Tesla’s energy-storage business was the highlight of its blowout earnings, and Elon Musk says it’s ‘growing like wildfire’ [Video]

Tesla has a secret weapon, and it’s not Elon Musk’s robotaxi or the Optimus bot.

The company on Wednesday reported blowout earnings on the strength of its automotive sales — but its biggest growth area was its burgeoning business selling batteries and solar panels.

Revenue for Tesla’s energy-generation-and-storage business was nearly $2.4 billion in the third quarter of 2024, up by 52% from the same period last year.

That’s a big jump compared with revenue from Tesla’s automotive sales, which rose by 2% over the same period.

The energy business’s revenue so far this year exceeds $7 billion, meaning it accounts for nearly 10% of Tesla’s total revenue.

The segment primarily includes Tesla’s sales of solar panels and its Megapack and Powerwall battery systems.

It typically garners less attention than flashy but less lucrative projects like Tesla’s robotaxi and its Optimus humanoid robots. Still, it has fast become a …