Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Tesla CEO Elon Musk at D11


Recap: Tesla CEO Elon Musk at D11

May 29, 2013, 10:07 PM
Tesla CEO Elon Musk took the stage Wednesday night at the D11 conference in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.  The appearance comes just ahead of an expected announcement from the company about its national super-charger network, and just a week after the company TSLA -0.89%  paid off its loan from the Department of Energy. MarketWatch Technology Editor Dan Gallagher (@MWDanGallagher) live blogged the event, a recap of which is below. Photo courtesy of Bloomberg.
  • Presentations at D conferences are on-stage interviews with Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher. Musk will likely be asked about the company's trajectory, new car models and building up the necessary infrastructure. And maybe a spaceship or two.... 
  • On infrastructure, Tesla has announced a conference call for Thursday "to make an announcement about the Tesla Supercharger Network." Call is set for 1:30 p.m. ET. 
  • Tesla's shares closed down nearly 6% to $104.63 earlier today. Still, the stock has more than doubled over the last month -- crossing the $100 mark for the first time this week. 
  • Looks like a late start. Guests still pouring in...
  • And here we go. 
  • First question: Why are you in the electric car business?
    Musk: Starting a car company would have to rank "as one of the dumbest things to do," if one were motivated solely by profits and return on investment. 
  • First question: Why are you in the electric car business?
    Musk: Starting a car company would have to rank "as one of the dumbest things to do," if one were motivated solely by profits and return on investment. 
  • Musk says it was clear we were not going to see an electric car from the incumbent manufacturers. Brings up the EV-1. 
  • Musk says car industry was operating on two false premises - that you could not make an electric car that would work, and if you could, no one would buy it. 
  • Burning carbon fuel at the power plant level is 2-3 times more efficient than burning carbon-based fuel in a car, Musk says to the question of whether it bothers him that electric cars still have to be recharged by carbon-generated power. 
  • Musk - When I was in college, I wanted to be involved in things that would most effect the world. One was the Internet (PayPal). The others were sustainable energy (Tesla) and space travel (SpaceX). 
  • Walt asks about the high price tag. ($70K) Musk notes tax credits for electric cars, before turning the conversation to the "subsidies" involved with fuel cars. 
  • Question about how to bring down the price. Musk reiterates steps that started with the Roadster and notes that we are still in phase 2. 
  • Step 3 expected in 3-5 years for a cheaper Tesla. "If we can make it there by our third iteration, that's pretty awesome," he says in comparing to more than a century of development of fuel cars. 
  • Musk says the company's first-quarter results should spur more companies to look at the electric car space. 
  • Musk says the company's first-quarter results should spur more companies to look at the electric car space. 
  • Walt and Kara pressing Elon to spill the beans on Thursday's planned announcement....
  • We had to make something that was really quick to charge. "There's going to be a dramatic expansion of the supercharger network," Musk says of tomorrow's announcement. "You'll be able to drive from LA to New York just on the supercharger network." 
  • Walt bringing up how reviews are both facts and opinions, discussing Tesla's recent bout with the New York Times. "The article was factually incorrect," Musk says of the review in question. 
  • Now moving on to space.....
  • The goal with SpaceX is to improve rocket technology and spacecraft technology so we can eventually send a craft to Mars, Musk says. 
  • Future of humanity is either going to go multi-planet, or there's going to be an "extinction event," Musk says of his drive for space exploration. "If we don't improve space technology every year, we are never going to get there."  
  • Base on Mars will create a "forcing function" for developing space transportation technology, Musk says. 
  • Musk says SpaceX is pushing for rapidly re-usable rocket technology in next 3-5 years. 
  • Musk now riffing on how to build a civilization on Mars. "It's sort of a fixer-upper planet," he says. Audience is getting a kick out of this one. 
  • Back to paying the bills at SpaceX, Musk says the company is focusing on launching commercial satellites and servicing the space station on contract from NASA. 
  • Question about what Musk thinks of today's Internet businesses. "There are a lot of things that provide a small value to some people, and those add up." He adds that there are a lot of bright minds in Silicon Valley chasing Internet ideas, and Musk says he'd like to see more of them applying their talents in other areas. 
  • Question on "hyperloop." Musk largely demurs, saying he does not want to distract from Tesla's up-coming news. "Oh boy, if I answer that, that's what's going to be the news tomorrow." 
  • Musk expects first spaceflights taking up private citizens in 2-3 years. 
  • "I really hope the larger car companies chose to make electric vehicles," Musk says, adding that if Tesla can't stay competitive, "we don't deserve to be around." 
  • Musk says he's a big believer in the carbon tax, saying it will put incentives on the right behavior. "It's hard to get an oil company CEO to work against their interests," he says. 
  • "When I started SpaceX, I thought the most likely outcome was that we would fail," Musk says. He later learned that the major innefficiencies in rocket manufacturing were not in the materials. 
  • Last question - about dealer networks. Musk says it's been his top focus at Tesla for the last several months. 
  • "It's going to take an enormous amount of work" to build out service network, Musk says. 
  • And that's a wrap. 
  • Wide-ranging discussion tonight, from Tesla to rockets to Mars and back to Tesla. Twitter reactions give Musk big props for being a "visionary." Tomorrow's news will likely spell out more on the supercharger network. Thanks for joining us. 
end quote from:
http://blogs.marketwatch.com/specialreport/2013/05/29/live-blog-tesla-ceo-elon-musk-at-d11/
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