side which I really hope they changed before production. Rivian also announced its pausing construction at its factory in Georgia, but they did confirm they do plan to make the R2 there eventually. This move is to save them capital, the number they gave was saving about $2.25 billion. Honestly, that factory really has been a headache for Rivian from the pushback from the locals, and they've also had some challenges getting their incentives for that factory lined up. This move does reduce the chances that Rivian will be forced to rely on a cap raise in the future, and of course leveraging what Rivian already has in Illinois will help them to bring R2 to market much sooner.
They also said the capacity in Illinois will expand to 215,000 units per year. They did not share a timeline for when they planned to restart construction in Georgia. And when it comes to the R2 being produced in Illinois, they're expecting deliveries to begin in the first half of 2026. They're expecting this vehicle to qualify for the tax credit, so let's hope it's still around in 2026. Rivian also pulled out a one more thing move announcing the R3 and the R3X, but for now there's no date on production, there's no price, other than saying it'll be cheaper than the R2 platform, and it'll go into production after the R2. They said the R3X will be a performance variance of the R3 with more ground clearance, a tri-motor setup, and different materials.
Now look, before I say what I'm about to say, I am rooting for RJ, I'm rooting for Rivian. I love the brand, I love the soul this company has, and the adventure ethos, the sustainability, opening up their adventure charging network, I'm all for all of it. But here's what I think at least some people seem to be somewhat clueless about. This $45,000 is the pricing Rivian is expecting, but this is two years from now, and as we've seen time and time again, we cannot treat these expectations as gospel, especially for a company that's losing money right now. I'd also add that two year timeline is probably a best case scenario. More importantly though, Rivian right now is losing on average over $40,000 for every car it sells. These cars, by the way, they're selling for around $80,000. This is over simplified, but selling a car for $80,000 means it's costing Rivian around $120,000.
That's while they sell around $15,000 per quarter. So with Rivian expecting to sell the R2 vehicle for around $50,000, we'll call it, to simply break even on the R2, Rivian would have to drop the cost per car by $70,000. That's basically the price of over 7 full battery packs. So what I'm saying is that if Rivian is not close to breaking even on luxury vehicles, what's the plan for doing it with affordable vehicles? And look, before you jump to Rivian's defense, I know it took Tesla 10 years to turn a profit. We need to give Rivian time, but here's the thing. Tesla spent an entire decade producing luxury cars, learning how to build its supply chain, driving costs down, refining the manufacturing lines, hiring talent, building the support and the service network.
Tesla Roadster Delivery started in 2008. The Model S was 2012. The Model X 2015. And then Tesla didn't aim for a larger market until 2017, a full decade later with the Model 3. And let's not forget, that was the car that almost bankrupt Tesla. On the other hand, we have Rivian who has only been producing cars for less than 3 years. The first R1T rolled off the line in September of 2021. Now yeah, Rivian has way more data than I do, obviously. My only concern here is that Rivian might be rushing to the mainstream, a bit more affordable market, before they have tried and true manufacturing expertise, and maybe before its supply chain is firmly established.
As someone rooting for Rivian, I guess I'm just hoping that Rivian isn't rushing our to the market, hoping it's going to be the thing that magically saves the company. Because if we've learned anything from Tesla, it's that manufacturing at scale is incredibly difficult. I do think even if Rivian is forced to do a cap raise before 2026, that they'd be able to secure the funds and extend their runway. And who knows, maybe Rivian will pull its own rabbit out of a hat with some impressive manufacturing innovations. But the point is they're going to have to drop costs by over 60% at a minimum. And it's not only that, but this was a really good chart from AJ on X, showing cumulative free cash flow of pure EV makers.
Clearly, so far, Rivian hasn't really figured out the sales turn timing yet, and this is just another hurdle for Rivian to figure out. Another quick aside, it's kind of funny how Rivian announces a $45,000 car for 2026, and the stock jumps 13%. Tesla announces a $25,000 car and the stock plunges 60%. Now, I know that's not how the market works, but you gotta love it. And this should go without saying, but the Model Y may be even more affordable come 2026. And as I said, the tax credits might not be around in 2026. Who really knows?
So yeah, to everyone that said things like Rivian dropped the mic on Tesla, or things like, if there was any thought of Rivian going out of business, put those thoughts to bed, I would respond by saying, let's slow a roll here a bit, until Rivian proves it can make an EV, profitably at scale, they literally have not even entered the game yet. Plus, there's still a non-zero chance that Rivian is not even around come 2030. However, with all of that said, the product itself should absolutely be a hit. It seems to have the specs that would make it very desirable for a large group of people. Now, Rivian just needs to actually hit these specs on time and find a way to stop burning cash and eventually turn a profit sometime hopefully before the end of the decade. Lars and Franz did a 30-minute livestream on X talking about the Model 3 Plus, we really didn't learn anything new, but I personally always enjoy hearing these two gentlemen talks, so I'll have it linked below if you want to check it out.
Taking a look at the largest companies by market cap, Tesla has now fallen all the way down to number 14. Tesla stock closed the day at $178.65, up 1.2%, while the NASDAQ was up 1.51%. Rivian ended the day up 13.42%. It was an average volume day for Tesla trading about 4 million shares below the average 30-day volume. Again, apologies for the late upload and any feeling of brevity in today's episode. It was an odd day.
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