Sunita Somvanshi
BYD has surpassed Tesla in annual revenue for 2024, reporting $107 billion compared to Tesla’s $97.7 billion. This Chinese electric vehicle maker has rapidly transformed from an underdog to a formidable competitor in the global EV market.
By the Numbers
- BYD revenue: $107 billion (777 billion yuan), up 29% year-over-year
- Tesla revenue: $97.7 billion
- BYD net profit: $5.6 billion (40 billion yuan), up 34%
- BYD total vehicle sales: 4.3 million (including hybrids)
- BYD pure EV sales: 1.76 million (vs. Tesla’s 1.79 million)
- BYD stock growth: Up over 50% since January
Battery Supply Chain: The Core Advantage
BYD’s vertical integration gives it unprecedented control over its supply chain. The company extracts raw materials, refines them, produces cells, and integrates them into vehicles—all in-house. This approach proved crucial during recent semiconductor and battery shortages.
Their Blade Battery technology, using lithium iron phosphate (LFP), offers safety advantages by reducing thermal runaway risks. While LFP batteries typically have lower energy density than nickel-based batteries, they cost less and boost BYD’s affordability edge.
“We have been pursuing a goal to make the charging time of electric vehicles as short as the refuelling time of petrol vehicles,” said BYD founder Wang Chuanfu, announcing the company’s new charging technology.
Supercharger Technology: The 5-Minute Game Changer
BYD recently unveiled charging technology claiming to fully power EVs in five minutes—twice as fast as Tesla’s superchargers. Their Super e-Platform can reportedly deliver enough power in five minutes for 400 kilometers (250 miles) of driving.
The system uses “all liquid-cooled megawatt flash charging terminal system” to manage the extreme heat generated during ultra-fast charging. BYD plans to roll out 4,000 chargers across China before expanding internationally.
Stephen Bragg from Pitcher Partners called this development “a big deal,” but cautioned about implementation challenges: “To do five minutes [charging] would be unheard of in Australia… If everyone started to charge their batteries in five minutes, you could just imagine the amount of electricity required into the grid.”
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Affordability Strategy
Price comparison clearly shows BYD’s strategic positioning:
- New Qin L model: 119,800 yuan ($16,500)
- Tesla Model 3 in China: 235,500 yuan ($32,000)
Seth Goldstein, analyst at Morningstar, noted: “Tesla and BYD competitors should either be working on their own solution to offer a charge below 10 minutes or look to license the technology from BYD.”
Global Expansion Amid Challenges
BYD’s overseas shipments jumped almost 72% last year, now representing 10% of total sales. The company has announced plans for a third European factory in Germany, despite facing a 17% tariff on exports to the European Union.
However, BYD hasn’t entered the U.S. market, where President Trump has promised higher import tariffs on vehicles.
Tesla’s Troubles
Tesla faces declining market share and brand challenges. Graeme Hughes from Griffith University explained: “Elon Musk’s star power had originally helped with Tesla sales. The UK market alone has dropped 45% in the last month, people are concerned not only by what [Elon Musk] is doing but what [his actions] means about them.”
Tesla stock has fallen over 40% from its December high, though it has seen some rebounds following an all-hands meeting where Musk urged staff to retain their shares.
The Road Ahead
While BYD has surpassed Tesla in revenue, Tesla maintains the lead in pure EV sales by a slim margin. BYD’s market capitalization remains smaller than Tesla’s.
Both companies face emerging challenges: Tesla is reportedly working on a cheaper Model Y for the Chinese market with mass production not expected until 2026, while BYD must navigate international trade barriers and grid infrastructure limitations for its superchargers.
As Graeme Hughes noted: “It’s becoming a robust ecosystem, we have substantial players in the market. Both historical gasoline players and the new evolution of the Teslas and the BYDs. We’re going to see further growth in this space over the next 10 years in particular.”
