Elon Musk and Bill Gates were both wrong on the future of trucks

TO HEAR Bill Gates tell it, the electric drivetrains that have transformed the passenger vehicle industry over the past decade have no chance of repeating the trick in heavy trucks. According to Elon Musk, such a transition is inevitable – and Tesla will be leading it.

Both of them are wrong.

Electric vehicle (EV) trucks really are on the brink of taking over – but Tesla is barely in the game. Only around 50,000 units of its monstrous cubist pickup, the Cybertruck, have been sold so far. The Semi tractor trailer is still essentially a demonstration model, eight years after it was first announced.