Gary Black Weighs In On Tesla Vs Waymo Debate, Says Investors Need To Stop Focusing On Efficacy

Future Fund LLC's managing director, Gary Black, thinks that investors should stop focusing on Tesla Inc.'s TSLA Robotaxi's autonomous driving when compared to Alphabet Inc.'s GOOGL GOOG Waymo when it comes to valuation.

What Happened: In response to a social media reply on X questioning Robotaxi's autonomy, investor Gary Black said Wednesday that “investors need to stop focusing on Tesla vs. Waymo efficacy.”

He then added that Waymo had recently conducted an equity raise at a "$45 billion valuation." The investor then shared how Robotaxi's perceived value, with the assumption that Tesla’s stock value is "60x P/E (vs 25-30% long-term growth) is $500B."

Black said that investors are valuing Robotaxi because of Elon Musk's EV giant's "far greater scalability and profitability." Musk has shared on multiple occasions that most Tesla vehicles can serve as Robotaxis thanks to FSD or Full Self-Driving.

Why It Matters: The comments come in as the investor had earlier called out a ‘lack of constructive feedback' for the company's Austin launch. Black also rubbished claims of Tesla's Robotaxi being years ahead of competitors as "nonsense."

Tesla's Robotaxi launch in Austin on Sunday has garnered a lot of attention within the auto industry, with experts like Wedbush Securities' Dan Ives praising the launch as a golden age for Tesla and Alex Potter, an analyst with investment firm Piper Sandler, said that the launch could disrupt the industry.

However, the launch has also invited a lot of scrutiny, with NHTSA saying it’s reviewing incidents where the Robotaxis committed possible traffic violations like speeding as well as driving in the wrong lane.

The EV giant also faces a wrongful death lawsuit over a 2024 crash in New Jersey when a Tesla Model S carrying 3 passengers veered off the road, adding to questions over the FSD technology’s readiness to be deployed into the real world.

Tesla scores well on Momentum, Quality and Growth metrics, but offers poor Value. For more such insights, sign up for Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings today!

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