Tesla backs big AI bets
- Tesla raised 2026 spending by roughly 25%, directing capital to Robotaxi, humanoid robotics, and in-house AI chips. - Q1 revenue rose, helped by EV sales and FSD subscriptions, while paid Robotaxi miles nearly doubled. - Investors are funding the autonomy vision, but city rollouts look slower and more uncertain than investor narratives imply (reuters.com).
Tesla sharply raised its 2026 capital spending by about 25%, pushing planned capex to roughly $25 billion for Robotaxi, humanoid robots and in-house AI chips. (techcrunch.com) The company reported $22.39 billion in first-quarter revenue, a roughly 16% year-over-year increase, while deliveries totaled 358,023 vehicles in Q1 2026. (marketbeat.com) Tesla said active Full Self-Driving (FSD) subscriptions reached about 1.28 million, up roughly 51% year-over-year, and its Q1 update reported that paid Robotaxi miles nearly doubled sequentially. (qz.com) (assets-ir.tesla.com) Investors gave the autonomy push an initial vote of confidence: shares climbed in after-hours trading after the release, driven by the earnings beat on profit and cash flow despite the top-line miss. (techcrunch.com) Elon Musk told analysts the increased spending was “well justified for a substantially increased future revenue stream,” while CFO Vaibhav Taneja warned the capex surge would likely push Tesla to negative free cash flow for the rest of 2026. (money.usnews.com) (techcrunch.com) Operationally, Tesla has expanded unsupervised Robotaxi rides into Dallas and Houston in April and continues to operate in Austin, while the Dutch vehicle authority (RDW) gave provisional type approval for FSD Supervised on April 10, 2026. (electrek.co) (rdw.nl) Those rollouts remain limited: reporting and maps show Tesla’s new Texas Robotaxi service runs in small geofenced pockets rather than citywide networks, and the RDW stressed that FSD Supervised still requires a legally responsible driver. (electrek.co) (rdw.nl) Tesla’s Q1 update also sets out production and factory plans — including preparations for larger Optimus robot lines and Cybercab volume ramp this year — making execution and the company’s 2026 spending cadence the next milestones investors will watch. (assets-ir.tesla.com)
