# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Elon Musk: The future we're building -- and boring | TED

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How to Use Blockchain Without Being a Tech Expert...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Abstract:

This theme issue has the founding ambition of landscaping Data Ethics as a new branch of ethics that studies and evaluates moral problems related to data (including generation, recording, curation, processing, dissemination, sharing, and use), algorithms (including AI, artificial agents, machine learning, and robots), and corresponding practices (including responsible innovation, programming, hacking, and professional codes), in order to formulate and support mor...

Expand abstract

© Copyright - Bodleian Libraries 2024

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What is data ethics? - ORA - Oxford University Research Archive

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
This theme issue has the founding ambition of landscaping Data Ethics as a new branch of ethics that studies and evaluates moral problems related to data (including generation, recording, curation, processing, dissemination, sharing, and use), algorithms (including AI, artificial agents, machine

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Rise of the robots : technology and the threat of a jobless future in SearchWorks catalog

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Stanford Libraries’ official online search tool for books, media, journals, databases, government documents and more.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Impact of the Blockchain Goes Beyond Financial Services

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
It’s the first native digital medium for value.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The U.S. electric car market includes the established automakers such as Ford ( F) and Chevrolet ( GM). But one company stands out from the car maker mix, and that is Tesla Motors ( TSLA). Tesla entered the media spotlight in 2013 along with its CEO Elon Musk when it unleashed its flagship car the Model S.

Tesla's release has been a hit with not only car buyers, but also catapulted the company into the spotlight as one of the few successful independent automakers along with being a pioneer when it comes to the electric car market.

The Model S, a sleek luxury sedan that starts at $69,000, has received top ratings from the trade industry and the press. Car & Driver has given the car five stars, and when the Model S first came out in 2013 Tesla made headlines when trade press gave it laurels. The electric plug-in car received a near perfect score of 99 out of 100 from Consumer Reports, which also named it as "the best car ever tested." (For more, see: The Economics Of Owning A Tesla Car.)

By September 2014 the car hit all-time sales records in the U.S. with 2,500 sold, and in Q1 2015 sales reached a new high at 10,030. It is now considered a staple within the electric car stratosphere. The company's market capitalization, as of May 24, 2015 was $31.3 billion.

Contrary to popular belief, Tesla is not an overnight success, and it is no longer a start-up so much as it is a pioneer in the electric car market. The company was founded in 2003 by two Silicon Valley engineers Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning, who, according to the company website, "wanted to prove that electric cars could be better than gasoline-powered cars."

The seeds of the company go back to 1990 when Tarpenning met Eberhard, then an engineer at Wyse Technology, and they became good friends. The two had much in common including a passion for starting companies, and they soon launched companies including NuvoMedia, which released the Rocket eBook in 1998. A passion for autos started soon after Eberhard went through a divorce and decided to buy a sports car. He invested in a company and boutique electric auto maker called AC Propulsion, and wondered if this was a market he could get into.

In 2001 Eberhard and Tarpenning met Musk when they heard him speak at a Mars Society talk at Stanford University and introduced themselves. Musk came with a successful history of starting up companies. He along with Peter Thiel and Max Levchin were co-founders of PayPal. After making a fortune from his shares in PayPal after the company was sold to eBay in 2002, he launched another company Space X, which designs, manufactures and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft (For more, see: The Making Of Tesla: Invention, Betrayal, And The Birth Of The Roadster.)

A few years later their paths would cross again when Eberhard and Tarpenning asked to meet Musk to share their idea of the electric car with him. The three met to discuss the idea with Musk on board.

Tesla was officially incorporated in 2003 with the goal of inventing an electric car that was powerful and beautiful with zero emissions. Other co-founders were JB Straubel who is still the CTO at Tesla and Ian Wright who left Tesla in 2004 and founded another company Wrightspeed.

In 2004 the company's co-founders went through initial rounds of investing with venture capital firms. Musk, a co-founder of PayPal, came into the picture a year later when he led the initial round of funding for the company, and joined as the head of the board of directors.

Who Is Elon Musk?

