Tesla layoffs: Elon Musk says job cuts ‘necessary’, will save $1 billion annually

Tesla layoffs: Elon Musk termed the recent job cuts at Tesla a “necessary step" to reorganize the company for the next phase of growth.

Elon Musk-owned Tesla registered a massive drop in its quarterly profits amid challenges in the electric vehicle market. The company made $1.13 billion from January to March which is 55% from the year-ago quarter on revenues of $21.3 billion, it noted. Elon Musk termed the recent job cuts at Tesla a “necessary step" to reorganize the company for the next phase of growth.

Tesla layoffs: Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk gets in a Tesla car as he leaves a hotel in Beijing, China. (Reuters)

Chief Financial Officer Vaibhav Taneja said job cuts by more than 10% will save Tesla over $1 billion annually in costs and said that Tesla plans to “accelerate the launch of new models ahead of our previously communicated start of production in the second half of 2025. The new vehicles will include more affordable models."

What Elon Musk said on Tesla layoffs?

Elon Musk said production on the vehicles will start either in early 2025 or in late 2024.

“So it's not contingent on any new factory or massive new production line. If somebody doesn't believe Tesla is going to solve autonomy I think they should not be an investor," he said.

A look at Tesla Q1 results

Tesla's first-quarter net income fell 55% and the company announced that it would focus more on the production of new, more affordable vehicles. Tesla's stock price surged in after-hours trading as shares of the company rose 11%. Tesla stock has been down more than 40% this year.

The company said that it made $1.13 billion from January through March compared with $2.51 billion in the same period a year ago with revenue in the first quarter at $21.3 billion, down 9% from last year. Worldwide sales dropped nearly 9% and the company’s gross profit margin fell to 17.4%.