Day: July 22, 2025

• Tesla will provide an update on its second-quarter earnings on Wednesday.
• Investors want to know more about the company’s progress on robotaxis and affordable Tesla models.
• Here are the top 5 questions they have for Tesla.

Tesla investors have a lot to keep track of for the company’s second-quarter earnings call on Wednesday.

As Wall Street analysts eye near-term headwinds for Elon Musk‘s company, investors appear to be curious about Tesla’s longer-term bets, such as robotaxis and the humanoid Optimus robots.

The top-rated question from an anonymous retail investor on Say, a communications platform for shareholders and companies, asks what the rate of expansion will be for Tesla’s autonomous ride-hailing business. At publication, the question received more than 5,500 upvotes, representing about 2.8 million TSLA shares.

Here are the top questions Tesla investors want to be addressed as of Tuesday evening.

Robotaxi

Tesla has been testing a “pilot launch” of its robotaxi service in Austin for about a month. Last week, the company expanded its service area map. California and Phoenix appear to be up next for a potential robotaxi rollout.

Musk previously said the service’s ramp-up should be quick, estimating about 1,000 robotaxis in Austin within the next few months

“Can you give us some insight how robotaxis have been performing so far and what rate you expect to expand in terms of vehicles, geofence, cities, and supervisors?” an anonymous retail investor asked on Say.

Affordable models

Musk says Tesla is more than just a car maker, but investors still want to know: Where’s the affordable Tesla?

“Can you provide an update on the development and production timeline for Tesla’s more affordable models? How will these models balance cost reduction with profitability, and what impact do you expect on demand in the current economic climate?” another retail investor asked.

As Tesla experiences a sales slump, analysts previously told BI that delivering a cheaper model becomes increasingly crucial for the company.

Full Self-Driving (Unsupervised)

Tesla owners are currently limited to Full Self-Driving (Supervised), an advanced driver-assistance system that requires constant supervision of a driver.

Business Insider previously tested the technology against Waymo‘s robotaxis. (Tesla lost after it ran a red light.)

At the end of June, the company announced its first autonomously delivered Model Y, driving further anticipation for an unsupervised version of FSD.

“What are the key technical and regulatory hurdles still remaining for unsupervised FSD to be available for personal use? Timeline?” a retail investor asked.

Musk on Sunday said on X that FSD users will see a “step change improvement as we integrate upgrades for the Austin robotaxi build into the general production release.”

Optimus

Optimus, a humanoid robot, is one of Tesla’s focuses that Musk says makes his company not just an EV play but an AI and robotics venture.

Musk is so bullish on Optimus — and people’s desires to have a personal robot — that the CEO said back in February that Optimus will be a ten-trillion-dollar revenue generator. He has also said that personal robots will unlock massive GDP growth and a “universal high-income situation.”

That’s the long-term outlook. Investors want to know how Optimus will contribute to Tesla in the next couple of years.

“What specific factory tasks is Optimus currently performing, and what is the expected timeline for scaling production to enable external sales? How does Tesla envision Optimus contributing to revenue in the next 2-3 years?” a retail investor asked.

FSD (again)

In a clear sign of high anticipation around improved self-driving capabilities, investors upvoted another question around FSD (Unsupervised) in personal cars.

“When do you anticipate customer vehicles to receive unsupervised FSD?” another retail investor asked.

A Tesla spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.

Bukhara, Samarkand, Khiva. Uzbekistan’s cultural heritage draws visitors from around the world, but the troubled modern history of another ancient site, Shakhrisabz, is a reminder that development and mass tourism sometimes overshadow preservation.

Shakhrisabz, or Green City, is less known than some other tourist destinations in Uzbekistan that were part of the Silk Road network linking cultures across Asia, Europe, and Africa many centuries ago. Yet the old urban core is more than 2,000 years old and contains spectacular monuments and other structures, some dating from the heyday of the city during the rule of the Turco-Mongol conqueror Timur, also known as Tamerlane, and the Timurids in medieval times.

Timur Statue; image: TCA, Stephen M. Bland

UNESCO declared it a world heritage site in 2000. But the historical center of Shakhrisabz, previously called Kesh, was placed on the U.N. cultural agency´s list of world heritage sites in danger in 2016 after large sections were razed to make way for a park and tourist facilities. It has stayed on the danger list ever since as officials in Uzbekistan, assisted by international advisers, try to figure out a way to prevent it from losing its United Nations status altogether. A total of 53 locations around the world are on UNESCO’s danger list.

The Fayzullah Ravnakhi Museum B&B, one of many buildings demolished to make way for tourist facilities; image: TCA, Stephen M. Bland

A solution in Uzbekistan’s case appears to be in the works. At a meeting in Paris this month, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee tentatively approved an Uzbek proposal that would restore Shakhrisabz in southern Uzbekistan to the regular heritage list but in reduced form – only four key Timurid monuments would be included, while the rest of the historical center would be labeled as a buffer zone.

“The main focus is expected to shift from the concept of a ´complete historic city´ to the conservation of the ensemble of monuments, including the Ak-Saray Palace, while preserving their urban context,” reported Gazeta.uz, a media organization in Uzbekistan.

Uzbekistan must conduct archaeological studies, prepare a restoration plan, and take other measures in order for the proposal to succeed, according to Gazeta.uz. Uzbekistan must update UNESCO on its progress in February 2026, and the process could still take several years.

Construction of the Ak-Saray Palace began in 1380 after a military victory by Timur, who was born in the city, according to UNESCO. The agency said that not one of the many Timurid monuments in Samarkand, north of Shakhrisabz, can rival the Ak-Saray Palace.

“The foundations of its immense gate have been preserved: this architectural masterpiece is outstanding in its dimensions and bold design,” UNESCO said.

While Shakhrisabz has less tourist infrastructure than nearby Samarkand, there are efforts to raise its profile. Last year, the Economic Cooperation Organization, whose ten members include Central Asian countries, declared it the tourism capital for 2024.

Uzbekistan’s other cultural sites have also faced development pressures as tourism booms in the country, alarming conservationists who warn that some of the most striking remnants of Central Asia’s ancient heritage are at risk.