Tesla – How a Start-Up Changed the Auto Industry

Release date: 02-2023Author:

"Since the early 2000s, the electric vehicle company Tesla has been shaking up the car industry with its modern and sporty vehicles. The big vision: Powerful electric vehicles without compromises. This is the story behind the electric car pioneer."

Contrary to what many probably assumed, the electric vehicle company Tesla was not founded by its current CEO Elon Musk, but by the two engineers Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning. The two started what was then called Tesla Motors in July 2003 in San Carlos, California. Eberhard served as CEO (Chief Executive Officer) while Tarpenning was Tesla's CFO (Chief Financial Officer). The company's name is a tribute to the Serbian-born physicist, inventor and electrical engineer Nikola Tesla, one of the most important pioneers in the field of electricity.

The company's vision: to develop an electric sports car and prove that electric vehicles do not mean a compromise, but can offer more performance, acceleration and driving pleasure than petrol ones. The vehicles they wanted to produce should be in no way inferior to a classic car. The two were inspired, among other things, by the T-Zero, an electric sports car from AC Propulsion. According to the company itself, Tesla stands for sustainable, scalable systems. The goal: to build a world that runs on solar energy, batteries and electric vehicles.

In the spring of 2004, SpaceX founder Elon Musk gave the start-up a cash injection: he invested 6.5 million US dollars in the company. After several years of development, Tesla Motors released its first car, the Roadster, in 2008. This is the world's first series-produced electric vehicle with a battery system made of lithium-ion cells. In the same year, Martin Eberhard officially left the company. Co-founder Marc Tarpenning also said goodbye to Tesla. Elon Musk then took the lead. Eberhard later filed a lawsuit alleging he had been forced out of the company.

The Roadster was followed by the Model S, the Model X and the Model 3. In 2019, the US carmaker presented the Model Y. Today, the American company not only produces electric cars, but also photovoltaic systems and battery storage. Over the years, Tesla has become the most influential electric vehicle company in the world. At the end of 2021, Tesla had around 110,000 employees worldwide and had a market value of around 695 billion US dollars in October 2022.

Elon Musk: The Face of Tesla

Elon Musk was born on June 28, 1971 in South Africa. He grew up under difficult circumstances and suffered from bullying attacks from his classmates. Musk showed an early interest in computers and programming languages ??and developed his own video game at the age of twelve. At the age of 17, young Musk moved to Canada, where he began studying at Queen's University in Kingston. He later moved to the United States, where he earned a bachelor's degree in physics and economics from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.

Although Musk was admitted to a Ph.D. program in physics at the prestigious Stanford University in 1995, he decided to start a company instead: the internet company Zip2. And that shouldn't remain the only company: In 1999 Elon Musk founded the company X.com, which developed online payment systems via e-mail. X.Com then merged with the company Confinity, resulting in PayPal.

Three years later, Musk dared something completely new: He started SpaceX, a space and telecommunications company. SpaceX develops and manufactures innovative rockets and spacecraft and takes them into space. In 2004, Elon Musk became part of Tesla. He invested millions in the company and later became chairman of the board. Already during the development of the roadster he took an active role and oversaw its product design. Musk has been the CEO of the company and the defining figure of Tesla since 2008.

The innovative Tesla models at a glance

Tesla has launched several electric cars:

Roadster (2008 to 2012): The Roadster was the first all-electric sports car to be able to travel more than 320 kilometers (200 miles) per charge with an approximately 53-kilowatt-hour battery. The charging time was given as 4.5 hours.

Model S (since 2012): The Model S sedan features significantly more interior space and a front trunk. Depending on the equipment, the range is from 200 to over 600 kilometers. Also depending on the equipment, Tesla specifies a maximum speed of 322 kilometers per hour.

Model X (since 2015): With the Model X, Tesla has released an SUV. Depending on the configuration, it reaches a maximum speed of 262 kilometers per hour and has a range of 543 kilometers.

Model 3 (since 2017): The Model 3 occupies the middle class and is 28 centimeters shorter than the previous Model S. Tesla specifies a maximum speed of 261 kilometers per hour and a range of 602 kilometers per charge for the sedan.

Model Y (since 2020): The latest Tesla car is the compact SUV Model Y. The vehicle impresses with a maximum speed of 250 kilometers per hour and a battery range of 514 kilometers.

A second-generation roadster is also being planned. According to Musk, this model should have a range of 1,000 kilometers and a top speed of over 400 kilometers per hour. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2023. The Tesla Semi should also come onto the market at the end of 2022. The Semi is a fully electric articulated lorry that was announced back in November 2017. With the Semi, Tesla promises lower costs than operating conventional diesel trucks. Series production and delivery are scheduled to begin as early as 2022. The Cybertruck was also presented in 2019. This is an electrically powered pick-up that is scheduled to go into production in 2023.

Four models are currently being offered as new vehicles: the Model S sedan and the Model X SUV in the upper class, and the Model 3 sedan and the compact SUV Model Y in the middle class. There are numerous factors that make Tesla stand out as a pioneer has. In addition to the special, sporty design of the models, the car manufacturer focuses primarily on software and works with a central computer structure that controls the car. The technology company also regularly sends software updates and innovations to the Tesla vehicles.

Minimalism is also an important point at Tesla. The newer models are equipped with a large monitor in the cockpit. Therefore, almost no buttons can be found inside. Everything is controlled via the monitor or via a smartphone app.

The Tesla group has been criticized for this

As popular as Tesla is, the company is often criticized. A study from Sweden in particular caused a stir, as it revealed that the CO2 balance of an electric car is anything but environmentally friendly. In the working paper, a Tesla model was used to calculate that it would have to be driven for at least eight years in order for it to be worthwhile in terms of the CO 2 balance compared to a normal combustion engine. This is mainly due to the fact that a lot of CO2 is emitted during the production of the battery cells. The claim that the production of an e-car emits around 17 tons of CO2 need, but has since been revised. Even the study authors themselves pointed out that the study was misquoted multiple times. A fact checks by the German Press Agency (dpa) showed that the emissions even with the most powerful battery (100 kWh) and the highest possible CO 2 /kg value (100) were ten tons.

There is also uncertainty among consumers and industry about Tesla's autopilot system. The first known fatal car accident involving a car controlled by the assistance system occurred in Florida in 2016. The driver of the Tesla Model S had switched on the autopilot. He died in a collision with a trailer truck. Tesla then said in a statement that the system mistook the truck for a high-hanging sign. Therefore, no automatic braking was triggered. However, Tesla emphasized that the Autopilot does not make the Tesla a self-driving car.

According to a document released in June 2021, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has opened at least 30 investigations into Tesla accidents believed to have involved Autopilot. Some of these accidents resulted in fatalities. In June 2022, NHTSA announced it would expand its investigation. The regulator cited the need to “investigate the extent to which Autopilot and related Tesla systems may exacerbate human factors or behavioral safety risks.” The current beta version of the Full Self-Driving (FSD) mode now issues a warning to drivers: "The software can do the wrong thing at the worst possible time, so you must always keep your hands on the wheel and pay special attention to the road."