Following President Joe Biden’s teaser for a big announcement coming on Thursday, the administration has reportedly invited a number of electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer executives, with one particular EV company surprisingly missing.
On Thursday, Biden’s Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg was asked why “one car manufacturer was conspicuously absent,” in reference to Tesla, to which Buttigieg responded “I’m not sure”, according to CNBC.
Those who were invited to the meeting consisted only of legacy automakers, specifically including executives from General Motors (GM), Ford and Chrysler parent company Stellantis.
It’s odd that the administration wouldn’t invite the EV industry’s most dominant company, Tesla, and CEO Elon Musk agreed, saying it “seems odd that Tesla wasn’t invited,” on Wednesday evening.
Yeah, seems odd that Tesla wasn’t invited
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 5, 2021
Buttigieg also emphasized the legacy automakers transitions to EVs in his response, saying, “Part of what’s exciting is seeing some of the oldest most traditional names in auto manufacturing, and the newest companies on the scene, all acting in terms of the core of their business to go electric.”
Buttigieg also said he didn’t see Musk’s tweet, which was posted last night.
The future of the auto industry is electric — and made in America.
Today I'm signing an executive order with a goal to make 50% of new vehicles sold by 2030 zero-emission — and unveiling steps to reverse the previous administration’s short-sighted rollback of vehicle standards.
— President Biden (@POTUS) August 5, 2021
Last month, Biden pledged to end $90 billion in gas company subsidies, just a few months after announcing an infrastructure plan with $174 billion going towards EV production and charging, among other things.
