Tesla was founded in 2003 and became a major market-cap rival to traditional automakers.
Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning founded Tesla Motors in 2003. Elon Musk joined soon afterward as a major early investor and became chairman, while Tesla developed its first vehicle, the Roadster, using lithium-ion battery technology.
The Model S, Model X, Model 3, and Model Y expanded Tesla’s lineup beyond its original sports car. The company also developed battery-storage products, charging infrastructure, and solar-energy offerings.
Tesla is often described simply as an electric-car maker, but its business includes energy generation and storage. It is also frequently confused with the inventor Nikola Tesla, whose name the company uses but whose historical work predates the automobile company by many decades.