Musk welcomes General Motors to EV race – but may also buy its factories

Elon Musk is pleased that American auto giant GM may become a serious contender against Tesla, but also would consider buying its closed factories, he has said in an interview.

With General Motors slashing costs, closing 5 auto plants and laying off thousands of workers in a total overhaul to embrace the shift to  electric cars, Musk has said he welcomes the competition.

The visionary founder and CEO of EV pioneer Tesla made the comments during an interview with CBS News streaming this morning (AEDT), saying, “The whole point of Tesla is to accelerate the advent of electric vehicles…sustainable transport and trying to help the environment.”

Speaking with 60 Minutes Overtime presenter Lesley Stahl, he said, “We think it’s the most serious problem that humanity faces.”

The carmaker is not possessive about its technology; in fact, its patents are designated for use by anyone.

“I’m not sure if you know it, but we open-sourced our patents, so anyone who wants to use our patents can use ’em for free,” he said.

Read the full story on RenewEconomy’s electric vehicle-dedicated site, The Driven…

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Bridie Schmidt is lead reporter for The Driven, sister site of Renew Economy. She specialises in writing about new technology, and has a keen interest in the role that zero emissions transport has to play in sustainability.

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