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A few days ago, Tesla shocked the charging world when Elon decided to fire the entire Supercharger development team. These weren't the people who maintained the existing sites (thank goodness!), but they are the people who found places to put chargers, designed the site plans, ran the utilities, hired contractors, and did whatever else was necessary to expand and upgrade the network.
Multiple outlets have reported that contractors (those responsible for constructing the sites) received the following letter after the mass shooting:
To all involved:
You may be aware that there has been a recent adjustment within the Supercharger organization, which is currently undergoing a sudden and thorough restructuring. If you have already received this email, please ignore it as we are trying to get in touch with our suppliers and contractors. As part of this process, we are establishing new leadership roles, prioritizing projects and streamlining our payment procedures. Due to the transitional nature of this phase, we ask for your patience with our response time.
I understand that this period of change can be challenging and that patience is not easy when you expect to be paid. However, I want to express my sincere appreciation for your understanding and support as we navigate this transition. Wait for this moment to pioneer newly awarded construction projects and planned pre-construction walks. If you are currently working on an active Supercharger construction site, continue. Contact [email redacted] for further questions, comments and concerns. In addition, continue to work on new material orders. Contact [email redacted] for further questions, comments and concerns. If you are waiting for a delayed payment, please contact [email redacted] for a status update. Thank you for your cooperation and patience.
The big takeaway people get is that this was not a well-thought-out plan that was created and executed with care. The sudden layoff of an entire team left a lot of pieces for people to pick up and left many people in the “cybernetic collective” Tesla built disconnected from the process.
Unfortunately, these mass layoffs/layoffs also include the people responsible for opening up the network to other manufacturers' vehicles. The job is already done for Ford and Rivian vehicles and everyone can charge, but other brands of vehicles have not yet been added. According to the Out of specification Kyle Conner of YouTube Channel, this chaos and likely delay in fulfilling supercharger access agreements has spooked executives at other automakers:
The worst news is that some of them have told him that they are considering withdrawing if Tesla cannot perform and fulfill the agreements already made as a result of this massive firefight. This news, combined with what was clearly a reckless move by Elon Musk at 3am, has shaken many people's confidence in the company.
Why this probably won't make automakers go back to CCS1 for future cars
What we don't know at this point is what the exact points were in the deal between Tesla and each of the other automakers. Some of them may already be behind on delivering the promised (and paid for) access. It may also be that some automakers have not been promised access for months or more. Keep that in mind as I speculate further.
I have two reasons why I'm not worried about it.
First, there is likely time to supply and keep other automakers on the NACS train. For all car manufacturers to whom they do not deliver late, there is of course time to restart their efforts. For those who are already behind or soon to be behind, there is also strong public pressure to maintain access to Supercharger. At this point, any automaker that backs out would be putting themselves at a serious competitive disadvantage, giving them more opportunity to wait than it seems.
The amount of strategic patience that various automakers have for this is not infinite, but they are unlikely to back down in the coming months.
The second reason I'm not worried is that no one wants to go first. If a critical mass of automakers could coordinate behind the scenes to get out of the deal together, the transition to NACS could fail. But just as there was a dam that caused Ford to fail, there is no dam that keeps a company from going it alone. If such a consortium pulls out of Supercharger access, even if it's delayed, it would have to make some serious charging announcement to make up for it, and they're not ready for that.
The good result that was probably not planned
Considering the chaos and the 52 Pickup card game we see Tesla playing right now, I seriously doubt this was part of some grand plan that was hatched. So no, I'm not going to do the “masterly gamble, sir” or 4D chess nonsense.
Elon Musk: *slaps dick against car door*
Musk fans: Masterstroke, sir— TimmmyC (@EsqTim) July 13, 2022
This probably happened on a whim at 3am for reasons we won't know for a while (if ever). But something seriously good is likely to come from it as the rest of the industry steps in to pick up the slack left by Tesla.
Tesla still plans to expand the Supercharger network, just at a slower pace for new locations and more focus on 100% uptime and expansion of existing locations
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 30, 2024
No matter how good a company is, monopolies have historically never served the customer well. Without pressure to compete and pressure to keep prices low, the result is usually stagnation and high prices. Even if Elon Musk is the godlike figure incapable of making mistakes that some people think he is, and he would never benefit from a near-monopoly, the man can't run Tesla forever. So at some point there would be pressure to abuse that kind of power.
The other problem is regulation. If Tesla dominates the charging market and investors are too scared to adequately fund competing networks, there could come a point where antitrust laws become an issue. As with Ma Bell, Tesla could fall victim to being split into “baby Teslas” or forced to invest in competition, as Microsoft did.
Again, I don't think this was planned, but everyone will probably be better off after Tesla's bad move here. A healthy and diverse charging market is what everyone needs, and that network will likely migrate to NACS for both cars and chargers over time.
Featured image by Jennifer Sensiba.
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