Volkswagen CEO To Now Compete With Elon Musk On Twitter, Warns Of Grabbing 'Some Market Share' From Tesla

Volkswagen AG (OTC: VWAGY) CEO Herbert Diess made his debut on Twitter Inc’s (NYSE: TWTR) platform on Wednesday by taking a dig at Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) CEO Elon Musk.

What Happened: The executive said that he was on Twitter to make an “impact” and grab some market share.

Hello @Twitter! I’m here to make an impact with @VWGroup, especially on political issues. And, of course, to get some of your market shares, @elonmusk – after all, our ID.3 and e-tron have won the first markets in Europe. Looking forward to productive discussions!

— Herbert Diess (@Herbert_Diess) January 20, 2021

Diess’s comments assume significance as Volkswagen outpaced Tesla sales in some key European markets such as Norway.

Why It Matters: The German automaker’s CEO had admitted in November that the company saw itself in a “race with Tesla.”

Diess took a test drive in a Tesla Model Y and called it a “reference” car for automakers in September.

Musk too had driven Volkswagen’s ID.3 electric vehicle during a meeting with Diess last year and said that for a “non-sporty car, it’s pretty good.”

The best-selling EV in Europe in 2020 was Renault SA’s (OTC: RNLSY) ZOE with 83,000 units sold and an 8% market share. Tesla’s Model 3 was ranked second with 63,000 units sold and a 6% market share. Volkswagen’s ID.3 was ranked sixth but could end up at the number three or four spots, as per InsideEVs.

Price Action: Volkswagen OTC shares closed 3.66% higher at $20.94 on Wednesday. On the same day, Tesla shares closed 0.7% higher at $850.45 and gained 0.17% in the after-hours session.
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Photo courtesy: Alexander Migl via Wikimedia