Elon Musk has become the face of Tesla and is at times mistaken as the company's founder or co-founder. Musk is a South African-born Canadian-American who was trained as an engineer. He earned a dual bachelor of science in Physics and Economics from the University of Pennsylvania.

That said, he is an entrepreneur and inventor at heart. In 1995 Musk enrolled in Stanford's Applied Physics Ph D program but dropped out soon thereafter to focus on his business efforts in the renewable energy and outer space arena.

Soon after he launched a number of small but successful companies including online publishing company Zip2. From that sale Musk started X.com an online bank that was acquired by Confinity, which had launched the online payment company PayPal.

PayPal became an incredible success and was purchased by eBay in 2002. Musk made $165 million in stocks from that sale.

With his early fortune from PayPal, Musk founded his third company SpaceX, an outer-space exploration company. After a meeting and pitch with Eberhard and Tarpenning, Musk came on board Tesla as the chair of the company's board of directors, and played a key role in helping the company raise money. The company's investors included friends and family, and a litany of VC firms including Valor Equity Partners.

In the years between 2004 and 2008, Tesla continued to grow and develop its first automobile The Roadster. The company opened its manufacturing plant in Fremont, CA, a 5.5 million square feet factory that used to be owned by Toyota and General Motors. The factory is known as Nummi which includes two paint facilities, a 1.5 miles of assembly lines.

Musk became the company's CEO in 2008 and product architect, positions he still holds. That same year Tesla launched its first car and sports car the Roadster. "It is not just a car, but one of the strongest automotive statements on the road," Car and Driver wrote. The Executive Summary for The Roadster reveals that the company has always been focused on the mechanics of the car as much as the design. "High performance" as defined in the executive summary included going from 0-60mph in less than 3.9 seconds, and zero maintenance for up to 100,000 miles other than tires.

Tesla, as part of its secret to success, continues to focus on creating electric cars and making EV powertrain systems and components. The company has a network of 80 stores and galleries across North America, Europe and Asia and over 100 charging stations in the US.

One of the company's trademarks in success is focusing on one product at a time. And while Tesla continues to focus on making the Model S, it is rolling out new models to expand its customer base. New models in the pipeline include the Model X SUV, which started production in early 2015.

In order to move with the changing times, Tesla has tried to launch new product that aim to target a wider range of consumers. In the pipeline is also the Model E a cheaper version of the Model S, which will come in at under $40,000.

In order to stay competitive in the niche market, Tesla Motors has expanded its manufacturing footprint in The Netherlands and Lathrop, California. To keep costs down on lithium ion battery packs, Tesla and key strategic partners including Panasonic started building a gigafactory in Nevada that will facilitate the production of a mass-market affordable vehicle, Model 3, according to the company's website.

The electric car market is growing with luxury auto makers such as Mercedes Benz and BMW jumping into the space too. Analysts forecast that the total global sales of electric vehicles was 320,000 units in 2014, which is on pace to easily exceed 500,000 in 2015. That said, Tesla's long term success is anyone's guess. Tesla is aiming to selling 500,000 cars by 2020 but in December 2014, Morgan Stanley's auto analyst Adam Jonas predicted that the company would fall short by 40%. Jonas has reportedly said that the goal is unrealistic and unachievable.

As with anything in life and business there are no guarantees. The reality is that 12 years since incorporating Tesla Motors has morphed from start-up to an established industry player. What doesn't change is its extraordinary story and its place as a pioneer in a frontier of electronic cars.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Tesla's Got the Keys: A History of Its Success

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The U.S. electric car market includes the established automakers such as Ford ( F) and Chevrolet ( GM). But one company stands out from the car maker mix, and that is Tesla Motors ( TSLA). Tesla entered the media spotlight in 2013 along with its CEO Elon Musk when it unleashed its flagship car the Model S.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Tesla’s Innovation Culture: How Elon Musk Drives Excellence

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Tesla is now a trillion-dollar company, partly because of CEO Elon Musk’s focus on relentless innovation. What can other CEOs learn from the Tesla boss?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Sandro Henrique Peixoto Saboia

This article aims to assess the impact of Tesla Inc.'s use of TAM, tracking the implementation of its corporate strategy within the last five years. Tesla Inc. uses TAM to understand and predict consumer adoption of its vehicles. The company seeks to measure beliefs, attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived ease of use of its cars. Tesla invests in advertising to raise awareness about the benefits of electric cars. Additionally, Tesla has improved its vehicles' design and functionality to make them easier to use. The TAM is a valuable tool that can be used to understand and predict the application of new technologies. Considering the success of Tesla Inc., we can assume that Tesla successfully implemented TAM as a driver for its marketing strategy.

