BYD overtakes Tesla to secure pole position in electric car race, eclipses Elon Musk's company with high-tech features

BYD has been giving tough competition to Tesla over the last couple of years. Despite the US auto major holding the lion's share in the global electric car market, the Chinese auto giant that sells hybrid and electric cars has been growing at a rapid pace, throwing a tough challenge to the Elon Musk-led company. The latest development in that path is BYD registered sales of more than $100 billion last year, leapfrogging Tesla in revenue.

BYD reported a revenue of 777 billion yuan in 2024, which translates to $107 billion. This marked a 29 per cent rise in revenue compared to what it registered in 2023. On the other hand, Tesla's 2024 revenue was $97.7 billion, around $11 billion lower than its Chinese challenger. BYD's net income rose 34 per cent last year to 40.3 billion yuan, beating analyst estimates of 39.5 billion yuan, reported news agency Bloomberg. The report has attributed this rapid growth of BYD to the company's range of hybrid and electric cars packed with high-end technology-aided advanced features.

Fast and forward: BYD became a major global EV player

BYD has risen to the top of the world's biggest and most competitive electric car market, China, very quickly. Besides China, BYD has been growing fast in several other global markets as well, including Europe, which remains one of the key markets for electric cars.

By rolling out more than 19 lakh cars annually and aiming to increase the production capacity to over 20 lakh units per annum, Tesla has been leveraging its volume production capacity. On the other hand, BYD is taking a multi-pronged approach. The Chinese auto company is rapidly expanding its production capacity, which in 2024 surpassed 10 lakh units. At the same time, the OEM is focusing on expanding its sales network worldwide in new markets. Besides that, what's most important is that BYD is emphasising offering ground-breaking technologies in its cars.

Just a few days ago, BYD unveiled its new vehicle architecture, which promises to be charged for 400 kilometres range in five minutes. The auto company hinted that the new platform will underpin many of its future electric vehicles. Besides that, the OEM has introduced advanced driver assistance technology in even its most basic models. BYD has also committed to building more than 4,000 EV charging stations across China to serve the newly upgraded electric vehicles. All these moves could provide another boost for BYD, which has come from behind to rival Tesla, as the world’s top EV seller.

BYD has hybrid leverage

BYD has another leverage over its rival Tesla. While Tesla sells only electric cars, BYD sells both electric and hybrid cars. Many consumers around the world are still sceptical about adopting EVs even when the consumer sentiment towards battery electric vehicles has been changing positively. Rather, these consumers have no objections towards hybrid vehicles as this technology blends the best of both worlds allowing the users to drive the car using fossil fuel as well as electricity, which eventually results in better mileage.

BYD sells about the same number of electric cars as Tesla. BYD sold 17.60 lakh units of EVs in 2024 versus 17.90 lakh units sold by Tesla. But, when hybrid car sales of BYD are taken into account, the number is much larger. BYD’s total vehicle deliveries last year climbed to 42.70 lakh units, almost as much as Ford Motor Co. The automaker has forecast that it can sell between 50-60 lakh vehicles in 2025. Interestingly, the company has already recorded a strong start, with sales in the first two months of this year registering up 93 per cent year-on-year to 623,300 units.

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