As Tesla is at the cusp of launching its Robotaxi network, which hinges entirely on the application of AI and neural networks in the real world, the question of the company’s relationship with Musk’s other AI venture - xAI, has never been larger.
In a recent interview with CNBC, Elon’s biographer, Walter Isaacson, who has had unparalleled access to Elon and his thought process, shared his perspectives. Isaacson’s view is a fantastic analysis of why Tesla and xAI are intertwined under Elon’s guidance, even if they’re technically two separate companies for now.
Symbiotic Relationship
Speaking on CNBC, Isaacson stated that he believes wholeheartedly that a merger between xAI and Tesla is likely to happen. He explained that from its inception, xAI was envisioned by Elon to solve “real-world AI,” almost exactly what Tesla is doing with vehicles and robots.
Elon’s vision for Tesla requires harnessing the massive amounts of data generated by Tesla’s fleet - and soon, its Optimus humanoid robots. All that video, audio, and other sensor data, along with real and perceived feedback shapes the AI used in these products.
Isaacson noted that Elon feels a need to control the companies involved in developing AI, which further supports the logic of a future merger. xAI recently acquired X for $33 billion, and according to a Financial Times report, it’s now looking to raise $300 million at a valuation of $113 billion. Tesla’s current valuation is $1.06 trillion.
More AI Is Needed
While Tesla possesses an unparalleled dataset of real-world, physical interactions, xAI is heavily focused on AI models that will be increasingly powerful in the future. While Tesla may not need access to these models now, that’s likely to change in the future.
We’ll soon look back at FSD and recognize how much smaller and more contained that challenge was compared to Optimus. Driving is just a narrow slice of what a humanoid robot must master—it’s essentially a robot on rails, confined to a structured environment with a strict set of rules. In contrast, Optimus must navigate the full complexity and unpredictability of the real world.
Musk’s Perspective
While Isaacson’s reasons for a potential merger are clear, Elon has shied away from the topic in recent interviews. There is a distinct corporate relationship between Tesla and xAI, but he has so far stopped short of mentioning a potential merger. He recently said that a merger is “not out of the question,” but ultimately, it’s up to Tesla shareholders.
Elon’s public stance has been that the two companies will work closely together, with Tesla’s shareholders potentially being offered a stake in xAI in the future. Musk currently owns about 59% of xAI and about 13% of Tesla.
Ultimately, whether the two companies formally merge or continue in a deeply integrated partnership may be more of a question for shareholders. From a technology and product perspective, the fusion is already happening, with Grok confirmed to be coming to Tesla vehicles in the future.
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The long long wait for FSD (Supervised) in Australia and New Zealand may be coming to an end. Thom Drew, Tesla’s Country Director for Australia & New Zealand, has confirmed on LinkedIn that Tesla has been working with local authorities in both countries and that there are no regulatory blockers for the release of FSD in the region.
The confirmation came in response to questions following Tesla’s FSD demo video in Sydney, Australia.
Hurdles Cleared
For many years, the main question surrounding the release of FSD in other Asia-Pacific countries, especially Australia, has been the status of regulatory approval. Drew’s statement provides the clearest answer yet regarding regulatory barriers, and it appears that the path is clear from a governmental standpoint.
“We have been working with local authorities across AU & NZ and there are no regulatory blockers for release. We are running through the final stages of validation prior to public release. Looking to start with HW4 on certain vehicles and then release in phases from there.”
Thom Drew, Tesla’s Country Director for Australia & New Zealand (LinkedIn)
With the regulatory question answered, the timeline for the release is now entirely in Tesla’s hands. According to his statement, Tesla is in the final phases before a public rollout, likely meaning Tesla is doing some final testing and veritifcation on local roads before flipping the switch.
— Tesla Australia & New Zealand (@TeslaAUNZ) July 17, 2025
The Rollout Plan: HW4 First
Drew also provided the first details on how Tesla plans to launch FSD in the two countries, and it seems to be a similar approach to the one Tesla took in China.
