JAKARTA - Tesla announced that it would invest 2 billion US dollars (about Rp33.6 trillion) into the artificial intelligence company xAI, which is also owned by Tesla CEO Elon Musk. At the same time, Tesla confirmed that the production plan for the Cybercab, a driverless robotaxi vehicle, will still begin this year in the US.
The move reinforces Musk's ambition to transform Tesla from an electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer into an artificial intelligence (AI) company - a strategy that is considered the key to Tesla's valuation reaching around $1.5 trillion.
On the other hand, the certainty of Cybercab production is important to maintain investor confidence, given that Tesla has failed several times to meet the ambitious targets previously delivered by Musk.
However, Tesla's plans to produce the Cybercab, the Optimus humanoid robot, the Semi truck, and the Roadster sports car will drive a surge in capital expenditure. Tesla Chief Financial Officer Vaibhav Taneja said the company's capital spending this year will exceed $20 billion, more than double the $8.5 billion in 2025.
As a result of the announcement, Tesla shares rose about 3.5 percent in after-hours trading, before trimming gains and holding steady at around 1.8 percent.
"Tesla is entering a transition phase, where investors are asked to finance potential revenue from self-driving software and the robotaxi business before car sales recover," said Thomas Monteiro, senior analyst at Investing.com. "This makes the launch metric - not vehicle deliveries - the most important key indicator going forward."
Elon Musk again expressed optimism regarding autonomous vehicles. He claims that fully autonomous vehicles can operate in a quarter to half of the United States by the end of this year.
Previously, Musk had stated that robotaxis would reach half of the US population by the end of 2025, before narrowing the target to eight to ten major metropolitan areas. However, this target has not been achieved and currently Tesla is only running a limited robotaxi service in Austin, Texas.
Meanwhile, Tesla's main business in the electric vehicle sector is still under pressure. Competition from other manufacturers with newer models and cheaper prices, the end of electric vehicle tax incentives in the US, and Musk's controversial political statements are said to have affected demand.
In an analyst conference, Musk also announced that Tesla would stop selling the Model S and Model X, two flagship models that used to be a symbol of Tesla's leadership in the EV market. The factory space from these models will be diverted for robot production.
In terms of financial performance, Tesla's revenue fell by about 3 percent to 94.83 billion US dollars in 2025, marking the first annual revenue decline in the company's history. Fourth-quarter net profit fell 61 percent to 840 million US dollars, although adjusted earnings per share reached 50 cents, surpassing Wall Street's expectations of 45 cents.
Amid the weakening of vehicle sales, the energy and electric storage segment is actually a bright spot. Revenue in this segment rose 25.5 percent to a record $3.84 billion in the December quarter, beating analysts' estimates.
"With Tesla's traditional EV business slowing down, investors can now enjoy a big boost in the AI industry," said Andrew Rocco, a stock analyst at Zacks Investment Research.
However, Musk warned of a potential shortage of memory chips that could hinder Tesla's plans in the future. He even said Tesla might need to build its own semiconductor factory to secure the supply chain.
"If we don't do that, we'll be fundamentally constrained by supply chains," Musk said. "In a worst-case geopolitical scenario, the situation could be very severe."
Cybercab will later be added to Tesla's robotaxi service which currently uses the Model Y with the Full Self-Driving (FSD) system, and will be available to consumers. However, Musk admitted that the initial production of Cybercab and the Optimus humanoid robot would be slow.
"Initial production will be very torturous before it finally increases," Musk said, adding that significant Optimus production volumes are expected by the end of 2026.
Cybercab production also still faces regulatory challenges, because its design does not have a steering wheel or pedals, which is contrary to current federal safety standards.
Despite various challenges still looming, Tesla's shares have risen by around 11 percent throughout 2025. Musk's compensation package worth 878 billion US dollars, which is associated with long-term operational and valuation targets, also eased investor concerns over his commitment to Tesla.
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