Four weeks ago I landed in Asheville, NC for a weekend of live music, hiking, food and maybe some beer. Upon dropping my bags off at the hotel, I exited to find a grown man holding a sign that read “Tesla Drivers are Bad People.” He was in a shouting match with another man who also doesn’t like Elon Musk but drove a Tesla and took umbrage.
Beyond this experience is mountains of evidence in the media as well as endless videos and photos shared on social and reddit. Americans are taking their frustration for Mr. Musk out on Tesla dealerships and worse, Tesla drivers, by scratching, spray painting and even destroying their vehicles.
For those taking part in or advocating for this vandalism, let me share with you a hard truth: you’re hurting your fellow Americans more than you are Mr. Musk. He was born into wealth and will likely die a billionaire regardless of what you do. While he doesn’t need Tesla, America still does, easily illustrated using some data points that also show who will suffer the most from the brand’s damage:
- This bullet is intended to provide perspective: while its market share is falling, Tesla owns approximately 44% of the US EV market. There are approximately 2,529 Tesla Supercharger stations with 29,601 Tesla Supercharger ports in the U.S. This means Tesla is the biggest player in the US EV category today, and it’s not even close. Remember that 44% number, please.
- Sources may vary, but according to reports in 2024 and 2025, there are anywhere from 190,000 to 240,000 jobs in the EV sector.
- More specifically, software developers/professionals depend on EV jobs. According to the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and cited around the world, the EV industry “will need roughly 140,000 new software developers every year until 2031.”
- Existing EV drivers. Ready for this? Tesla is responsible for 58% of the fast charging market with 12,580 fast chargers up and running. That figure is insane, and folks who now have the Tesla CCUS charging adaptor just more than doubled our ability to charge quickly on a road trip.
- New EV drivers. Because of Mr. Musk’s public persona, Tesla prices are dropping faster than any other brand, with the average price of a pre-owned Tesla is now $30,000, nearly $10,000 less than a non-Tesla EV. This should be viewed as a major opportunity for EV adoption!
- The clean energy movement (and its jobs). Hundreds of billions have been invested in the EV sector, and many other industries including residential solar and energy storage, battery chemistry, grid edge tech and others are tied to its advancement.
- Tesla employees. It’s not the fault of Tesla’s 125,700 workers that their boss is addicted to social media cyberbullying and dancing on stage.
Now please return to that 44% US EV market share number.
If Tesla vehicles magically disappeared tomorrow, the impact to the EV sector and hundreds of thousands of EV-industry job holders would be biblical. And for the many of us driving or soon to drive EVs as they become more awesome and affordable: there would be far fewer charging stations, likely eroding consumer adoption and satisfaction.
One last data point. There are millions of Tesla drivers in the US and around the world, the vast majority of whom purchased their vehicle before Mr. Musk went MAGA and turned Twitter into a cesspool. They deserve better, and we also want their cars filled with riders getting a positive EV experience. This too leads to more adoption.
I ask instead that people and brands redirect their ire at Mr. Musk in more productive ways, like the ballot box.