Introduction to TESLA

Tesla was incorporated in July 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning as Tesla Motors. The company’s name is a tribute to inventor and electrical engineer Nikola Tesla.

In February 2004, via a $6.5 million investment, Elon Musk became the largest shareholder of the company. He has served as CEO since 2008. According to Musk, the purpose of Tesla is to help expedite the move to sustainable transport and energy, obtained through electric vehicles and solar power.

In 2008, Tesla released its first electric car, the Roadster. Tesla aims to create more affordable electric car option. Tesla expanded its geographic footprint, with production facilities in China and the U.S, as well as 438 stores and 100 service centers in various countries.

Martin Eberhard

Eberhard grew up in Kensington, Calif., and studied at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he earned a bachelor’s degree (1982) in computer engineering and a master’s degree (1984) in electrical engineering. He then held a number of positions, including electrical engineer at Wyse Technology, vice president of electronics at Belfort Memory International, and chief engineer at Network Computing Devices, which he cofounded.

Marc Tarpenning

Tarpenning was raised in Sacramento, Calif., and earned a bachelor’s degree (1985) in computer science from the University of California, Berkeley. He began his career working for the conglomerate Textron in Saudi Arabia. Tarpenning then developed software and firmware products for several companies, including Seagate Technology and Bechtel, and later served as vice president of engineering at Packet Design, a network technology company.

The Collaboration

In 1997 Eberhard and Tarpenning cofounded NuvoMedia, an e-book venture that produced the Rocket eBook (1998). Eberhard served as CEO and Tarpenning led development until 2000, when NuvoMedia was sold to Gemstar–TV Guide International for $187 million. In 2003 Eberhard and Tarpenning teamed up again to launch Tesla Motors, a company dedicated to developing an electric sports car. Funding for the company was obtained from a variety of sources, most notably PayPal cofounder Elon Musk, who contributed more than $30 million to the new venture and served as chairman of the company.

In late 2007 Eberhard resigned as CEO and president of technology and joined the advisory board of the company. It was announced in 2008 that he had left the company, though he remained a shareholder. Tarpenning was vice president of electrical engineering, supervising the development of electronic and software systems for the roadster, and was CFO for several years. He also left the company in 2008.