Photo: Audi
Tesla is an inspiration and a discussion topic for most carmakers these days, but it was not always like this.
The brand from California used to be just a newcomer that focused on an unusual niche, electric roadsters. Nobody gave Tesla much credit in the auto industry, but Elon Musk's ideas proved successful and made the brand a strong competitor to traditional brands like Audi, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz.
Audi wants to take inspiration from Tesla's risk taking and the company's new technical boss, Stefan Knirsch, is the voice that admits the Ingolstadt-based brand's new plans.
The German company's official explained that Tesla has an astounding pace when it comes to bringing new products to market, and the Audi brand envisions a more agile way of operating in the future.
Audi's plans are mirrored by Matthias Muller, Volkswagen Group's boss, who stated that the corporation should “think more like Tesla.”
As Stefan Knirsch explained in an interview with the Brits at Autocar, the idea behind these statements is that Audi should behave more like Tesla and other Silicon Valley companies act: fast-moving, risk-taking, and innovative.
The brand from California used to be just a newcomer that focused on an unusual niche, electric roadsters. Nobody gave Tesla much credit in the auto industry, but Elon Musk's ideas proved successful and made the brand a strong competitor to traditional brands like Audi, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz.
Audi wants to take inspiration from Tesla's risk taking and the company's new technical boss, Stefan Knirsch, is the voice that admits the Ingolstadt-based brand's new plans.
The German company's official explained that Tesla has an astounding pace when it comes to bringing new products to market, and the Audi brand envisions a more agile way of operating in the future.
Audi's plans are mirrored by Matthias Muller, Volkswagen Group's boss, who stated that the corporation should “think more like Tesla.”
As Stefan Knirsch explained in an interview with the Brits at Autocar, the idea behind these statements is that Audi should behave more like Tesla and other Silicon Valley companies act: fast-moving, risk-taking, and innovative.
However, Knirsch believes that Tesla's involvement in the car business has made the American firm behave in a more conventional manner lately, as it has to focus on cost-cutting, expanding production, investing in manufacturing facilities, and focusing on profits.
From this standpoint, Audi's new technical boss considers that Tesla has made a shift in the way it thinks, but Tesla's first steps in the car business are those that inspired the German brand to develop new products and change its strategy.
Audi wants to build a family car that will provide a 500 kilometer (310 miles) range, will be charged in only 15 minutes, and will not cost more than its conventionally-engined equivalent. The new vehicle from Audi will be made after the German brand heavily invests in electric vehicles and autonomous cars, but it is unclear whether the new model will be an EV or an FCV.
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