The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was introduced by Fred Davis in 1986 to explain the relationship between perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness of user acceptance of information systems (Davis, 1996). The TAM was an adaptation of the theory of reasoned action (TRA), a general model that has proven successful in predicting and explaining behavior across domains (Davis, 1989). TAM has been accepted as one of the most influential and widely used theoretical frameworks for information systems (Koul, 2018). TAM has been applied in various environments, such as online learning, commerce, joint automation technology, agricultural service systems, smartphones, and driverless car technology. Venkatesh developed the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) by adopting several technological acceptance and human behavior models, including TAM and TRA (Venkatesh, 2003). UTAUT considered four constructs as having significant roles in user acceptance: performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitating conditions. The UTAUT framework has been used to assess the acceptance of driver support system technologies, incorporating constructs such as compatibility, trust, and personal innovation (Jing et al., 2020). Other studies have found the supportive role of social influence and trust as determinants of acceptance of driverless vehicles (Nordhoff, 2018). Therefore, the technology acceptance theories mentioned above are suitable for developing a framework for user acceptance of electric cars with autonomous driving.

Tesla, founded in 2003, is a leading manufacturer of electric vehicles, solar panels, and batteries for home and automotive energy storage. Tesla and its flamboyant and sometimes erratic CEO, Elon Musk, transformed the automotive industry in just 16 years. Traditional car manufacturers are not prepared to compete today with embedded software as the central part of their development. Unlike the nimble Tesla, traditional manufacturers are large, bureaucratic, slow to respond to customers, dependent on customer financing for unit sales growth, and culturally different from a software company. Tesla's speed of innovation in the high-end vehicle market makes it more like a Google or an Amazon than an automaker. Its growing market valuation signals to all car manufacturers that they must develop more innovative business models like Tesla to survive (Shipley, 2020).

Tesla is dedicated to providing its customers with free charging stations, known as Superchargers, throughout the United States and Europe. The company's strategy of building colossal factories, called Gigafactories, has allowed them to increase battery and vehicle production. Its initial Gigafactory began operating in Reno, Nevada, in 2016, with others subsequently opening in Buffalo, New York, and Shanghai, China, with additional expansion plans. Tesla's success is attributed to its data-driven approach, as it has accumulated vast amounts of consumer data. Your vehicles' self-learning systems enable remote software updates over Wi-Fi, leading to continuous self-improvement without the need for a visit to a repair center. Tesla has collected data from more than 100 million miles driven by its cars, enabling it to create high-resolution maps that show precise details such as speed changes and danger zones. They use this data to improve their autonomous vehicle technology, proving to be a data-focused, software-driven company rather than just a vehicle manufacturer. This approach has allowed them to stand out among their competitors and maintain their dominance in the electric vehicle market.

This article aims to investigate the application of TAM by Tesla Inc. in its corporate strategy, evaluating consumer acceptance of the broad technology applied in the production and commercialization of electric and autonomous vehicles.

The nature of the research approach will be qualitative, using data from articles that address Tesla Inc.'sInc's use of technology. The qualitative research approach is justified because qualitative data represents actions, human acts, and expressions. Qualitative methods emerge from phenomenological and interpretative paradigms, are often interactive, intensive, and involve a long-term commitment. In qualitative research, the delimitation and the formulation of the problem have their characteristics. Both require the researcher to immerse themselves in the context that will be analyzed.

To prepare the study, three articles were used between 2018 and 2023. The criteria for using these articles were the relevance of the subjects covered by the authors and the relationship of the themes with the use of TAM about technology acceptance by users of electric vehicles.

