Volkswagen Auto Group CEO Herbert Diess has led his German car company to be one of the most respected in terms of large entities that have chosen to leave a long and successful past of producing gas-powered vehicles in favor of electrified models. Diess has worked long and hard to dissolve VW’s past mistakes, especially the Dieselgate scandal from several years ago. However, in 2021, VW has left its blemished past behind it and is the most popular electrified brand in Europe, leading companies like Tesla, Peugeot, and Renault in the world’s most robust market for electrified vehicles. Diess is a big part of this accomplishment and has one of the more keen eyes for the industry, self-admittedly behind Elon Musk.
Diess’ thoughts on the EV industry and how 2021 has shaped it to be one of the most difficult and challenging sectors of the year due to semiconductor shortages, along with his plans for Volkswagen’s electrified future and his respect for fellow auto CEO Elon Musk were discussed in a recent interview with CNN’s Anna Stewart who caught up with the VW frontman at the International Motor Show in Munich.
50% of sales electric by 2030
Diess responds to Stewart’s first inquiry, which regards VW’s goal to have 50% of its sales be electric by 2030. “In Europe, we are already leading,” Diess said, which is true based on the most recent figures from EU-EVs.com, showing Volkswagen has a comfortable lead over second-place Tesla by just over 20,000 vehicles. In other markets, Volkswagen is performing well. “Even in the US, we have been in second place for the last months, and in China, we are growing fast. We think we will become the market leader for EVs,” Diess adds.
Volkswagen has absolutely taken on the EV initiative better than 99% of other car companies, making its goals the most believable moving forward. The ID. family of vehicles has performed incredibly well, with Volkswagen offering specific models for specific markets to keep things fresh, exciting, and relevant. The question is, will VW be able to keep up its domination of the European market when Tesla begins production at Giga Berlin later this year?
Global semiconductor shortage
One of the biggest bottlenecks in recent history, the global semiconductor supply shortage, has plagued automakers to scrap basic functions like “push-to-start” features in ICE vehicles. Diess, a usually optimistic person, admits that Volkswagen is still struggling with the shortages, and he is not quite sure when things will get better.
“It has gotten worse already. We expected that we would have relief after the summer break, which didn’t happen because, in Malaysia, we had really quite significant problems with Covid,” Diess added. “Some of our suppliers, the back ends of our suppliers are mostly based in Malaysia, and three plants were hit hard. We think that we will overcome this situation towards the end of the month, and then we should see relief.”
Autonomy
In terms of autonomy, Diess is optimistic about the capabilities of self-driving cars. “We see a much bigger transition for the industry when cars are becoming autonomous because cars will be used differently, used by more people. You can send your children or your grandparents in a car somewhere. Now imagine!” Volkswagen previously claimed it could sell a self-driving system that charged by the hour, and it would be profitable doing it. However, Diess said the business still has a long way to go, and Volkswagen will likely roll out its first fleet in 2024 or 2026. “But it’s now time to invest and to prepare. And that’s what we are doing,” he stated.
Volkswagen says it can profitably sell a self-driving system for €7 an hour
Volkswagen vs. Tesla
Diess holds high regard for Tesla CEO Elon Musk. The two are friends and have shared several compliments with each other on several occasions. Musk even took a ride in an ID.3 in Germany with Diess piloting the vehicle, which ignited rumors of a potential collaboration between the two automotive CEOs. Diess still holds the utmost respect for Musk and Tesla, calling the company’s frontman “a brilliant guy” who “makes a difference. He’s changing the world with his ventures.”
Despite the two companies combating to dominate EV sales across the globe, Diess does not see any parallels between VW and Tesla. “We are quite different. He is very focused on Tesla, on his story. I’m running a big traditional company, which we try to prepare for the future. And I think we also require different characters. I like him a lot, but I think we are quite different.”
As for whether Diess was ever offered the CEO job at Tesla, Herbert simply ended with, “I don’t know,” and a slight chuckle.”
What do you think? Let us know in the comments below, or be sure to email me at joey@teslarati.com or on Twitter @KlenderJoey.
Elon Musk
Brazil Supreme Court orders Elon Musk and X investigation closed
The decision was issued by Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes following a recommendation from Brazil’s Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet.
Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court has ordered the closure of an investigation involving Elon Musk and social media platform X. The inquiry had been pending for about two years and examined whether the platform was used to coordinate attacks against members of the judiciary.
The decision was issued by Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes following a recommendation from Brazil’s Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet.
