Lessons from Tesla’s Approach to Innovation

One of my favorite Ben Thompson posts is "What Clayton Christensen Got Wrong" in which he built on Christensen's theory of disruption to note that low end disruption can be avoided if you can differentiate on user experience. It is difficult and perhaps even impossible to over-serve on that axis. Tesla came into the electric car market with a car t... See more

Tesla took the culture from Entrenchment to Tension by introducing the right kind of pain. They may have talked a good game about replacing fossil fuels with sustainable energy, but what really won them the market was a legion of early adopters who wanted to see themselves as stewards of the future by way of technology.

They created a new dichotomy

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Here are some high-level examples of strategies:

• Tesla: Build a high-priced sports car → Use that revenue to build an affordable car → Use that revenue to build an even more affordable car → While doing so, also provide zero-emission electric power


• Uber: Launch Uber Black → Bring prices down by launching UberX → Bring prices down by launching Uber Po

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