At least a few more years
According to Bloomberg Intelligence, the battle for leadership in the electric vehicle (BEV) market will be between the two companies for at least the next few years, with Tesla and BYD well ahead of the Volkswagen Group.
Although Tesla trailed BYD in battery-electric vehicle sales in the fourth quarter, Bloomberg expects the US company to remain ahead year-over-year for the rest of the decade.
According to analysts led by Michael Dean, Volkswagen «is no longer a contender» to the electric vehicle crown, although they expect internal combustion engine models to continue to dominate the market.
«Increasing BEV rivalry will likely drive intense price competition, reducing profits, BEV markets may remain fragmented, and Tesla will be the only real global player until legacy automakers launch scalable next generation platforms in 2026–2027», — stated Michael Dean.
Bloomberg's opinion of VW's positioning in the electric vehicle market has deteriorated significantly over the past year and a half. In June 2022, Dean believed the German automaker would overtake Tesla in 2024.