When something is important enough, you do it even if the odds are not in your favour.

Elon Musk

For my first exploration of new emerging technology, I will be discussing Tesla, an automotive and energy company specialising in electric car manufacturing.

However, what makes Tesla so intriguing is not solely their cars’ performance but the fact that its vehicles are the first to use a single integrated computer system to control all of their functions, from battery charging to motor control to tuning the radio. Where most cars contain multiple computer and software systems to operate different functions (which are often incompatible with one another), Tesla cars incorporate a single “systems architecture” in which all aspects of the vehicle are integrated. The result is fewer electrical malfunctions and quicker fixes when they do occur.

Ian Wright, Tesla’s VP of Vehicle Development, recognised that the firm would be unable to compete with the likes of Toyota’s lean production model from a manufacturing standpoint. However, by taking a systems approach to the vehicles’ software and electronics, the firm was able to achieve competitive advantage.

This revolutionary technology enables Tesla to produce zero emissions vehicles which use roughly a third as much energy as a comparable gasoline-powered car – a truly sustainable product.

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Sustainability pervades every aspect of Tesla’s business model. The company is renowned for its use of clean, green energy in the form of solar power through its subsidiary SolarCity.

Moreover, the location of the vehicle’s production (the Gigafactory, Nevada) is designed in such way to reduce its environmental impact with its unique diamond shape along with the fact that it will be a self-contained factory through an advanced integrated energy system powered by geothermal, wind and solar energy.

The Gigafactory is designed to be the biggest building in the world upon completion, powered entirely by renewable sources. Tesla is without doubt the embodiment of a sustainable business, enabled by its use of cutting edge and innovative new emerging technologies.