A research study developed by Julian M. Muller demonstrated in an article titled: " Comparing Technology Acceptance for Autonomous Vehicles, Battery Electric Vehicles, and Car Sharing-A Study across Europe, China, and North America " sought to identify the influence of TAM on the acceptance of electric and autonomous vehicles and their sharing model in Asia, Europe, and North America (Müller, 2022). The research model and hypotheses developed in the study are based on the original TAM by Davis (H1 to H4), its extension TAM 3 by Venkatesh, Bala (H5 to H8), values, personal attributes related to environmental protection and innovation ( H9 to H12) (Müller, 2023).

It is worth highlighting the central role of Perceived Usefulness (PU) and Perceived Ease of Use (PEOU) related to the use of technology as a predictor of attitude toward its usage (ATU). In this way, the following hypotheses were formulated:

An online survey was carried out with 1,276 questionnaires, of which 1,177 were included. Of these 1,177 respondents, 65% were male, with 664 from Europe, 291 from China, 116 from North America, and 104 from the rest of Asia and Australia. All constructs were evaluated using a 7-point Likert scale with 1 (totally disagree) and 7 (totally agree). All betas considered reached p < 0.001, and betas with p > 0.05 were treated as non-significant (Müller, 2023).

AV=Autonomous vehicles; BEV=Battery electric vehicles; CS=Car sharing.

It is possible to establish a relationship between Tesla's corporate strategy and the hypotheses presented in the study, indicating that Tesla relies on the TAM to define its strategic planning. Tesla's strategy is based on seven main pillars: product development, production expansion, vertical integration, software development, direct-to-consumer sales, sustainability, and autonomous driving.

Tesla continues to invest heavily in product development, launching new models such as the Model 3, Model Y, and the Cybertruck. The company has also significantly improved its existing models to increase range and performance. The product development process in the company begins with planning, which starts with defining the vision and objectives of the product. The vision is a long-term goal that defines what the product should achieve. Objectives are specific goals that must be achieved to accomplish the vision. After defining the vision and objectives, the company conducts market research and competitor analysis to identify innovation opportunities. Tesla uses an aggressive marketing strategy to generate awareness and demand. The marketing strategy includes advertising, public relations, and digital marketing. The company also offers loyalty programs and after-sales services to support customer satisfaction. Its product development process is aligned with TAM. Tesla emphasizes developing products that are considered helpful by customers. Electric vehicles offer several advantages over traditional gasoline-powered vehicles, such as lower operating costs, reduced emissions, and better performance.

Furthermore, Tesla designs its products with a focus on ease of use. The vehicles have various features that make them easy to operate, such as a large touchscreen and a voice-activated command system. The use of TAM at Tesla for product development is corroborated by the hypotheses (H1): the perceived usefulness of the technology positively influences the attitude regarding its use, (H2) the perceived ease of use of the technology has a positive influence on its perception of usefulness and (H3) the perceived ease of use of the technology positively influences the attitude towards its use.

Tesla is expanding its production on several fronts. The company is building new factories in Germany, Texas, and China and expanding its existing factories in California and Nevada. Expanding production is necessary to meet the growing demand for electric vehicles. The company sold more than 936,000 vehicles in 2022, an 87% increase from the previous year. Tesla's production expansion plans align with the TAM in several ways. First, by increasing production, the company will be able to reduce the cost of electric vehicles. This will make electric cars more accessible to consumers and increase their perceived usefulness. By building new Gigafactories in different parts of the world, Tesla can produce and sell its vehicles in more markets. It can also use TAM by building Gigafactories in strategic locations; these locations must be in markets with high demand for electric cars and access to necessary resources, such as raw materials and labor. The company can also partner with local suppliers to reduce the production cost of its vehicles. These actions will make electric cars more accessible to consumers and increase their perceived usefulness. Tesla's use of TAM to implement production expansion is corroborated by the hypotheses (H7), the objective usability of the technology has a positive influence on its perceived usefulness, and (H8), the objective usability of the technology has a positive impact on its perceived ease of use.

