According to Morgan Stanley analysts, Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) may have become more crucial to Elon Musk’s ambitions than ever before. The electric vehicle giant is viewed as a cornerstone of U.S. competitiveness in artificial intelligence and robotics.

Catching up to Waymo won't be easy because it has partnered with Uber Technologies, which operates the world's largest ride-hailing network with 170 million monthly users. It could take Tesla years to achieve that level of scale, especially if it builds its own mobility network from scratch.