Cathie Wood Calls Elon Musk ‘Investor of Our Age,’ Backs Tesla’s Robotaxi Future

• Cathie Wood, Ark Invest CEO, has labeled Musk as the “investor of our age,” as she remains bullish on the billionaire’s ambitions.
• The CEO believes Tesla’s Robotaxi fleet will boost its margins to meteoric levels.
• Tesla’s autonomous driving goals have suffered a string of setbacks.

Ark Invest CEO Cathie Wood, one of Elon Musk’s biggest fans, has endorsed the Tesla CEO and his autonomous driving ambitions. 

On Tuesday, March 4, Wood said that Tesla’s highly anticipated fleet of Robotaxis would boost its margins to 70-90% despite a string of setbacks that have kept the company behind its rivals. 

Optimistic About Tesla’s Robotaxi Future

Wood believes the autonomous vehicle market could represent a $10 trillion opportunity, which is one of the main reasons she is so bullish on Tesla’s success. 

Ark Invest expects the price of one share of Tesla to reach $2,600 within the next five years based on their analysis and forecasting models.

Tesla’s stock currently trades far below $2,600, meaning this target will require massive growth.

“It’s winner take most,” Wood said in a live recording of Bloomberg’s “Odd Lots” podcast, “and we do believe that Tesla will be and is in the pole position here in the United States.”

Wood said it is a mistake to view Tesla as just an electric vehicle firm and claims autonomous vehicles will increase its gross margin to between 70-90%. 

Cathie Wood Clear in Her Support For Tesla CEO

During the interview, Wood described Musk as the “inventor of our age.” 

Responding to concerns that Musk’s involvement with the White House and the Department of Government Efficiency might distract him from his work at Tesla, Wood remained firm in her support:

“He’s surrounded himself by business people and engineers who want to work on the hardest projects in the world,” Wood said of Musk, “the hardest projects that are going to help transform the way we live and work,” Wood said.

Ark Invest’s Fund allows other investors to bet on the billionaire’s multiple companies, including AI firm xAI, SpaceX and X. 

However, the venture firm’s flagship product, the Ark Innovation ETF, has struggled in recent years compared to the broader market (S&P 500).

It’s Ark Invest’s most well-known and largest fund, with around $6 billion in assets, primarily focusing on AI, robotics and electric vehicles. 

Tesla’s Robotaxi Plans 

Tesla has faced many legal and regulatory roadblocks in its autonomous driving and Robotaxi efforts.

While Tesla’s  Autopilot and Full Self-Driving systems have made significant progress, they still struggle with rare or unpredictable road situations that human drivers handle instinctively.

This has led to multiple crashes involving Tesla vehicles, bringing increased scrutiny from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and other regulatory bodies over safety concerns.

Despite years of Musk’s ambitious promises, the rollout of self-driving technology has been slower and more complex than initially expected.

However, in late January, Musk said his electric vehicle company would roll out “autonomous ride-hailing for money” by June 2025 in Austin, Texas.

Google-owned Waymo recently signed a partnership in Austin with Uber to offer driverless vehicles in their ride-hailing app, putting them a step ahead of Tesla.