China's DESPERATE Attempt to Copy SpaceX & Tesla!

Timestamps:

00:00-00:12 - Introduction
00:12-00:29 - Why SpaceX & Tesla can't get copied?
00:29-04:44 - Elon Musk vs China
04:44-07:33 - How China is trying to Copy Elon Musk
07:33-08:54 - Will China eventually Beat Elon Musk?
Introduction
Elon Musk and SpaceX have been incredibly successful, so it makes sense there would be those trying to figure out a so-called, “Formula,” to his success so they could achieve it too--China has arguably been trying to do just that!

A Quick Refresher on Musk and SpaceX
Before we go into why someone would want to copy SpaceX and Elon Musk, it should briefly be pointed out why they are successful enough to warrant being copied. First of all, you can’t really talk about SpaceX without discussing Musk as they are so intertwined. Musk founded SpaceX in 2002 with the then-outlandish sounding idea to get humans back into space with reusable rockets, then eventually return us to the Moon before making a trip to Mars and even possibly colonizing the red planet. Now in 2021 with the fact that SpaceX has made incredible strides in rocket technology, it seems a lot more possible we could soon have a base on the moon and even get to Mars in the next decade. SpaceX has been at the forefront of cutting-edge technology with its reusable Superheavy rockets that land themselves after assisting Starships with getting into orbit, launching thousands of satellites into orbit as well for the Worldwide internet idea Starlink, and basically has taken over for NASA in America when it comes to the actual production and launch of rockets. SpaceX and Musk have had incredible success, and other people and countries have taken note. Countries like China.

A Complicated Relationship
Musk has had an extremely complicated relationship with China. It has at times been incredibly friendly and complimentary and at other points been downright combative. Back in July of 2020 Musk observed that, “China rocks,” and stated America was, “Full of entitlement,” when he described how in his opinion China was full of dedicated and hardworking people compared to how Americans could at times be--in his mind--lazy. Musk has also worked extensively with China when it comes to another of his companies--Tesla. Tesla is known for its creation and manufacturing of electric vehicles and in 2019 Chinese government officials helped Tesla qualify for loans worth around $1.6 billion to construct and begin manufacturing vehicles at the company’s new and no-yet-proven Shanghai factory.

This all makes Musk and China sound like they get along great, but in November of 2020 things became quite rocky when Musk accused a rival Chinese company known as Xpeng of, “Stealing,” source codes for Tesla’s electric vehicles and Apple’s source code for its AR technology, LIDAR. Musk basically felt that Xpeng was trying to steal from Tesla so that it could copy their technology. There was no outright proof of any theft, but Musk having said it happened got many people talking and greatly upset China. with China being a Communist regime, the government is heavily involved in all corporations and production, including a company like Xpeng. In other words, when Musk accused Xpeng of stealing from him and Apple, he essentially accused China itself by proxy.

After Musk’s accusations towards Xpeng things got pretty chilly between him and China. However, as of March 2021, it seems everyone may be warming up to each other again. In a recent interview with China Central Television--which is owned by the Chinese government--Musk said how in the long run the nation would be his, “Biggest market,” for Tesla. Musk stated he saw China becoming the biggest economy in the world over the next 10 years in that interview as well. When he wasn’t doing interviews he spoke with government officials during a trip to China in late March where he addressed everything from helping China reduce its carbon blueprint to assuring the government the cameras on Tesla cars used for actions such as backing-up would never be used for spying or corporate espionage.

Musk seems to be on good terms with China again as he is not only getting along with the Chinese government but is a major celebrity among Chinese citizens too! He has around 1.7 million followers on Weibo, a major Chinese social media platform, and it often talked about by Chinese citizens as an iconic and impressive figure. Both citizens and government officials have said Musk deserves a residential green card and be offered citizenship in China due to all he has done for the country. Clearly from the great times and moments of animosity it is clear Musk’s relationship with China is complicated! It isn’t a one-sided relationship, however, as China has arguably been wanting to learn from the success of Musk and SpaceX, with some even saying the country wants to copy him!

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