Tesla Inc TSLA CEO Elon Musk on Tuesday dismissed a recent Bloomberg Intelligence forecast that estimates Germany’s Volkswagen Group VWAGY could become the top electric vehicle maker by 2024.
What Happened: The billionaire entrepreneur, who heads the world’s largest electric vehicle company, said he does not agree with the forecast.
“I believe that forecast was from you,” Musk said in response to a question on competition in the EV space. The world’s richest man was participating virtually at the Qatar Economic Forum in Doha.
“I would not agree with that forecast, no.”
Musk did not directly respond to the follow-up question of whether he viewed General Motors Co GM or Volkswagen or the startups from China as the real competitors.
“I have to say that I am very impressed with the car companies in China and just in general with companies in China. I think they’re extremely competitive, hardworking and smart.”
See Also: Tesla To Be Overtaken By This Legacy Automaker As Top EV Maker By 2024
The Forecast: Bloomberg last week said Volkswagen’s battery EV share already tops that of Tesla in Europe and the legacy automaker needs to replicate that success in other regions, particularly China where it is currently struggling to grow its market share.
The world’s second-largest automaker expects half of its global sales to be EVs by 2030. Volkswagen sold 8.6 million vehicles globally last year, out of which 452,900 were battery EVs.
In comparison, Tesla sold nearly a million electric vehicles last year and opened two new factories in 2022, which when fully ramped up are expected to lift the company's capacity by one million units.
Price Action: Tesla stock closed 9.3% higher at $711.1 on Tuesday, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
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