In what can easily be described as a monster earnings surprise, Tesla yesterday posted a quarterly profit to the tune of $1.91 per share. In the build-up to Tesla’s earnings report, analysts were anticipating the EV company to post a loss in the range of $0.24 per share. Naturally, shares of Tesla quickly skyrocketed and are currently up by nearly 44 points in trading today.
During Tesla’s accompanying earnings conference call, Tesla CEO Elon Musk touched on a number of topics, including some interesting details regarding the company’s plan to roll out the Tesla Semi and a brand new pickup truck. Of particular interest, though, were Musk’s remarks regarding an impending over-the-air software update that will improve performance across all Tesla models.
Specifically, Musk said that current Model S, Model X, and Model 3 owners in just a few weeks will wake up and see that their vehicles have a bit more range and performance capabilities. With Musk noting that the current range of the Model S is about 373 miles, the CEO said that it’s going to get even better in just a few weeks:
And there are some software improvements that we think will make that even better. I forgot to mention, we’re also expecting there’s going to be an over-the-air improvement that will improve the power of the Model S, X, and 3. That, by the way, is coming in a few weeks. It should be in the order of 5 percent power improvement due to improved firmware.
Musk then asked if Tesla CTO Drew Baglino had anything to add on the matter, to which he responded:
Yeah, we just continue to learn how to optimize the motor control in our products. So yeah, 5 percent improvement for all Model 3 customers and 3 percent for the S and X.
As for specifics, Musk said that the Model S might see its range bumped up to 380 miles.
Musk and Baglino also added that the over the air software update will include single-pedal driving that will help improve range, along with some additional improvements in comfort, feel, charging speed, and overall driveability.
“I don’t think there’s ever been a situation in history where you buy a car and it gets way better over time just through the software,” Musk proudly boasted on the conference call. “Not a little bit better, but a lot.”
