Radical rethink on production for baby Tesla

Entry-level model to benefit from new platform and bold low-cost production

Tesla’s keenly anticipated 2023 Investor Day event was uncharacteristically short on game-changing announcements and new-metal unveilings, but it did provide a first look at important new production processes – and confirmed that a new electric car platform is inbound.

Taking to the stage at the Texas Gigafactory to give Tesla stakeholders, fans and owners a wide-reaching update on the company’s strategy, CEO Elon Musk was expected primarily to outline a long-mooted new platform that is tipped to underpin an ‘affordable’ entrylevel car sitting beneath the big-selling Model 3 saloon.

As it turned out, Musk was less focused on showing new vehicles than he was in recent years, with the Cybertruck, Roadster, Robotaxi and Semi still yet to enter production (or volume production) several years after announcement.

Investors didn’t take kindly to the dearth of product announcements, which caused Tesla’s value to dip 5.9% the day after the presentation.

Instead, Musk outlined his vision for a cleaner global economy in the post-ICE age. Musk said: “There is a clear path to a fully sustainable Earth, with abundance.” He added that this can be achieved without “austerity” and predicted that “an electrified economy will require less mining than the current economy”.

The all-out switch to electric road vehicles will cut fossilfuel usage by 21%, according to Tesla. Musk said: “All cars will go to fully electric and autonomous. Driving a nonautonomous [ICE] car is going to be an allegory for riding a horse and using a flip phone.”