Tesla is Choosing Hype Over Substance w/ Edward Niedermeyer

Paris Marx is joined by Ed Niedermeyer to discuss Tesla's stagnation as an electric vehicle manufacturer and what that could mean for its future as competitors cut into their market share.

Ed Niedermeyer is the author of Ludicrous: The Unvarnished Story of Tesla Motors and co-host of the Autonocast.

Tech Won’t Save Us offers a critical perspective on tech, its worldview, and wider society with the goal of inspiring people to demand better tech and a better world. Support the show on Patreon.

The podcast is made in partnership with The Nation. Production is by Eric Wickham. Transcripts are by Brigitte Pawliw-Fry.

Also mentioned in this episode:

• Paris wrote about the problems facing Tesla, written before Musk began the mass layoffs.
• Ed wrote at the end of last year about the lies that underpinned Tesla’s story being exposed.
• The Cybertruck is facing significant manufacturing issues in Austin, and recently they all had to be recalled for issues with the accelerator pedal, which caused the company to reveal that only 3,878 vehicles had been delivered to customers.
• Tesla is laying off a large number of staff, including the Supercharger and new vehicle teams.
• Elon Musk is doing mass layoffs to reestablish his power over the company, but it’s destabilizing the actual business.
• Reuters reported that Musk cancelled plans for a low-cost car in favor of robotaxis.
• Automakers were warning they couldn’t phase out Chinese minerals from the battery supply chain by 2025. After recording, the Biden administration announced some rules would be delayed until 2027.
• BYD has been looking to build a factory in Mexico.