👉 Background: Tesla, headed by the mysterious and unhinged Elon Musk, is the second best-selling electric vehicle company worldwide. It was at the number 1 spot, but was knocked down by Chinese rival BYD earlier this year.

👉 What happened: Shortly after announcing its big robotaxi ambitions, Tesla is axing more than 14,000 jobs as demand for electric vehicles slows down. Just hours after the announcement, Tesla’s share price fall 5.3%.

👉 What else: Despite the hype around electric vehicles just 2-3 years ago, the industry is really starting to slow down.

What's the key learning?

💡For new technology to be sustainable, it has to survive past the early-adopter stage. While Tesla has the approval of early adopters, it hasn’t quite reached the masses yet.

💡Tesla isn't the only EV company in this predicament. Sales of electric vehicles, and plug-in hybrids, more than doubled in 2021 and then grew by 62% in 2022, but last year went up to only 31%.

💡There are a number of reasons for the decline:

1. China, which accounts for the largest electric vehicle market, has been struggling to pick up in economic activity post-pandemic.
2. Europe and America, two large electric vehicle markets, uptake of electric vehicles has slowed down as government subsidies are drying up.

But Tesla has proven doubters wrong many times before... and this may just be another one.

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