Tesla new-vehicle tooling investment scale

Glancing reference — "something like a billion dollars to create all tooling for a completely new vehicle" before first car is sold. Illustrates the size of the prize for tool-die efficiency improvements.

Alex: The dream for a company like Ford is to have this machine right in their stamping factory, next to a CNC machine, and if a part breaks, like you mentioned, they can very quickly create that near-net shape, machine it, get it into a die. Or just to produce that first die — they can produce it faster, get to a part faster, potentially launch a vehicle faster. A completely new designed car — think of a Tesla, starting completely new with a totally new chassis and body design and architecture — it's something like a billion dollars to create all the tooling for a completely new vehicle. It's crazy to think that sort of investment goes in before you've even made and sold the first car. Any way to improve the efficiency, the speed, the cost of producing it is hugely valuable to these companies.