Elon Musk's Secret Beijing Trip: Is China Winning the Global Electric Car Race?

Musk Arrives in Beijing, Pleased with Electric Vehicle Progress in China, Foresees All Future Cars as Electric

Elon Musk met with Premier Li Qiang not long ago. They have been friends for many years since they first met in Shanghai. Musk was happy to see Li again. He also liked seeing how well electric cars are doing in China.

Musk said good things about China's progress with electric cars. He believes that in the future, all cars will run on electricity instead of gas.

This tells us two things. One, Musk thinks China is doing a great job with electric cars. Two, he is sure that electric cars will be very common later on. I think Musk is right about this. He knows a lot about electric vehicles.

So why did Musk visit Beijing? There are likely two reasons.

One, he probably wanted to go to the Beijing Auto Show. Even though Tesla didn't have any cars there this year, Musk likely went to see all the new electric vehicles.

Two, Musk wanted to talk with leaders in Beijing. He didn't tell many people about this trip. Sources say he hoped to discuss letting Tesla's self-driving cars work in China. He needed to get permission for this. On April 28th, Musk met with the head of a big trade group to talk about working together in the future.

Is Elon Musk right about how electric cars are growing in China and what will happen in the future?

First, let's look at the Beijing Auto Show. This year, there were 278 new electric car models. Many new brands showed off their cars for the first time. Over the past ten years, China's electric car industry has done very well. It has led the world in making and selling electric cars for nine years in a row. In early April 2024, more than half of all new cars sold in China were electric. This was the first time electric cars beat gas cars.

Will all cars be electric one day? Yes, they will. Only electric cars can have computers inside.

The computers use AI to help the car drive itself. Soon, electric cars will drive on their own. This is like how smartphones are now used instead of older cell phones. In the same way, self-driving electric cars will replace gas cars. They will be the main type of car made and sold.

So, why is Musk in China talking about cars that can fully drive themselves?

Because China is the best at making new electric car technology. People in China are also very excited and happy about cars that can drive themselves in the future.

But in the United States, on April 26, the government said it would look into Tesla again. They are checking all Tesla models from 2012 to 2024 that have the Autopilot system.

This is why Musk's Tesla has grown so much by building a big factory in China. His Full Self-Driving technology might also do best in China. This is because the US and Europe aren't as excited about new electric cars as they used to be.