Fifteen years ago Elon Musk joined when Tesla was just three people and a business plan. Being a primary investor and then joining the company, he shared his thoughts in 2006 about building Tesla, which is now being recollected. It was later in 2009, when all the five members in Tesla, Elon Musk, Martin Eberhard, Marc Tarpenning, and J.B. Straubel were legally considered as co-founders.
Initially, they planned to build a high-performance electric sports car. Eventually, the question came down to if the world really needs another high-performance car. Tesla did make Roadster, but that is so that Tesla competes in every aspect of the electric vehicle industry. Initially, Tesla manufactured Model S and Model X after purchasing a factory from Toyota in Fermont, California. It was then when Tesla was listed publicly through NASDAQ.
Hard to believe it’s been 15 years already.
Those goals actually precede the creation of Tesla by many years. Goes back to probably ~1992 when I was in college. However, at the time, I thought the chance of achieving those goals was very low.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 2, 2021
Batteries are not toxic to the environment
Back in 2006-10, using an electric vehicle was still considered as a product that isn’t environmentally friendly as they use batteries. Batteries being made of plastic and other materials like lithium, cobalt, and nickel were known as a product that can’t be made sustainably. However, Elon Musk insisted that their batteries can be composted and are environmentally friendly.
Their master plan as published in 2006 is,
- Build sports car
- Use that money to build an affordable car
- Use that money to build an even more affordable car
- While doing the above, also provide zero-emission electric power generation options
Ever since the launch of the Model S, the car relieved multiple awards and came to be well known in the plug-in world and auto manufacturing sector. In 2015, Tesla released Powerwall, their energy storage product. From arguing that batteries are good for the environment, Elon Musk’s company was able to sell batteries.
Global expansion
Tesla’s global presence is remarkable. This year many often heard about protests by a Tesla customer in China, and then there were rumors about Tesla in Germany. Despite the negative criticism, Tesla was able to gradually improve its public image.
Currently, Tesla Giga Factory in Shanghai is manufacturing Tesla cars and is continuing to expand in the country. The Factory in Giga Berlin is under construction and is expected to start production by 2022.
Now, in 2021 Tesla is considered as a leading company to which every automaker is competing. As part of reducing carbon emissions, most countries initiated their plans to implement support systems through government policies. The automobile industry has finally recognized the need for a shift.
Meanwhile, over the last two decades, there have been many start-ups that launched electric vehicles. But somehow Tesla was the one to make it quick, simple, and efficient products. Currently, automakers despite having technology are facing chip shortage issues and other problems with manufacturing processes. Tesla’s transformation is beyond what it looks like. 15 years journey and Elon Musk is a global celebrity who is involved with many products – SpaceX Starlink internet, Neuralink, and The Boring Company.