Tesla adopts a vertical integration strategy. This means that the company controls most of the manufacturing process for its products, from mining raw materials to distribution. Vertical integration offers Tesla several advantages, including control over product quality, performance, and cost reduction. Tesla has several vertically integrated businesses, including mining, battery production, and distribution. The company invests most in vertical integration in its sector, believing that this strategy is essential for long-term success. The vertical integration strategy is aligned with the TAM in several ways. Firstly, vertical integration helps reduce the cost of electric vehicles. This makes electric cars more accessible to consumers and increases their perceived usefulness. Second, vertical integration helps ensure the quality of electric cars. Tesla controls the entire production process, from designing and manufacturing the batteries to assembling the vehicles. This high quality also increases the perceived usefulness of your cars by consumers. Lastly, vertical integration allows Tesla to develop and launch new products faster, which helps it stay ahead of the competition. The hypotheses corroborate the use of TAM at Tesla for vertical integration: (H1) the perceived usefulness of the technology positively influences the attitude regarding its use, (H2) The perceived ease of use of technology positively influences its perceived usefulness, (H7) the objective usability of the technology has a positive influence on its perceived usefulness and (H8) the objective usability of the technology has a positive impact on its perceived ease of use.

Software development at Tesla is a process focused on innovation and sustainability. The company constantly seeks to create software that is better than existing software in performance, technology, and design. Software development in the company is divided into four main stages: planning, engineering, testing and deployment, and maintenance and updates. Tesla is a company known for its culture of innovation; the company encourages its employees to "think outside the box and challenge the status quo." This culture is essential for the company's success in developing innovative software. Some main factors contributing to success in software development include constant investment in research and talent training and a culture of innovation. Some examples of software developed by Tesla include the infotainment system, the autopilot system, and the energy management system. The company's software development process is closely aligned with TAM. The company's focus on customer feedback and its cross-functional approach to software development help ensure that its software is valuable and easy to use. Autopilot software, for example, is highly complex and requires extensive testing to ensure its safety and reliability. However, Tesla's software development team can regularly produce software updates by working closely with the company's other departments and collecting and utilizing customer feedback to improve their vehicles' firmware. The application of TAM at Tesla in the software development process is corroborated by the hypotheses (H5) the perceived pleasure of technology has a positive influence on its perceived usefulness, (H6) the perceived pleasure of technology has a positive impact on its ease of perceived ease of use, (H11) innovation has a positive influence on the perceived ease of use of technology and (H12) innovation has a positive impact on the perceived ease of use of technology.

Direct sales to the consumer.

Tesla is a company that sells its vehicles directly to consumers without the intermediation of dealerships. The company believes that selling directly to consumers offers advantages, including greater control over the product, lower costs, and a better customer experience. Tesla began selling its vehicles directly to consumers in 2008. The company faced resistance from dealership groups, who argued that direct-to-consumer sales were illegal. However, the company managed to overcome this resistance. Tesla's direct sales model is aligned with TAM. This model allows the company to educate its consumers about the characteristics and benefits of its products, increasing their perceived usefulness. The hypotheses (H2) corroborate the application of TAM in the direct-to-consumer sales process, the perceived ease of use of technology has a positive influence on its perceived usefulness, (H3) the perceived ease of use of technology positively influences attitude Regarding its use, (H7) the objective usability of the technology has a positive influence on its perceived usefulness and (H8) the objective usability of the technology has a positive impact on its perceived ease of use.

Tesla is a leading sustainable energy technology company. The company is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and making transport more sustainable. The company's primary sustainability efforts are manufacturing electric cars that do not emit greenhouse gases and promoting renewable energy, such as solar and wind energy. The company is building solar and wind farms to power its factories and vehicles. Tesla's focus on sustainability is aligned with TAM. Electric cars offer several perceived benefits, such as reduced operating costs and improved environmental performance. Sustainability at Tesla is supported by the hypothesis (H9) the attitude towards environmental protection positively influences the perception of enjoyment of use.

