When last week dropped the stock exchange price of shares of Tesla, Elon Musk was busy saving the world. “The population of the planet is moving towards collapse, but you notice it only a few” — he wrote in Twitter. Stock for the businessman are of secondary importance when humanity is in danger.
When the electric Tesla Model S has demonstrated a bad performance on crash tests, the head of the company saved Australia. In the South of the country through the 100 day should be the world’s largest system for renewable energy storage. Musk said he was “damn impressed” by the Australian government. And wrote on Twitter: “Australia rocks!”
A he almost always is a fickle man, multi-billionaire and the wunderkind of Silicon valley. Somewhere burns, and he’s already busy with the next project. From the online service of PayPal, manufacturer of Tesla electric cars to the space industry, SpaceX and project vacuum train Hyperloop: Musk is doing everything when it comes to massive scale. Managers of the traditional auto industry look at it all confused, they are afraid — and for good reason. They don’t understand that Elon musk, they have it from the very beginning did not understand. Mask — a brilliant representative of a completely new type of entrepreneurs? The one who cleans the old and getting in their place? Or is it a quack? Or crazy?
They rightly fear that the 46-year-old businessman, one day, will sweep them from the market for its electric cars — no matter how high or low is listed Tesla stock. Today Tesla sets the tone in the field of electric vehicles. When Musk goes to work, missing only a couple of tweets from Silicon valley about a new electric car Model 3, and in the offices of the German automakers strategists begin brainstorming and rework their strategy for electric vehicles. They know that if the Model 3 price is almost 30 thousand euros will sell well, then Musk will be in the heart of the mass market segment. That is to say, Volkswagen from California.
But while it did not come, and people who have decades of thinking about petrol and diesel engines, look at the opponents through his old glasses automotive managers and engineers. In fact, what they see, they don’t make sense. How can it be that the automotive company, which sells 80 thousand cars per year (BMW sells 30 times more) and has virtually no profit on the stock exchange is currently the most valuable American automaker?
The question is logical, but it demonstrates inconsistencies. Professional engineers from Munich, Wolfsburg and Stuttgart, the measure of a man who started as an entrepreneur in IT sector, in our own eyes. The yardstick of a world in which the motors, horsepower, turnover, sales and profits for each vehicle sold is crucial and in which those who built and designed these vehicles, and people with “gasoline in their blood”.
Maybe once he’s more interested in Mars than electric vehicles
However, Musk, the traveller universe, colonist of Mars, Hyperloop visionary and Savior of the world, mystery of the West coast — come from a very different world. The project of electric vehicles for the owner just one of many. Perhaps he really will become the largest automaker in the world and will replace the rest of the world cars. But perhaps it is what he says he is considering Tesla as a personal contribution to the fight against climate change. Perhaps at some point it will be more interesting mission to Mars and an intergalactic colony than door-wings Model X. Who knows?
When Musk violates not only the rules of the automotive industry, but also turns upside down the rules of the entire industry, it becomes unpredictable for competitors. Perhaps car makers a few years to fall under the wheels. But perhaps Tesla would one day disintegrate and the historical role of the Californians will be primarily in the fact that Audi, BMW and other companies will Wake up from this “diesel dream” and turned into a modern automaker. But while the automakers don’t know exactly how the situation will develop further, they need to be on the alert.
