General Motors sold 9.8 million cars last year, while Tesla Motors sold a little over 50,000. It might not be fair to compare these companies—Tesla has just 13,000 employees, as opposed to GM’s 216,000. But the stock market puts the two in roughly the same ballpark. Tesla, with its niche market of luxury electric vehicles, has a market capitalization of about $35 billion, while GM’s is $45 billion.
You explain that how? Investors like to bet on the upstart. Tesla is pushing new technology with the power to change how we all drive, while GM is the biggest player in moribund Detroit. But the fact is GM is about to enter Tesla territory and will reach its mark first.
ILLUSTRATION BY SINELAB, SOURCES: GM, BLOOMBERG