CATL Chairman Doubts Elon Musk's 4680 Battery Will Succeed

Highlights

Robin Zeng of CATL questions Tesla's 4680 battery technology, predicting it may not meet its ambitious performance promises.

Robin Zeng, the chairman of Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (CATL), the world's largest electric vehicle (EV) battery maker, doubts Tesla CEO Elon Musk's 4680 cylindrical battery technology. Zeng told Reuters that he believes Musk's approach to the 4680 cells "is going to fail and never be successful." During Musk's recent visit to China in April, "We had a very big debate, and I showed him. He was silent.

He doesn't know how to make a battery." Tesla's new "tabless" 4680 cells are designed to deliver up to "five times" the energy capacity, and the company announced that it has produced 100 million of these cells, some of which are now in the Cybertruck and other models. However, Tesla faces mounting pressure to address high production costs and technical challenges associated with these cells, with Musk reportedly pushing his team to find solutions by the end of the year.

In contrast, CATL's lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries are widely used across various EV brands, including Tesla and Ford in North America and China. Although LFP batteries typically provide shorter ranges than Tesla's cylindrical cells, they are valued for their safety and cost-efficiency.

While Zeng acknowledged Musk's skill in areas like chips, software, and hardware, he noted Musk's tendency to set overly ambitious deadlines, particularly with Full Self-Driving technology. Musk's strategy, according to Zeng, is to set short timelines to motivate his team, even if the actual timeline may be much longer.