Elon Musk admits Chinese automakers are Tesla’s biggest competitors, praising them as ‘world-class competitors’

China’s famous BYD Group is closely chasing Tesla in terms of electric vehicle sales.

According to CNBC news, billionaire Elon Musk recently admitted that Chinese car companies are likely to be Tesla’s biggest rivals, and affirmed that his empire is “winning in China” but did not say. clear details.

In the market of billions of people, Tesla has countless competitors in the electric vehicle industry such as Nio, Xpeng or Li Auto. However, the strongest competitor is BYD, which is invested by Warren Buffett. In 2022 alone, BYD sold 911,140 electric vehicles globally. If hybrid and other vehicles are included, this figure will be 1.8 million cars.

Meanwhile, Tesla sold only 1.31 million electric vehicles in the past year.

The statements of the Tesla founder were made at the time this electric car company announced profitable business results for the fourth quarter of 2022.

“We have a lot of respect for Chinese automakers. They are the most worthy competitors in the world… they work hard and are also very smart…so I have a lot of respect for the Chinese competitors Tesla has to contend with.. So I think it’s the Chinese electric car companies, not anyone else, that will become the second person after Tesla,” said Elon Musk.

A report by the China Automobile Association (CPCA) shows that the Tesla Model 3 is the fifth best-selling electric vehicle in China in 2022, while the Model Y is the second best-selling product after BYD’s electric vehicle line.

In 2022, Elon Musk’s empire encountered a lot of trouble in China when their largest factory in Shanghai had to suspend production due to the complicated epidemic situation, thereby slowing down the delivery schedule of the company. The company is slow.

Besides, Tesla also had to reduce the selling price of electric cars in China in 2022 to 2 times due to the difficult situation of the macro economy as well as weak demand from the market.

In addition, a series of major Western car brands also jumped into the electric car market, making Tesla’s market share plummet. In the US, data from S&P Global Mobility shows that the electric vehicle market share of Elon Musk’s empire has dropped from 70.5% in 2021 to only 63.5%.

Even former Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess affirmed that the German car company will surpass Tesla to become the world’s largest electric car company by 2025 thanks to the advantages available in the traditional car segment.

*Source: CNBC