Tesla’s perfect storm: Musk, politics and the rise of Chinese EVs

In terms of innovation and performance, Tesla’s EVs are still among the best on the market. Despite this, the brand is now mired in an existential crisis that has less to do with the quality of its vehicles (although there are some issues), and are instead a perfect storm of politics, consumer activism and unstoppable Chinese competition.

In a turn of events that few of us could have foreseen, Donald Trump has decided to throw his weight behind electric mobility, a field he once described as “a scam”. He has supported his de facto co-president by plugging Tesla from the White House, while announcing that attacks on Tesla dealerships will be treated as domestic terrorism. By agreeing to purchase a $90,000 Tesla live on television he alienated traditional buyers and owners of the brand, the vast majority of whom will not have voted for him and will be horrified at the idea of seeing him sitting on a Tesla and being associated with him in this way. What’s more, the move will have had no impact on his supporters, who overwhelmingly reject the idea of electric mobility. And then there is the issue of what we might politely call a conflict of interest, or more accurately, corruption. This combination of politics and technology perfectly illustrates how corporate decisions are now framed by by polarized populist agendas and rhetoric.