It is now no longer particularly remarkable that the Model Y is the number one best selling car in the world. Of course, all of this would have been inconceivable barely three years ago. But the Model Y’s rise is just one more, largely irrelevant, EV fact.
What is really remarkable though is HOW LONG IT TOOK TO GET THERE.
To illustrate, the Toyota Corolla, the previous number one car, was first built and sold in 1966. It wasn’t until the 90s that the Corolla was recognized as the number one selling car. So it took them a lot more than 25 years to reach the number 1 spot.
Take the other Toyota bestseller, the RAV4. The RAV4 became the best selling SUV in 2019. It was introduced globally in 1994. So it took all of 25 years for the RAV4!
The Model Y on the other hand was introduced only in 2020. It was the best selling car by Q1 2023. It took 3 years. JUST THREE YEARS.
Now much of this can be attributed to the fact that technological disruptions often follow an exponential growth curve – see Moore’s law. But almost all of the recent exponential growth trends have been in the software industry or in industries which do not involve the production of hard assets built with steel and metal. In other words, it is easier to contemplate AI taking over the world in the next 3-4 years than say, electric trucks replacing their diesel counterparts over the same period.
But that is precisely what Tesla did. It did the hard part (pun intended) and it did it in exponentially quick time.
And that is why the rise of the Model Y is remarkable.