Elon Musk Makes A Tesla True Believer Out Of 'Shark Tank' Judge Kevin O'Leary

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Elon Musk has made another Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) true believer out of Shark Tank judge Kevin O'Leary. In a short video, the Shark Tank judge said that he would have rejected Tesla if Elon Musk had pitched the company to him in the show in the past. 

"If Elon Musk came into Shark Tank and told me to invest in his electric car company before he started it, I would have said, You're crazy," he admitted.

However, over time and with his son's help, O'Leary admitted to seeing TSLA in a new light. O'Leary's son, who is an electrical engineer, went to work for Tesla and ultimately changed the Shark Tank judge's perception of the EV automaker. O'Leary shared that he is a TSLA shareholder today and credited his son for the decision.

Kevin O’Leary: If Elon Musk pitched Tesla on "Shark Tank," "I would have said no." https://t.co/HXugf6RjRu (via @CNBCMakeIt) pic.twitter.com/SoBESZI9eY

— CNBC (@CNBC) May 23, 2020

"My son went to work for him [Elon Musk] and convinced me that it wasn't a car company I was investing in. It was a data technology company. And my best performing stock this year-to-date: Tesla," O'Leary shared.  

Many TSLA bulls have tried to show their bear counterparts that the company is more than an EV automaker. However, many TSLA bears still find it hard to see Tesla as a tech company. While there are many points that have been argued that support Tesla's stake as a tech company, the most prominent one would probably have to be its Full Self-Driving suite. 

Omar Qazi from Third Row Tesla, explained why the company's Autopilot system was so valuable in an interview with Gali Russell from HyperChange. He explained how all the real-world data Tesla Autopilot collects will be valuable in the age of autonomous vehicles.

"It's the data, it's the data, it's the date," he stressed. "It's all about the data. You know, data is the new oil, right? It's worth its weight in gold." 

As of this writing. Tesla has collected over 3 billion miles of real-world data. In comparison, its main competitor, Waymo has collected 20 million miles of data. ARK Invest has forecasted the rise of ride-hailing services in the future when Tesla's Autopilot data could be invaluable.

ARK projected the difference Tesla Autopilot's data could bring to TSLA stock. As a high-functioning EV company without Tesla's Robotaxi fleet, ARK predicted that TSLA's price target could be US$3,400 by 2024. If Tesla were able to launch its autonomous network, however, ARK's price targets ranged from US$15,000 to US$22,000 by 2024.