Part 6/9:
Hotz recently disclosed the difficulties faced by comma AI, citing revenue constraints and the need for constant investment to sustain growth. He explained how the company aimed to become a $100 million revenue entity without successive funding rounds—a move that echoes Tesla’s earlier stance of avoiding repeated capital raises until profitability was achieved.
Despite his engineering brilliance, Hotz admits that running such a company is a challenging endeavor, involving delusions of grandeur and the realization that scaling autonomous vehicles isn’t merely a brute-force challenge but also one requiring patience and strategic finesse. He likens autonomous vehicle development to steering a boat—requiring long-term planning and perseverance, rather than short-term bursts of effort.