Part 6/9:
Chanos argued that many projections concerning autonomy lacked an understanding of the hidden costs associated with redundancy and safety measures. He raised concerns about the economic viability of Tesla's robo-taxi model, hinting that analysts were overly optimistic regarding operational costs and pricing strategies.
However, this line of reasoning drew criticism, as it failed to recognize Tesla’s inherent cost advantages. The company already had lower manufacturing and operational costs than many competitors, not to mention its ability to eliminate the driver’s wage from the cost structure altogether, a critical factor for ride-hailing services competing against Uber and others.