Former Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares has predicted that electric vehicle maker Tesla may struggle to survive the next decade, citing intensifying competition from Chinese automaker BYD and Elon Musk’s divided attention across multiple ventures.
In an interview with French newspaper Les Echos, Tavares said that Tesla’s dominance in the EV market is under growing threat.
“We can’t rule out that at some point, he’ll decide to leave the automotive industry to refocus on humanoid robots, SpaceX, or artificial intelligence,” he remarked, suggesting that Musk’s focus may shift away from Tesla entirely.
Tavares attributed BYD’s rise to its operational efficiency and cost-effective production strategy. “Tesla’s stock market value loss will be colossal because this valuation is simply stratospheric,” he said. “
He further added, “I’m not sure that Tesla will still exist in 10 years. It’s an innovative group, but they’ll be beaten by BYD’s efficiency.”
According to Fortune, BYD surpassed Tesla in global EV sales earlier this year, reflecting the momentum of Chinese manufacturers in the electric mobility sector.
Tesla recently reported third-quarter revenue of $28.1 billion, marking a 12% year-on-year increase, largely driven by a 33% surge in deliveries from China, its second-largest market after the United States.
Despite this growth, Tesla’s market share in China has dropped to around 5%, compared to 16% in 2020, as domestic automakers including BYD, Nio, and XPeng expand aggressively with affordable and technologically advanced models.
Industry experts note that Tesla’s shrinking market share underscores the company’s mounting struggle to sustain its lead in the world’s largest EV market.
Meanwhile, Tesla’s board has proposed a new 10-year pay package for Elon Musk worth up to $1 trillion, contingent upon achieving ambitious targets such as increasing the company’s market value by 500% to $8.5 trillion.
Defending the proposal, Tesla board chair Robyn Denholm said, “If you prefer that Tesla turn into just another car company mired in the ways of the past, then you should follow ISS and Glass Lewis.”
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