Founded in 2003 by Elon Musk, Tesla specializes in electric vehicles. Its name is directly inspired by an inventor, a passionate advocate of alternating current.
Tesla can boast of inventing the world’s fastest 100% electric car (it’s the Model S Plaid). More broadly, the American automaker is an undisputed leader in the electric vehicle sector. However, that doesn’t stop him from making a few mistakes like cheating on the autopilot (FSD) promotional video or leaving his ugly windshield wipers on his cybertruck. But it must be recognized that its leader, Elon Musk, has managed to make Tesla an internationally recognized name.
By the way, where does the name of this company come from? If you are interested in history and the great discoveries of technology, you may already know the answer. Otherwise read on.
Tesla’s name pays homage to a ‘poet of science’
It was the scientist Nikola Tesla who gave his name to one of the most famous manufacturers of luxury electric cars. While we no longer feature Tesla CEO Elon Musk (and his antics), the name of this 19th- and 20th-century scientist is probably less well known. However, Nikola Tesla was a true “poet of science”, an eternal rival of Thomas Edison, with amazing inventiveness. Additionally, the fact that Elon Musk decided to christen his company after the name Nikola Tesla helped raise his profile, The Seattle Times pointed out in 2017.
Nikola Tesla was born in the Austrian Empire in 1856 and died in the United States in 1943. Nikola Tesla was an ardent advocate of alternating current – the introduction of which revolutionized the nascent electrical grid of his time. Nikola Tesla dreamed of large power plants far away from production sites to bring electricity to every household. So he met another pragmatic inventor, Thomas Edison, who championed direct current. The two scientists even engaged in a feverish “current war”.
Given the choice of company name, one might have expected that Elon Musk would naturally side with Nikola Tesla in the narrative of this rivalry. In a 2008 interview, however, he admitted his fondness for Thomas Edison: “I’m a bigger fan of Edison than of Tesla. […] Edison brought his products to market and made these inventions available to the world. “Ultimately, it’s not that surprising that Elon Musk feels more inspired by Edison, who shared his entrepreneurial spirit and business acumen, than Nikola Tesla, much more open-minded and dreamy.
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