Elon Musk Snubs India for Whirlwind China Visit

Arriving on his Gulfstream private jet on April 28th, Elon Musk landed in Beijing, having postponed plans for a trip to India to take care of “very heavy Tesla obligations.” Musk’s visit to China didn’t last more than 24 hours, but may prove to have a major impact on Telsa’s business around the world.

Indian Tesla fans who were highly anticipating Musk’s visit to their country may wonder why he canceled his plans at the last minute. Chinese military and political analyst Shao Yongling theorized that beyond general concerns about the investment environment in the South Asian nation, Musk may have wanted to avoid overlapping with India’s ongoing general election.

Upon landing in China, Musk dove into a discussion with Premier Li Qiang. The most heated topic was Tesla’s groundbreaking “Full Self-Driving” (FSD) software. China makes for an ideal market for Tesla’s FSD cars. As part of its “863 Project,” China has increasingly normalized the use of electric vehicles and is moving towards autonomous vehicles. It is no wonder why Musk sought to obtain permission to launch his FSD software in China and utilize data obtained in China for abroad.

As part of his strategy to garner Chinese interest in his businesses, Musk announced, “If I have many Chinese fans, then the feelings are mutual. I am a super fan of China.” Chinese netizens have welcomed him and expressed their hopes that he would visit the 2024 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition. However, others criticized China’s embrace of Musk and what they saw as his superficial attempts to gain business in China. Nonetheless, Musk’s visit to China proved to be a success. On April 29th, Tesla’s stock price rose by 15% with a stock price of $194.05 as he concluded his trip to China. The market value of the corporate giant now stands at $615.8 billion. However, in light of falling Tesla sales in the first quarter of 2024, Musk still plans to cut 10% of the company’s global workforce.

Banner image of Musk and Qin Gang, via Baidu.