Tesla already sold the car. Could it keep earning from that same vehicle for years—and eventually earn while the car is parked?
There are or will be three current and future revenue streams for Tesla cars. FSD subscriptions, autonomous rides, and Digital Optimus—the vision of AI performing computer-based work using Tesla hardware.
Cybercab gets the attention. But the Model Y already sitting in someone’s driveway could become an important part of Tesla’s next growth story.
In this video:
• How better FSD could bring existing owners back as paying subscribers—and attract new Tesla buyers.
• Why robotaxi mileage and completed rides matter alongside fleet size.
• Elon Musk’s Digital Optimus vision, the role of Grok, and how it differs from Grok Bot and physical Optimus.
• How $1,200 in annual subscriptions adds up to $7,200 over six years, compared with an assumed $7,000 initial vehicle profit.
• How 1 million participating vehicles generating $300 per month for Tesla would create a $3.6 billion annual revenue run rate.
We also explore an end-2027 upside scenario and the economics needed to make participation worthwhile for vehicle owners.
Financial examples are illustrative assumptions, not Tesla guidance. Subscription revenue is before costs. profit depends on margins. The end-2027 example describes a potential annualized run rate, not revenue earned throughout 2027.
Would you let your parked Tesla perform paid digital work?
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
Known for identifying cutting edge technologies, he is currently a Co-Founder of a startup and fundraiser for high potential early-stage companies. He is the Head of Research for Allocations for deep technology investments and an Angel Investor at Space Angels.
A frequent speaker at corporations, he has been a TEDx speaker, a Singularity University speaker and guest at numerous interviews for radio and podcasts. He is open to public speaking and advising engagements.
I wonder if the long-term cost of shutting off the flow of oil from the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea’s corresponding choke point, the Bab Al-Mandab by Iran and the Houthies respectively is being priced into the projected sales of EVs, including Teslas, yet. Already EV sales are increasing in Europe and even charger-deprived Russia due to THEIR war with Ukraine taking so much refining capacity offline, may semi-permanently since much of it was built with Western assistance, now sanctioned.
American automakers and the president are short-sightedly insisting on permanent bans of Chinese EVs, because they know they will be put out of business by $20-30K priced decent EVs, when gas costs >$4/gallon, maybe headed higher. We can’t drill our way out of that in America due to the high cost of fracking, and import options are limited by both supply and alienation of former allies like Canada (which is still supplying double digit percentages of our oil despite how we’re treating it, for now).
Eckard Enterprises predicts $150/barrel oil in 180 days: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmVT3Y_EO9g. Americans are much better protected than Europe, Asia, or South America, all areas where EVs are increasing sales. We can’t protect our isolated ICE car industry forever.
Sure, *if I got paid to let it!* Not otherwise.
I don’t like the way IT companies are turning physical products you’ve already bought into rentals by disabling built in capacity if you stop paying them. I don’t mind paying for updates to software, I loath having to keep paying to keep it from bricking itself.
This is absolutely on point. That’s one of my biggest gripes about the tech industries. I find it abhorrent. Even if it would pay, there’s no reason that a product you own should be vulnerable to remote bricking/shutdown. There’s literally no valid argument against that statement.