2015 Tesla shareholders meeting -- reporting as the meeting proceeds

[GLDYLX]

"I meant shipping. "On the market today" generally means something you can buy, not something that has only been announced." But if Powerwall isn't available for another 3 months, why do you need the inverter to be shipping today?

"This sub thread all started when I said of ecarfan: "I wish you could have asked about where does the software intelligence run? In the Powerwall or in the inverter?" This Luddite assumes that the only intelligence in the Powerwall will run thermal management and balancing, while the inverter controls grid/home interaction... but I'm probably wrong. Oh looky, "Powerwall consists of Tesla’s lithium-ion battery pack, liquid thermal control system and software that receives dispatch commands from a solar inverter.", from the Tesla Press Kit.

"Who is going to come out with a compatible inverter first?" SolarEdge in USA and Fronius in Europe were the first to announce.

"When will we be able to buy a Powerwall?" 3-4 months was announced at the TE presentation (I THINK it was the presentation). Press Kit says late summer, but they did say that they would prioritize deliveries to areas that PW makes more economical sense (e.g. Hawaii).

But hey, I'm just an old Luddite tryin' to be helpful...

Happy Tuesday!

PS: NO sarcasm meant... self deprecation, yes, sarcasm, no....

 

[anticitizen13.7]

Ugh. These shareholder meetings are pitiful.

Ladies and gents, this is a shareholder meeting. Questions should be related to the company as it relates to orders, revenue, outlook, gross margin, demand, production ramp up, etc ONLY. Think about how few questions were remotely related to any of these.

I agree in principle, but I'd also point out that we get plenty of financial and business related information during the quarterly earnings report and teleconference. I'm not too concerned if individual shareholders want to know about the technical aspects of Powerwall, etc., because many people invest in part to support the move towards renewable energy as well as investing for $ returns.

Just be glad that I didn't show up in a Boba Fett costume. I seriously considered buying something on Amazon or eBay and asking Elon about electric power cells for droids!!!

I know it is frustrating when people ask seemingly useless questions, but I think that TMC shareholders are an unusually well informed subset of all shareholders. What seems obvious or trivial to us may be something of genuine interest to others.

 

[The Blue Owl]

Would love more details about that new company still trying to survive stuff! Tesla's a long way from being out of the woods. Focus on critical things.

It may seem non-critical in and of itself, but let's not forget Tesla enjoys a tremendous amount of goodwill, more than any other automaker could hope for. That goodwill is based not just on the major features of the car (range, performance, safety), but also on the many intangibles that make it so special and coveted that Tesla manages to outsell their competitors in the luxury market without spending a dime on advertising. It's not only about what a Tesla car is, but also what it represents.

The strong advocacy from their early customers played a crucial role in Tesla's survival in its darkest times. Passionate supporters also help them fight the every day battles with the dealership lobby, the clueless politicians, and the malicious press. For Tesla, this is a strategic advantage, and seeking common ground with the more vocal activists goes a long way towards preserving it.

 

[Cosmacelf]

Thank you GLDYLX for the answers (well, minus the sarcasm). It would still have been interesting to hear Elon either reconfirm these answers or add color to them. But fine, point taken.

 

[CyberDutchie]

I wonder how much 'Key Man' insurance they have on Elon?!

It looked like when Elon came on that he had a security detail with him. Definitely one big-guy-in-suit, with an earphone piece, stand on the side, scanning the audience. Also, as Elon left the stage, immediately red tape barrier was pulled up to prevent people from storming him. He did stop to give someone an autograph though...

 

[GLDYLX]

Thank you GLDYLX for the answers (well, minus the sarcasm). It would still have been interesting to hear Elon either reconfirm these answers or add color to them. But fine, point taken.

I promise that I wasn't being sarcastic... Humor just doesn't type well, does it?

Happy Tuesday!

PS: Thanks for the rep. points!

 

[Hogfighter]

I agree in principle, but I'd also point out that we get plenty of financial and business related information during the quarterly earnings report and teleconference. I'm not too concerned if individual shareholders want to know about the technical aspects of Powerwall, etc., because many people invest in part to support the move towards renewable energy as well as investing for $ returns.

Just be glad that I didn't show up in a Boba Fett costume. I seriously considered buying something on Amazon or eBay and asking Elon about electric power cells for droids!!!

I know it is frustrating when people ask seemingly useless questions, but I think that TMC shareholders are an unusually well informed subset of all shareholders. What seems obvious or trivial to us may be something of genuine interest to others.

As I previously posted, I thought the powerwall question was on point. Your advice is well taken....perhaps I should lower my expectations. It's just that many of us are way overweight TSLA and have precious few opportunities for quality questions, and get frustrated when we hear cocktail-bar questions ('Elon, what do you want to ask us?'). And I know there are many here, myself included, that are disappointed that we did not see Boba Fett there!

 

[Twiddler]

Ugh. These shareholder meetings are pitiful.

Ladies and gents, this is a shareholder meeting. Questions should be related to the company as it relates to orders, revenue, outlook, gross margin, demand, production ramp up, etc ONLY. Think about how few questions were remotely related to any of these.[/QUOTE

+1!

 

[tinm]

Also rather disappointed in the quality of most (not all, but most) questions during the Q&A. Self-serving, short-term, some fan-boy questions. A largely squandered opportunity.

