Telsa chief executive Elon Musk said Sunday that he would like to give away patents to his supercharger refueling system for his electric cars in hopes the technology would create a standard for his competitors to use and incorporate.
Musk made the comments at the United Kingdom launch of his Tesla Model S,
according to the Business Insider. He said by opening up the designs for his free fast-charging stations, it could help the electrical vehicle business as a whole.
"The intent of the Supercharger network is not to create a walled garden," Musk said at the event, according to
Engadget.com. "Any other manufacturer that's interested in using them, we'd be happy to accommodate. It's just that they need to be able to accept the power level of the Superchargers, which is currently 135kW and rising, so any car needs to meet the Supercharger standard.
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"And they'd also need to agree with the business model, which is we don't charge people on a per-charge basis. They'd need to contribute to the capital costs proportional to their fleet's usage of the network. So we think that's pretty fair."
Sharif Sakr, of Engadget.com, said Tesla's public relation's team walked back Musk's statements a bit this week.
"Firstly, although the company is indeed offering to share its charging and adapter specifications with other manufacturers … this won't necessarily involve sharing patents," Sakr wrote about comments made by Tesla after Musk's speech. "Secondly, some sort of 'patent giveaway' or 'patent release' is still on the cards, but the company isn't quite ready to announce the details just yet."
Dave Smith, of Business Insider, said while there is always of risk of sharing too much of your technology, Musk seems to be seeing the greater good for the industry, which he has a great deal invested in.
"Tesla has been had at work to expand the supercharger network in the U.S., but the company is still expanding to other countries," Smith wrote. "Tesla's rivals may not be as successful, but all electric car makers would benefit from a universal charging standard — and, should that happen, more charging stations."
Business Insider reported that this is the second time Musk has offered up his technology to others. In August 2013, he proposed a "Hyperloop," high-speed "pods" that could transport passengers from Los Angeles to San Francisco in 30 minutes.
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