Tesla is one of the leading companies in the development of autonomous vehicles. The company offers an Autopilot system that allows drivers to drive with their hands off the wheel in certain conditions. Tesla's Autopilot system is a Level 2 autonomous driving system, which means the driver still needs to pay attention to the steering wheel and take control of the vehicle in certain situations. The system uses various sensors, including cameras and radars, to detect the environment around the car. Tesla's Autopilot system offers a variety of features, including maintaining a safe distance from the vehicle ahead, automatically changing lanes when safe, and automatically parking the car. The company is working to develop a whole Level 5 autonomous driving system, meaning the vehicle will be capable of driving without driver input. Tesla's autonomous driving technology aligns with TAM in several ways. Autonomous driving technology offers several perceived benefits, such as reducing driver fatigue and increasing safety, which increases the perceived usefulness of the technology. Furthermore, Tesla's autonomous driving technology is designed to be easy to use; its autonomous driving systems can be activated and deactivated with a single button, which increases the perceived ease of use of the company's autonomous driving technology. Autonomous driving at Tesla is corroborated by the hypotheses (H2) the perceived ease of use of the technology has a positive influence on its perceived usefulness, (H3) the perceived ease of use of the technology positively influences the attitude towards its use, (H11) innovation has a positive influence on the perceived pleasure of use, and (H12) innovation has a positive impact on the perceived ease of use of technology.

The perceived usefulness of electric vehicles can be influenced by factors such as vehicle performance, fuel economy, and pollution reduction. The perceived ease of use of electric cars can be influenced by factors such as the vehicle's user interface, availability of vehicle information, and Tesla customer support. The TAM model can be applied to understand the factors influencing consumers' decisions when purchasing an electric car. This model can be used to develop marketing and sales strategies that effectively promote the brand's vehicles. Tesla should emphasize the perceived ease of use of its electric cars by making the user interface intuitive and providing clear and concise information about the vehicle during use. It should also work to reduce barriers to adopting electric vehicles, such as price and availability of charging stations. The company can use TAM to communicate the benefits of its products to customers in an objective way. It can apply TAM to ensure its vehicles are designed to be user-friendly. This can be done by conducting usability testing and incorporating customer feedback into the product development. By doing so, Tesla can increase the chances of successfully adopting electric vehicles by consumers using fossil fuel-powered vehicles. Tesla is more than an electric car company; it is an integrated technology company. Elon Musk's strong leadership, visionary, the cutting-edge technology used in his products, and the construction of new Gigafactories are factors that can contribute to the company's growth in the future. Furthermore, the increased demand for electric vehicles and advances in autonomous driving will guarantee Tesla a promising market for the coming years. Unlike traditional vehicle manufacturers, Tesla was born with a culture of innovation in its DNA, which has kept the company ahead of its competitors, guaranteeing it a competitive advantage that is difficult to lose.

11. Knapton, K. Council post: Four best practices for big data governance . Forbes. June, 2022, Disponível em: . Acesso em: 25/10/2023. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2022/06/16/four-best-practices-for-big-data-governance/?sh=7879b1b26003

13. Legris, P.; Ingham, J.; Collerette, P. Why do people use information technology? A critical review of the technology acceptance model. Information & Management, Volume 40, Issue 3 , January, Pages 191-204. 2003. Disponível em: . Acesso em: 25/10/2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-7206(01)00143-4

14. Müller, J. M. Comparing Technology Acceptance for Autonomous Vehicles, Battery Electric Vehicles, and Car Sharing-A Study across Europe, China, and North America. Transportation Research Part C: Emerging Technologies , 144, 103840. 2022. Disponível em . Acesso em: 25/10/2023. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11164333

15. Neto, J. A. R. Tesla - big data success case . Medium. Retrieved. January. 2023, Disponível em: . Acesso em: 25/10/2023. https://medium.com/xnewdata/tesla-big-data-success-case-6429af3cd58c

17. Rahi, S., Abd. Ghani, M. The role of UTAUT, DOI, perceived technology security, and game elements in Internet banking adoption. Journal of Information Systems and Technology

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
USE OF TAM (TECHNOLOGY ACCEPTANCE MODEL) BY TESLA INC.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Sandro Henrique Peixoto Saboia ABSTRACT This article aims to assess the impact of Tesla Inc.'s use of TAM, tracking the implementation of its corporate strategy within the last five years.