Tesla Shares Technology Secrets to Speed Up Adoption of Electric Vehicles

June 13, 2014 – You have to love the thinking behind this latest Elon Musk move. In a statement made yesterday as reported in the Financial Times, he said the following:

“We believe that Tesla, other companies making electric cars, and the world would all benefit from a common, rapidly evolving technology platform…..Tesla will not initiate patent lawsuits against anyone who, in good faith, wants to use our technology.”

The premise for his actions seem pretty clear. Elon Musk is betting on electric vehicles (EVs) becoming the standard form of transportation as the 21st century unfolds. And the best way to make this happen is to put more minds at work collectively solving the challenges from widespread consumer adoption of EVs.

Tesla’s Model S although pricey remains the hottest EV on the market today with 22,500 sold in the last year. But Musk wants the price of EVs to drop and scale is one way to make that happen. If lots of manufacturers start using Tesla-designed and manufactured components then the company can fulfill on the dream of a $35,000 U.S.

Tesla is seeking to build a factory in the United States this year that will manufacture a half million batteries for EVs annually starting in 2015. Those batteries could go into a Toyota, Nissan, Mercedes, Ford, GM, Hundai, Kia or any other automobile and truck manufacturer.

Will Elon Musk succeed with this new ploy? Well so far he has shown himself to be a disruptive innovator in this field as well as in his SpaceX pursuits. I wouldn’t bet against him.