Tesla this week reported $3.969 billion in research and development spending for 2023, its highest year yet but still well below some of the other tech companies in the "Big Seven." For example, Apple’s R&D expenditures in fiscal year 2023 reached US$29.92 billion, and Microsoft’s R&D expenditures were US$27.2 billion. Tesla’s total R&D expenditures since it went public in 2010 are less than the annual R&D expenditures of Apple or Microsoft.
Electric vehicle analyst Sawyer Merritt posted on
Tesla CEO Elon Musk responded: "There are huge differences between companies in terms of the effectiveness of R&D spending."
In April 2022, Musk said in response to reports that Tesla's R&D spending in 2021 was lower than competitors such as Volkswagen, Ford and General Motors, that he believed Tesla was an R&D company as a whole.