Elon Musk on Wednesday spoke to stakeholders about his "master plan" towards a "sustainable energy future" at Tesla Investor Day in Austin, Texas, while hinting at new Tesla vehicles for the year ahead.
"Earth can and will move to a sustainable energy economy and will do so in your lifetime," Mr Musk said.
He laid out ways to make the transition including renewable power, electric vehicles, switching to heat pumps and sustainable fuel for planes.
Mr Musk revealed a presentation slide with two disguised future models, and executives said the Cybertruck pickup was also coming this year.
Tesla has become the world's most valuable car company by far, and the billionaire chief executive has aspirations of cracking the mass market and turning the EV maker into a company that can create a more climate-friendly world.
Mr Musk said two years ago he hoped to introduce a $25,000 Tesla, making the vehicle accessible to millions of drivers.
But he said last year that has been put on hold as he has not yet figured out the battery technology that would make producing the third-generation model possible.
Mr Musk also recently teased the idea of a robotaxi — a fully autonomous vehicle. And he predicted that production of an autonomous vehicle would start next year, The Verge reported.
He has floated the ability of Tesla drivers to make money by turning their vehicles into robotaxis when they are not using them.
On Wednesday, executives spoke about technology for Tesla owners to "share" their vehicles with others through texts and the Tesla app.
Mr Musk's latest master plan follows two others previously unveiled, the ambitions of which — such as “true self-driving” — remain unachieved.
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Tesla chief executive Elon Musk speaks during the opening day of the Tesla Gigafactory in Gruenheide, Germany. EPA -
Musk speaks next to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the prime minister of Brandenburg state, Dietmar Woidke, during the opening ceremony. AFP -
The Tesla chief, right, was cheered as he oversaw the handover of the car maker's first German-made cars at the Gruenheide plant. EPA -
Musk described the opening as "another step in the direction of a sustainable future". EPA -
Tesla is likely to launch a test version of its new "full self-driving" software in Europe, possibly next year, the chief executive said. EPA -
Musk dances as he hands over the first Teslas from the new factory. Getty Images -
Musk said battery production will be a "challenge" next year and a "limiting factor" in the coming years. Reuters -
Tesla cars are parked at the site of the new Tesla Gigafactory in Gruenheide, Germany. Reuters -
Tesla was handing over the first Model Y cars made at its €5 billion Gruenheide plant to clients on March 22, the company said. Getty Images -
The new Tesla Gigafactory is the company's first European production centre. Getty Images -
Newly completed Tesla Model Y electric cars parked at the site near Gruenheide. Getty Images -
The new factory is the largest investment in a German car factory in recent history. Getty Images -
A road sign reading 'water protection area' next to the Tesla logo at the site of the Tesla factory. EPA -
A road sign reading 'Tesla Street' at the new plant. EPA -
A building under construction at the Tesla factory. EPA -
At full capacity, the factory will produce 500,000 cars annually. EPA -
Tesla plans to hire 12,000 workers at the plant. Bloomberg
He also set a goal of selling 20 million electric vehicles annually by 2030, but the company's four factories only produce 1.9 million a year.
Tesla has four car factories, in Texas, California, China and Germany. On Tuesday, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Tesla would build a new plant in the city of Monterrey
The company also invested $3.6 billion to produce its “first high-volume Semi factory” in Reno, Nevada.
Indonesia's President Joko Widodo said his administration has been in talks with Tesla over a factory as well.
Mr Musk briefly discussed AI and the prospect of humanoid robots after showing a video of his highly anticipated Tesla Optimus. He claimed Tesla had the most advanced real world AI.
"I think we might exceed a one-to-one ratio of humanoid robots to humans," he said.
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Tesla's AI Day 2022 livestream introduced the humanoid robot Optimus as it walks on stage in Palo Alto, California. All photos: AFP -
Optimus waves to guests at Tesla's AI Day in Calfornia. -
Humanoid robot Optimus was on stage as Tesla set out its plans for an AI future. -
Tesla chief executive Elon Musk explains how the Optimus humanoid robot project will evolve. -
The event took place in Tesla's office in Palo Alto, California. -
“There's still a lot of work to be done to refine Optimus and prove it,” Mr Musk told guests at the event. -
Elon Musk said Optimus would be an 'extremely capable robot' that Tesla would aim to produce in the millions and perhaps cost less than $20,000 per unit.
Agencies contributed to this report