According to a report from Agencia Brasil, the investigation conducted by the Federal Police did not find evidence that X deliberately attempted to attack the judiciary or circumvent court orders.
Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet concluded that the irregularities identified during the probe did not indicate fraudulent intent.
Justice Moraes accepted the prosecutor’s recommendation and ruled that the investigation should be closed. Under the ruling, the case will remain closed unless new evidence emerges.
The inquiry stemmed from concerns that content on X may have enabled online attacks against Supreme Court justices or violated rulings requiring the suspension of certain accounts under investigation.
Justice Moraes had previously taken several enforcement actions related to the platform during the broader dispute involving social media regulation in Brazil.
These included ordering a nationwide block of the platform, freezing Starlink accounts, and imposing fines on X totaling about $5.2 million. Authorities also froze financial assets linked to X and SpaceX through Starlink to collect unpaid penalties and seized roughly $3.3 million from the companies’ accounts.
Moraes also imposed daily fines of up to R$5 million, about $920,000, for alleged evasion of the X ban and established penalties of R$50,000 per day for VPN users who attempted to bypass the restriction.
Brazil remains an important market for X, with roughly 17 million users, making it one of the platform’s larger user bases globally.
The country is also a major market for Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet service, which has surpassed one million subscribers in Brazil.
Elon Musk
FCC chair criticizes Amazon over opposition to SpaceX satellite plan
Carr made the remarks in a post on social media platform X.
U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr criticized Amazon after the company opposed SpaceX’s proposal to launch a large satellite constellation that could function as an orbital data center network.
Carr made the remarks in a post on social media platform X.
Amazon recently urged the FCC to reject SpaceX’s application to deploy a constellation of up to 1 million low Earth orbit satellites that could serve as artificial intelligence data centers in space.
The company described the proposal as a “lofty ambition rather than a real plan,” arguing that SpaceX had not provided sufficient details about how the system would operate.
Carr responded by pointing to Amazon’s own satellite deployment progress.
“Amazon should focus on the fact that it will fall roughly 1,000 satellites short of meeting its upcoming deployment milestone, rather than spending their time and resources filing petitions against companies that are putting thousands of satellites in orbit,” Carr wrote on X.
Amazon has declined to comment on the statement.
Amazon has been working to deploy its Project Kuiper satellite network, which is intended to compete with SpaceX’s Starlink service. The company has invested more than $10 billion in the program and has launched more than 200 satellites since April of last year.
Amazon has also asked the FCC for a 24-month extension, until July 2028, to meet a requirement to deploy roughly 1,600 satellites by July 2026, as noted in a CNBC report.
SpaceX’s Starlink network currently has nearly 10,000 satellites in orbit and serves roughly 10 million customers. The FCC has also authorized SpaceX to deploy 7,500 additional satellites as the company continues expanding its global satellite internet network.
Energy
Tesla Energy gains UK license to sell electricity to homes and businesses
The license was granted to Tesla Energy Ventures Ltd. by UK energy regulator Ofgem after a seven-month review process.
Tesla Energy has received a license to supply electricity in the United Kingdom, opening the door for the company to serve homes and businesses in the country.
The license was granted to Tesla Energy Ventures Ltd. by UK energy regulator Ofgem after a seven-month review process.
According to Ofgem, the license took effect at 6 p.m. local time on Wednesday and applies to Great Britain.
The approval allows Tesla’s energy business to sell electricity directly to customers in the region, as noted in a Bloomberg News report.
Tesla has already expanded similar services in the United States. In Texas, the company offers electricity plans that allow Tesla owners to charge their vehicles at a lower cost while also feeding excess electricity back into the grid.
Tesla already has a sizable presence in the UK market. According to price comparison website U-switch, there are more than 250,000 Tesla electric vehicles in the country and thousands of Tesla home energy storage systems.
Ofgem also noted that Tesla Motors Ltd., a separate entity incorporated in England and Wales, received an electricity generation license in June 2020.
The new UK license arrives as Tesla continues expanding its global energy business.
Last year, Tesla Energy retained the top position in the global battery energy storage system (BESS) integrator market for the second consecutive year. According to Wood Mackenzie’s latest rankings, Tesla held about 15% of global market share in 2024.
The company also maintained a dominant position in North America, where it captured roughly 39% market share in the region.
At the same time, competition in the energy storage sector is increasing. Chinese companies such as Sungrow have been expanding their presence globally, particularly in Europe.
Brazil Supreme Court orders Elon Musk and X investigation closed
FCC chair criticizes Amazon over opposition to SpaceX satellite plan
