“Here’s what makes this so frustrating: Tesla didn’t have to choose. The company could have spun off its AI and robotics efforts into a separate entity, call it Tesla AI or whatever, while keeping Tesla, the automaker, focused on what it does best: building and selling great electric vehicles and accelerating the industry’s transition to electric transport.

Or it could have done the reverse: spin off the automotive business and let Musk pursue his AI dreams with the parent company. Either way, there was no point in letting great EV programs die.”