Tesla Motors

The Drive to Drive.
How exactly does someone get the idea to build a high-performance electric car and, more importantly, convince others that he's onto something? The answer lies between the years of 1996 and 2003, and is the story of two innovators named Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning.

In 1996, Martin Eberhard, part environmentalist, part car aficionado, was in search of a sports car that got more than 25 miles to the gallon and left behind low emissions. None was to be found. So necessity became the mother of invention.

It Should Be Possible.
These four words became a mantra to Martin, usually spoken to his friend and colleague Marc Tarpenning. This always began a spirited dialogue, turning unlikely places like Peet's Coffee into a think tank of sorts. From their days working together on the eBook at NuvoMedia, Martin and Marc had already seen how lightweight batteries with extended life changed the world of readers. Why not drivers?

The Hardest Part: Not What You Expect.
It turned out that building a high-performance electric car was possible, but difficult, the ideal situation for the kinds of big vision ideas favored by venture capital firms. The truly hard part wasn't finding the brainpower to create the car, or securing the funding to do so, but figuring out how such a vehicle could be manufactured and distributed in the highly vertical, slow-to-change automotive market. Luckily for Tesla Motors, our idea hit at a time when the automotive industry was slowly diversifying and globalizing. This enabled us to build the truly innovative electric powertrain ourselves, and then tap into top sources for other parts outside our expertise (hey, windshield wipers are important, too).

July 1, 2003: Incorporation.
This marks the date that Tesla Motors was officially born, a result of a swing-for-the-fences vision, tireless research, a truly eyebrow-raising business plan, and the support of some very forward-thinking venture capitalists.

The Tesla Mission.
Tesla Motors designs and sells high-performance, highly efficient electric sports cars - with no compromises. Tesla Motors cars combine style, acceleration, and handling with advanced technologies that make them among the quickest and at the same time the most energy-efficient cars on the road.

June 29, 2010.
Tesla begins trading on Nasdaq under the symbol TSLA with its IPO priced at $17 a share.

(source: Tesla)