Elon Musk reveals how electric car companies “low key” use Tesla’s tech

Tesla is one of the most hyped automobile companies out there right now, and its CEO, Elon Musk, has explained on Twitter that other electric car manufacturers do use their tech, even though it might not be widely known.

Even if you live in the middle of nowhere, you’ve probably seen Tesla’s Superchargers popping up all over as part of the company’s quest to cover the country coast to coast with charging stations.

If you weren’t already aware, these charging stations are what Tesla vehicles use to power up and give them their “fuel” for trips. The technology is touted as one of Musk’s biggest innovations in the electric vehicle market, but the fact that other companies aren’t using it has confused a lot of people on the outside, including tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee.

“Why don’t more electric car makers take up Tesla on their offer to use the Supercharging network?” Marques Brownlee wondered aloud on Twitter. “Incompatible tech? Hidden fees? Pride? There’s gotta be a good reason.”

Tesla

Superchargers are basically a gas pump for your Tesla, except instead of gas, they pump electricity.

If you think about it, it does seem highly inefficient for every different type of electric car having to use a different type of charging system. You don’t have to go to a special gas station if you’re driving a BMW or a Honda, for example.

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Surprisingly, Musk himself replied to Brownlee’s inquiry and explained that other companies were, in fact, using Tesla’s Supercharger tech, although they were just keeping it a bit under wraps.

“They are, although it’s kind [of] low-key,” the South African entrepreneur explained. “Tesla Superchargers are being made accessible to other electric cars.”

If electric cars ever want to catch on and eventually replace internal combustion vehicles, it makes sense for every electric car to have the same charging system, plugs, setup, etc. As Brownlee said, “from the outside looking in, it looks like a win for both companies but nobody has done it yet.”

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