If you follow Elon Musk on Instagram (NASDAQ:$FB) (like me), you will know that his auto manufacturing company Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:$TSLA) is set to unveil the Tesla Semi today. For those who don’t know (you’re missing out), the Tesla Semi is a prototype electric big-rig truck that has the working range of 200 to 300 miles.
And despite dealing with Model 3 “production hell”, the Tesla Semi potentially has the ability to drive itself, which throws the company into an entirely new market.
Musk has said he wants to move the economy away from the use of fossil fuels, and this is his solution. However, there are a few who speculate that the Tesla Semi will be an expensive distraction for the Palo Alto-based company. Still, shares of Tesla increased on Thursday.
While it is exciting to think that we could have self-driving cars on the roads soon, it shouldn’t come as a total surprise. It was reported in August that Tesla was working on self-driving technology for the Tesla Semi. In fact, there are a number of key Silicon Valley companies that view long-haul trucking to be a central early self-driving technology market.
Tesla shares have increased 48% this year. This makes the company the number two auto-manufacturer by market value.
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