The company is making a colossal bet on its future, and one number reveals the immediate cost to investors.

For anyone holding Tesla (TSLA) stock, the story has always been about the future. But one number in the company’s latest outlook brings the cost of that future into sharp focus: the forecast for capital expenditures.

Management is planning a large ramp-up in spending to fund its next generation of projects, from AI and robotics to new factories. The figure they’ve put on it should give any investor pause. It’s the one number that quantifies the scale of the bet Tesla is making and the near-term financial pressure that comes with it.

Just How Big Is This Bet?

Tesla’s current expectation for…