Tesla and Elon Musk – Separating the Machine from the Man
By Edward A. Sanchez — May 7, 2024
Unless you’ve been living on a remote island or mountaintop cabin with little to no connection to the outside world, you’re likely well aware of the antics of Elon Musk. Once a hero of the progressive left for his championing of electric vehicles and renewable energy, his erratic actions and decisions in regard to expression of controversial or inflammatory political opinions, responses to government agencies (the SEC in particular), and mercurial and drastic decisions when it comes to the businesses he oversees have made him somewhat of a super-villain in the eyes of many.
His irrational behavior has shined a particular spotlight on Tesla, the company he leads as CEO, and is perhaps most associated with in the public eye. In addition to Tesla, he also directly leads, or has significant influence on SpaceX, X/Twitter, and Neuralink, among others. I am not here to act as an apologist for his sometimes offensive behaviors, but simply to make the case that although Tesla and Musk are closely intertwined, some might even say inseparable, they’re not one and the same.
Much like Apple has survived and thrived in the post-Steve Jobs era, Tesla will likely survive (and possibly thrive) in a post-Musk era.
As a Tesla owner, I have had an overwhelmingly positive ownership and customer service experience with the company. The car is quiet, quick, comfortable, and has been a reliable companion as a commuter as well as on many road trips. A big part of that experience has been the outstanding Supercharger network, the DC fast charging network that still sets the gold standard for uptime, ease of use, and user experience. So much so, that it prompted Ford, and effectively the entire automotive industry in North America to switch to the NACS standard (now officially SAE J3400) for EV charging.
Musk’s inscrutable laying off of the entire Supercharger team in late April makes little sense considering Tesla’s commanding lead in the number of DC charging points, as well as user experience. But it presents a huge opportunity for the rest of the EV charging network industry to take up the baton of NACS and run with it.
As far as technological sophistication, over-the-air updates, and efficiency, Tesla is almost without peer in the EV realm, with the possible exception of Lucid, and Hyundai Group vehicles are quickly catching up. Are all of these areas of excellence singlehandedly due to Musk? No, but the case could be made his decisions led to the company’s dominance in these areas. J.B. Straubel, the now-departed Drew Baglino, and countless others contributed to the company’s undeniable head-start and lead in the EV market.
I would not be shocked, surprised, or (frankly) upset or disappointed if Musk stepped down as CEO of Tesla. Would the company perhaps fall out of the limelight of public awareness to an extent? Perhaps. But as long as he’s alive, I don’t see Musk being fully disengaged or disassociated with the company. If he does ultimately step aside to allow another to take the helm at Tesla, I can only hope he would have the grace and diplomacy to give his successor the courtesy of putting their own imprimatur on the company’s strategy and direction without disparaging their decisions with ridicule or disdain.
Whatever you may feel personally about Musk, there’s little disputing Tesla’s success and influence on the EV market. While the company’s dominance of the EV market segment may not be indefinite, it will absolutely go down in history as one of the most transformational companies of the automotive industry, certainly in the 21st century.
(Image by brandwayart)
