Tesla briefly became the sixth U.S. company to surpass a $1 trillion market capitalization in 2021.
Tesla crossed the threshold on October 25, 2021, after its share price rose sharply following news that Hertz had ordered 100,000 electric cars. The valuation was based on the company’s publicly traded shares and therefore fluctuated with the market. Tesla was the first automaker to achieve a $1 trillion valuation.
The company was founded in 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning, with Elon Musk joining as an early major investor and becoming chairman. Tesla’s best-known vehicles include the Model S, Model 3, Model X, and Model Y. It also sells battery-storage products and solar-energy systems.
Tesla’s market capitalization should not be confused with annual vehicle sales or physical production capacity. Traditional automakers such as Toyota and Volkswagen have generally produced more vehicles, while investors have valued Tesla partly for expected growth in electric vehicles, software, batteries, and autonomous-driving technology.