TOP STORY
📉 Tesla Crashes 9% After a Disappointing Robotaxi Event

😬 This week, Tesla investors held their breath with eager anticipation for the long-awaited ‘robotaxi event’ that Elon hyped up to be “the most significant moment for Tesla since unveiling the Model 3 nine years ago.”

⏰ The event was supposed to happen in August but was delayed to October to give teams more time, and since then, Tesla‘s stock rose over 25% in excitement for the big event…

😭 Well, on Thursday, the event finally took place and is being called ‘a massive disappointment’.

📉 On Friday, Tesla plummeted nearly 9% - shedding $60B in market cap - so let’s take a look at what was announced, what went wrong, and what the future looks like for the tech giant…

🤖 Robots, Robotaxis, and Robovans

First off, here’s a quick summary of what was announced:

🚖 Robotaxi

• As expected, Elon unveiled the Robotaxi/Cybercab which, unlike other autonomous cars, has no steering wheel or pedals.

• Musk says the car will cost ‘below $30,000’ and will be in production by 2026.

• Musk also claimed that Model 3s and Model Y’s would be operating autonomously in California and Texas by next year.

🚐 Robovan

• In a surprise announcement, Elon also unveiled the Robovan - a larger autonomous vehicle that can fit up to 20 people.

🤖 Optimus Robots

• The other big spectacle of the night was the Optimus robot, with Musk describing the robot as a household companion that can ‘basically do anything.’

• At the event, the humanoid robots mingled about, served drinks, and danced on a lit-up stage.

• Elon estimates that at scale, the Optimus would cost $20,000 to $30,000 and said earlier this year that they would be available to purchase by the end of 2025.

😢 All ‘Razzle-Dazzle’ with Little Substance

🤷‍♂️ The biggest feeling among investors was that ‘the ideas were cool’ but lacked the level of detail they were hoping for, with many questions left unanswered, like:

• What is the status of the ‘more affordable EV’ Elon previously said would enter production by mid-2024?

• What is the business model for a supervised and unsupervised ride-sharing service?

• How long will it take Tesla to establish a ride-hailing service similar to Waymo?

• Has Tesla made any progress with robotaxi regulators that said in April Tesla hadn’t even contacted them yet?

😰 One of the biggest worries is about Tesla’s approach to self-driving vehicles.

🗺️ While many of the robotaxi competitors like Waymo use LIDAR, which uses laser pulses to create a 3D map around the vehicle, Tesla Robotaxis rely on AI and cameras - a controversial decision that some say will “prove to be a huge mistake” (for a great breakdown on the topic check out this video by The Verge)

📊 To ease these worries, analysts were expecting quantifiable metrics on the improvements to Tesla’s Full Self-Driving, but none have been provided yet.

That said, not everyone was disappointed, with Bank of America analysts saying, “the event lived up to the hype” and Dan Ives, an analyst from Wedbush and long time Tesla bull, said he “strongly disagrees with the notion that last night was a disappointment.”

Overall, analysts are quite divided on Tesla. According to TipRanks, the average price target is $207.83 (5% below current value), with 11 buy ratings, 16 hold ratings, and 8 sell ratings.

Retail investors are also split, with 46% bullish, 18% neutral, and 36% bearish, according to my Instagram poll (vote on the poll here).

🤷‍♂️ For those beginners sitting on the sidelines, keep in mind all of this makes Tesla a very risky investment. At the end of the day you’re not really investing in a car company, you’re making a bet on whether you think Elon can deliver on his bold promises.

🚘 Elon’s broken a ton of promises, but he also delivered the Model 3 and a +1,217% return over the past 5 years when countless analysts predicted Tesla’s failure, so I’m not sure what the future holds. As for me, I lean slightly more bearish after the news, but am excited to read everyone else’s thoughts on Blossom!

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IN CANADA
🏦 TD stock plummets 9% after pleading guilty in historic U.S. money-laundering case

I reported on the full story back in August, but here’s what’s new:

• 📉 TD crashed a shocking 9% after being slapped with over $3B in fines, pleading guilty to multiple charges, including conspiracy to violate the Bank Secrecy Act and commit money laundering.

• 😳 This makes TD Bank the first bank in history to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering.

• 😬 TD was hit with a rare asset cap, reserved for the most severe cases, dealing a devastating blow to TD which has long pointed to the US as it’s biggest growth opportunity.

• 🚨 Authorities say that TD Bank's issues were known at every level of the bank and that bank employees "openly joked" about the lack of compliance.

• 👨‍💼 TD’s CEO is set to retire April 2025 after more than a decade as CEO, to be replaced by Raymond Chun, the current Head of Personal Banking

IN THE NEWS
🚨 Other Key Headlines This Week

• 📈 Uber jumped +16% and Lyft +9% after the Tesla robotaxi event underwhelmed investors (full story here).

• 👗 Aritzia is down -7.5% despite reporting 15% net revenue growth after management lowered expectations for next quarter (see Bradley’s Aritzia earnings breakdown on Blossom)

• 👑 Costco gold bars have been flying off the shelves as gold prices continue to smash records.

• 🏦 US Bank stocks rose this week after strong Q3 earnings, with JP Morgan up 5.4% and Wells Fargo up 6.3% (full story here)

• 🔥 The S&P 500 closed at record highs this week (now up +23% year-to-date) after inflation data increased confidence in a further rate cut in November (full story here)

FROM THE BLOSSOM COMMUNITY
⭐️ Featured Discussions this Week

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