BYD's Electrifying Surge Poses Serious Threat to Tesla's Supremacy, Reports Say

Dec 22, 2023 12:11 AM EST

CAR ELECTRIC CAR HYBRID CAR — (Photo : PIXABAY/Joenomias)

Research data in the third quarter of 2023 revealed BYD and Tesla virtually approached parity in global pure electric vehicle market shares. Tesla delivered roughly 435,000 electric vehicles this quarter, while BYD produced 431,600.

BYD's Threat to Tesla's Supremacy Spot

According to reports, Financial news service CLS noted that both businesses had 17% of the worldwide BEV market, a major development. Notably, Tesla experienced a 6.7 percent decline in deliveries during the third quarter compared to the previous one. In contrast, BYD witnessed a substantial 22.5 percent increase in deliveries of pure electric models quarter-on-quarter.

Despite Tesla's recent revival in China after the Model 3 replacement, BYD is likely to beat Tesla in the fourth quarter, perhaps becoming the global leader in pure electric vehicle sales. Tesla's industry domination is threatened by this predicament.

For an extended period, Tesla has firmly established itself as the leading force in the electric vehicle (EV) industry, enjoying a substantial advantage over its global competitors. However, the eminent position held by this U.S.-based manufacturer is now facing a direct challenge from China's BYD.

In March 2022, it produced its last combustion-engine vehicle, a major step toward becoming a global electric vehicle brand. Electrek said that BYD outsold Tesla in 2022 in global PHEV sales. Back in January, analysts predicted BYD's 2023 sales crown before quarterly numbers were available.

BYD has since introduced many batteries electric vehicle (BEV) models to compete with Tesla. Tesla's Model Y remains the world's best-selling BEV, and the firm just fulfilled Cybertruck orders.

BYD had record sales every month until Q3, its best quarter. This momentum and strong evidence suggest that Tesla will soon be overtaken as the global BEV sales leader. The Q4 BEV sales data for 2023 will confirm BYD's global market share leadership, although the patterns thus far suggest it will.

BYD caught up with Tesla in Q3 2023, capturing 17% of the global BEV sales market with 68% year-on-year growth, according to tech research firm Counterpoint. While growing slower, Tesla maintains a 17% global market share and a 27% growth rate. Both automakers excel in their fields.

BYD leads the Chinese BEV market with 58% of the worldwide share, while Tesla dominates the U.S. market with 12%. Counterpoint Research reports that Tesla and BYD make the top five BEVs worldwide.

Discover Tesla's Biggest Rival

The business began making rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries in 1995. As years passed by, it established two main subsidiaries - BYD Auto and BYD Electronics. In 2003, the company built BYD Motors.

This was the same year Tesla was founded. It started with manufacturing forklifts, trucks, buses, and electric bicycles. This was before its saw potential in battery-powered four-wheeled vehicles. Its current biggest competitor, to which report described BYD as a threat, Tesla arrived in China in 2017.

BYD is a major Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer that has expanded in the international market including India. BYD, unlike Tesla, sells more than just battery electric cars (BEVs). They also have hybrid and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) options. Tesla, on the other hand, only makes BEVs, and even in this category, its world market share is at risk of being seriously threatened soon.

HT Auto reported about this growing competition.