Is Tesla on the Outs in China?

Zeyi Yang: Yes, she is. Zoë Schiffer: Can you talk to me about that relationship? And also, what is Tesla's standing like in China? Is it viewed as a popular, cool car still? Zeyi Yang: It's still sort of, because for the longest time, Chinese auto brands have been seen as much inferior than foreign brands. Tesla still has that halo on as this American electric car company. But it's losing it as we speak. Also, when we talk about the relationship between Tesla and China, sometimes I forget how far back it dates. There's one very interesting figure we have to talk about. His name is Zhuanglong. He used to be Chinese Minister of Industry and Information Technologies. Basically, the chief ministry of innovations in China. He went to San Francisco in 2008 and tried one of the roadsters, one of the first electric cars that Tesla makes. Because he came from the auto industry, he was an electric car nerd. That's how this all started. Then, from Musk's very first visit to China in 2014, he m ... Read full article.