 

[anticitizen13.7]

As I previously posted, I thought the powerwall question was on point. Your advice is well taken....perhaps I should lower my expectations. It's just that many of us are way overweight TSLA and have precious few opportunities for quality questions, and get frustrated when we hear cocktail-bar questions ('Elon, what do you want to ask us?'). And I know there are many here, myself included, that are disappointed that we did not see Boba Fett there!

Haha, someday I hope to be able to get a bunch of shareholders to show up as a Star Wars troupe. It would be doubly funny if "Princess Leia" complete with outrageous hair buns asked serious questions as if she were a normal shareholder.

You make a very good point I think that very good questions may get lost in the shuffle, and that we don't have many other opportunities to directly ask for info/insight from the Tesla management.

The only thing I can think of… is if someone here at TMC with close connections to Tesla could somehow reserve 2 or 3 question slots. The forum could have a vote on candidate questions to ask. Other than that, I'd guess that TMC Connect is probably the best opportunity to pose questions to Elon & company. The main issue here might be scheduling, since Elon and others are fairly busy people.

 

[Nubo]

Ugh. These shareholder meetings are pitiful.

Ladies and gents, this is a shareholder meeting. Questions should be related to the company as it relates to orders, revenue, outlook, gross margin, demand, production ramp up, etc ONLY. Think about how few questions were remotely related to any of these.

This gent thinks that questions of social responsibility are appropriate for any shareholder meeting.

 

[anticitizen13.7]

Also rather disappointed in the quality of most (not all, but most) questions during the Q&A. Self-serving, short-term, some fan-boy questions. A largely squandered opportunity.

Unfortunately, as long as I've been observing these annual shareholder meetings, it has always been like this. "Squandered" is the description I see every year.

Taking a page out of the SpaceX book, perhaps we should assume that every shareholder meeting is basically going to have some level of fail as far as the question quality.

If the goal is to get quality questions, then the issue is how to handle the probable failures. TMC Connect is one avenue. What I don't know is whether having an exclusive Q&A for shareholders at TMC's event would fall afoul of SEC rules (is there any issue with equal access to info?).

 

[electracity]

It's interesting that Musk doesn't seem to feel pressure on the model 3. He again seemed to indicate that there was no finalized design. Perhaps they see S/X sales up 50% in 2016. Perhaps they need the gigafactory up and producing a new 20500 size cell to make the car.

The paint area they are installing to handle 10,000 cars a week seems like a big deal. I expect that process will cut S/X production time.

I will also note that he seemed to indicate a surprise feature with the model X. Although at this point he may consider delivery a surprise feature of the model x.

 

[yobigd20]

It looked like when Elon came on that he had a security detail with him. Definitely one big-guy-in-suit, with an earphone piece, stand on the side, scanning the audience. Also, as Elon left the stage, immediately red tape barrier was pulled up to prevent people from storming him. He did stop to give someone an autograph though...

View attachment 83614

They probably learned their lesson last year from the "super genius level II" situation and take precautions now...

That or Elon's success and his potential for major disruption of the Trillion dollar oil industry has painted a such a big target on him from big oil dictators that really Elon should be walking around with more secret service guarding him than the president has lol

 

[Cosmacelf]

Most definitely. Elon should have full time security now...

 

[Bet TSLA]

This gent thinks that questions of social responsibility are appropriate for any shareholder meeting.

Sure, but the proper reply sounds like: "Our core mission is about all the social responsibility we can handle. Everything else is noise. We'll be happy to consider additional issues some time in the first half of 2020, once we feel confident we can stay in business producing a mass market car. Please do let us know about other issues then. NEXT!"

Promoting the education of young engineers and avoiding animal cruelty are not core issues. They should be occupying exactly none of management bandwidth.

As for alternatives to leather, I am sure that Tesla is pursuing producing the safest and most attractive interior possible. I'm fairly sure their top issues with materials are: energy efficiency in use (minimal weight, and keeping passengers comfortable without using heat or air conditioning); safety (minimal sliding around, minimal damage to occupants in an accident, and no toxic fumes in a fire); production efficiency (it has to be fast and simple to install in an automated fashion); and appearance (just because it makes people happy). If they have something better than leather then I'm sure they'll deploy it. People who care about this issue should be promoting a good solution, preferably by inventing one or finding suppliers who have one and pointing them at Tesla.

 

[FANGO]

People who care about this issue should be promoting a good solution, preferably by inventing one or finding suppliers who have one and pointing them at Tesla.

You mean kind of like how that exact thing literally just happened and you're complaining about it?

 

[Matias]

Delay is due to working on last technical details of seats and doors.

I Think there is a reason why gulf wing doors are so rare. I will not be surprised if there will be another delay if they still have not managed to figure out the problems. Not to mention, have they even tested them in snow and icy conditions.

 

[Blip]

If the goal is to get quality questions, then the issue is how to handle the probable failures. TMC Connect is one avenue. What I don't know is whether having an exclusive Q&A for shareholders at TMC's event would fall afoul of SEC rules (is there any issue with equal access to info?).

I think it sound like a great idea. Regarding SEC: Is it any different from a newspaper-interview?

 

[wws]

I thought it was very interesting he said that the 70D is now accounting for 1/3rd of sales. Wasn't the take rate of the now-gone 60 kw car about 5%?

Q&A was mostly a waste. At least the 'social issues' folks were well behaved. (As opposed to, say, the WFC shareholders meetings in San Francisco a few years ago...) Elon did not present much about financial state and issues (e.g., cash flow, implications/risks of changes in ITC in a couple of years, etc), and should have been questioned more about them.

I did like his answer to the prospect of a SPACEX IPO.