Elon Musk was asked what would happen if Trump won the election and withdrew government support for EVs.
Marc Piasecki/Getty Images
Elon Musk thinks a Trump presidency could be good for Tesla, but "devastating" for its rivals.
The Tesla CEO told investors that a withdrawal of government support for EVs — which may occur under Trump — would probably boost the company "long term," as he ramps up his support for the former president ahead of the election.
"It would be devastating for our competitors, and it would hurt Tesla slightly, but long term it probably actually helps Tesla, would be my guess," Musk said in an earnings call on Tuesday, referring to Trump potentially scrapping former President Joe Biden's tax credits that can effectively lower the price of an EV by up to $7,500.
He went on to add that the true value of the company was not in EVs, where the automaker makes the vast majority of its revenue, but rather in autonomous driving.
"The value of Tesla, overwhelmingly, is autonomy. These other things are in the noise, relative to autonomy," he added.
Musk has been an outspoken supporter of Trump's presidential run since he endorsed the former reality TV star following a failed assassination attempt.
The billionaire has been trying to convince ultra-rich Silicon Valley stalwarts to back Trump, and reportedly played a role in Trump selecting former venture capitalist and EV skeptic JD Vance as his running mate.
That's despite Trump previously being an outspoken critic of EVs, and Vance introducing legislation last year to scrap Biden's $7,500 tax credit.
Experts previously told Business Insider that scrapping this tax credit could have a devastating impact on electric vehicle sales, potentially making the US auto industry less competitive and making EVs "insurmountably expensive" for many consumers.
Tesla's scale and ability to make electric cars at a profit gives it an advantage over many of its rivals, and Musk is betting that this would allow it to weather the storm if EV incentives were to be cut.
"Take away the subsidies. It will only help Tesla," he wrote in a post on X earlier in July.
Tesla did not respond to a request for comment from BI, sent outside normal working hours.