That means that the release will begin with AI4 (HW4) equipped vehicles first. Once those vehicles are up and running, they will slowly begin to phase in older AI3 (HW3) vehicles over the next few releases.
For owners of HW3 vehicles (everything we know about the HW3 upgrade), this phased release means that they’ll be waiting a little longer than other owners, but at least there’s progress and some clear next steps now. A little more waiting isn’t too bad, especially when you consider just how long many owners in Australia and New Zealand have been waiting for any semblance of FSD in their nations. Tesla initially outlined Q2 2025 as the target availability date for FSD in RHD markets, so this timing is roughly on track with what Tesla initially announced in September 2024.
Hopefully, Tesla also opens up the opportunity for FSD transfer for HW3 owners in both countries, as we’re sure many people would upgrade alongside the official release of FSD to the latest hardware.
And just in case you thought the first video wasn’t true because it wasn’t upside down - well, Tesla provided us the original too.
Another quarter has passed, and that means it’s time to submit questions and vote for Tesla’s Q2 2025 Earnings Call. While Q1 was a tough quarter for the company, Q2 saw some recovery in sales, although there’s still some work to be done.
However, there’s always a lot to be excited about during Tesla’s Q&A session, where we usually learn a lot about future software improvements and upcoming vehicles. We may hear more about FSD Unsupervised, Robotaxi, or the more affordable vehicle, or its upcoming larger 6-seater Model Y, the Model Y L. Tesla also mentioned a potential FSD price hike back in the Q1 2025 Earnings Call, so that could be something that is brought up as well.
Tesla’s Q2 So Far
Tesla has already released their Q2 2025 Production and Delivery numbers, which were up from Q1 of this year, but still down compared to Q2 last year.
Production
Deliveries
Model 3/Y
396,835
373,728
Model S, X, and Cybertruck
13,409
10,394
Total
410,244
384,122
How to Submit & Vote
Tesla lets shareholders submit a question that will be voted on and may be answered during the Q&A session. To submit your own question or vote on an already submitted question, you’ll need to be a verified shareholder. You can go to Say’s platform and link your brokerage accounts.
Once it is verified, you’ll be able to log in and vote your shares on your own question, or on someone else’s question.
Here’s the link to get started on Say’s Tesla Q&A. You must submit your questions and votes by July 23rd, 2025, at 4:00 PM EDT.
Top Questions So Far
Unsurprisingly, people have already been submitting questions, and here are the top ones so far.
Can you give us some insight how robotaxis have been performing so far and what rate you expect to expand in terms of vehicles, geofence, cities, and supervisors?
What are the key technical and regulatory hurdles still remaining for unsupervised FSD to be available for personal use? Timeline?
What specific factory tasks is Optimus currently performing, and what is the expected timeline for scaling production to enable external sales? How does Tesla envision Optimus contributing to revenue in the next 2–3 years?
Can you provide an update on the development and production timeline for Tesla’s more affordable models? How will these models balance cost reduction with profitability, and what impact do you expect on demand in the current economic climate?
Are there any news for HW3 users getting retrofits or upgrades? Will they get HW4 or some future version of HW5?
When do you anticipate customer vehicles to receive unsupervised FSD?
And here are some other ones we found interesting:
Have any meaningful Optimus milestones changed for this year or next and will thousands of Optimus be performing tasks in Tesla factories by year end?
Are front bumper cameras going to be necessary for unsupervised full self driving? If so, what is the companies plan to retrofit vehicles that do not have them?
Will there be a new AI day to explain the advancements the Autopilot, Optimus, and Dojo/chip teams have made over the past several years. We still do not know much about the HW4.
Earnings Call Details
Tesla will hold its earnings call on Wednesday, July 23rd, at 4:00 PM EDT. It's still early for an access link, but we’ll make sure we have a link up on the site before the earnings call that day.
If you do miss the earnings call, no worries. We will provide a full recap following the call, and we’ll also do some in-depth dives into what was said and what we know.
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