--- title: "Musk Admits Automation At Tesla Factory Was a Bad Idea" description: "Elon Musk is under a lot of pressure right now – Model 3 production over at the Tesla factory isn't exactly going according to plan. First, Q1 numbers looked grim: less than 10,000 Model 3s rolled off the assembly line…" date: "2018-04-13" modified: "2018-04-13" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/musk-automation-bad-idea" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" tags: - "automation" - "elon musk" - "Model 3" - "tesla" --- # Musk Admits Automation At Tesla Factory Was a Bad Idea ![]() *\Image: Getty Images/Tesla/Victor Tangermann\* Elon Musk is under a lot of pressure right now – Model 3 production over at the Tesla factory isn't exactly going according to plan. First, Q1 numbers looked grim: less than 10,000 Model 3s rolled off the assembly line — a far shot from his promise of producing 5,000 Model 3s *a week.* And then there's the other distraction: [Tesla's big fight]() with the feds over releasing data it has on a [fatal Model X crash]() back in March. Elon has a lot of damage control ahead of him, and of course, a growing number of impatient customers and investors. So where's the fire, Elon? Is Tesla's Gigafactory not up to the task? In a [head-turning interview with *CBS Good Morning*](), he claimed: it's the dang robots. https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/984882630947753984 Tesla has [increasingly relied on streamlining]() its assembly process, and has ended up with one of the most [robotics-reliant car production lines]() in the world. As more robots rolled out on to the factory floor, fewer humans were involved — [and they're hurting](), spurned on by Musk's ambitious goals. The plan: a robotic car-building factory operating at superhuman speeds. But the numbers seem to suggest that Tesla isn't even close. Who knew that building a $35,000 EV was complicated? Tesla's growing pains are more apparent than ever. Musk admits he [even sleeps inside a conference room](), wearing his little Tesla-logo-adorned baseball cap, at the company's Fremont factory. "It's terrible, it's not even a comfortable couch," he admits to the CBS reporter. It's an odd attempt to send a message to the world (and shareholders): *See, he cares after all! He's just like us!* Humans are truly underrated, Elon. But they have their limits, too. ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()