Tesla Inc. is an American multinational automotive and clean-energy company headquartered in Austin, Texas. The company was incorporated in July 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning as Tesla Motors, a tribute to the prolific inventor and electrical engineer Nikola Tesla. In February 2004, now-CEO Elon Musk became the largest shareholder of the company.
Tesla designs and manufactures electric vehicles, both cars and trucks, in addition to battery energy storage for home use. It also offers home solar panels and solar roof tiles. Tesla’s stated purpose is to help expedite the move to sustainable transport and energy, obtained through electric vehicles and solar power. Tesla is one of the world's most valuable companies and remains the world's most valuable automaker with a market capitalization of more than $840 billion.
The company launched its first car model in 2009 and by August 2022 had enjoyed cumulative global sales totalling three million cars, the first electric automaker to do so. Through its subsidiary Tesla Energy, the firm develops and manufactures photovoltaic systems in the US. Tesla Energy is also one of the largest global suppliers of battery energy storage systems.