When Musk took the initiative to talk to Samsung and Hyundai, we knew that Tesla was beginning to worry about the future

When the market is dominated by one superpower and many strong players, what should other players do? In Chinese history, there is a classic strategy called "vertical alliance". This scene is quietly playing out in the global new energy vehicle industry.

Not long ago, there was news that Tesla boss Musk will hold talks with Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and Hyundai Motor Chairman Chung Eui-sun to discuss the development of next-generation electric vehicle technology and explore future cooperation methods.

In the electric vehicle market, various cooperations emerge one after another, but it is somewhat unexpected to bring Samsung, Hyundai and Tesla together - these three parties are more or less unrelated. However, if the premise is to curb the development of China's new energy industry, their "cooperation" seems to be reasonable again.

China accounts for 65% of the global new energy vehicle market, and local manufacturers contribute more than 80% of sales in the Chinese market. Apart from Chinese brands, only Tesla can be called a leading manufacturer.

More importantly, Chinese manufacturers are not only large in scale, but also have strong technical strength. Except for some high-end automotive chips, Chinese manufacturers have almost no technical shortcomings. In the field of core components such as power batteries and laser radars, Chinese manufacturers occupy more than 60% of the market share.

In this case, it is natural for new energy manufacturers outside of China and the new energy vehicle supply chain to cooperate in various forms. They need to work together to keep warm. Not only that, they are also professional in the field of small courtyards and high walls. For example, the United States has recently stated that it will ban Chinese software from appearing in American electric vehicles.

It is somewhat self-deceptive to discuss the issues related to the new energy vehicle industry without considering the big devil that has eaten up 65% of the market share. However, considering that Samsung, Hyundai and Tesla have strong performance in their respective fields, the three companies may be able to come up with something different by joining forces.

SDI, a subsidiary of Samsung, is one of the three giants of power batteries in South Korea. In the first quarter of this year, its installed capacity reached 8.4GWh, with a global market share of 5.3%, ranking among the top five in the world.

This result is not good, less than one-seventh of CATL, but outside the Chinese market, SDI is also a leader in the field of power batteries. Recently, its all-solid-state battery was unveiled in South Korea, and the official claimed that its energy density reached 500Wh/kg, which is twice the energy density of the current mainstream power battery, and is expected to be mass-produced in 2027.

If this plan goes smoothly, it will definitely be good news for Tesla. In the past two years, Tesla has handed over the 4680 battery to Panasonic, but the delivery of this legendary battery has been delayed again and again, constantly wearing out Musk's patience. If Samsung can really provide usable solid-state batteries, it is not impossible for Musk to abandon the 4680 battery.

At the same time, if solid-state batteries are successfully mass-produced, they can also be supplied to Hyundai Motor, thereby breaking the dominant position of Chinese manufacturers such as CATL and BYD, while improving the overall performance of Hyundai and Tesla's products.

In addition to power batteries, Samsung also has a good performance in the semiconductor field. Although Samsung is not as good as TSMC in high-end chip processing technology, it is also the world's top one.

As early as the beginning of 2021, news had already spread in the market that Tesla and Samsung were cooperating to develop a new 5nm assisted driving chip; in July 2023, there were reports that Tesla would choose Samsung as the foundry manufacturer of the HW5.0 chip, and the new generation of FSD chips would be manufactured using Samsung's 4nm process.

The FSD system is one of Tesla's biggest selling points. Previously, the high-end chips used in the system were all manufactured by TSMC. Now that it has been transferred to Samsung, it can help Tesla spread its risks and promote cooperation between Samsung and Tesla.

Hyundai Motor also needs high-end chips. Tesla and Hyundai Motor have demand, and Samsung has manufacturing capabilities in semiconductors and power batteries. The cooperation among the three seems to be feasible, at least in theory.

According to Samsung, its SmartThing Energy app can be connected to Tesla electric vehicles, home batteries, solar inverters, wall-mounted charging solutions, etc., through which users can monitor the home power status in real time.

At the same time, Samsung Electronics also announced that it will work with Hyundai Motor to develop the next-generation smart home ecosystem to achieve the integration of people, cars and homes.

In fact, domestic manufacturers have already mastered this system a long time ago, but in the overseas market, there are not many manufacturers that can independently build this ecosystem. It is still a new thing and requires cooperation between Samsung, Tesla, and Hyundai to complete.

As for the cooperation between Hyundai and Tesla, there is much less room for imagination, because the two companies are in direct competition and it is difficult to reconcile their conflicts.

However, cooperation between different automakers is not impossible. In October 2023, Hyundai Motor announced that it would join the North American Charging Standard (NACS) port led by Tesla, which is expected to be officially implemented from the fourth quarter of 2024. This cooperation allows Hyundai electric vehicle users to use more than 12,000 Tesla Supercharger stations in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, greatly improving the car experience.

However, the cooperation between Tesla and Hyundai is unlikely to reach a high level for the time being. The possibility of business merger or joint development of electric vehicles is quite low.

Samsung Electronics plays the role of a key parts supplier, while Hyundai Motor and Tesla jointly develop and purchase, jointly promote technological upgrades, and reduce development costs. At the same time, Hyundai and Tesla coordinate their conflicts, which should be the most likely way for the three manufacturers to cooperate.

It is difficult to say whether this kind of cooperation is a strong alliance or a collective warming.

Compared with other new energy manufacturers outside of China, the cooperation among the three companies may have certain advantages; but compared with China's mainstream new energy manufacturers, their start is already relatively backward, and it is difficult to conclude the effect of the cooperation.

There is no doubt that with the overall strength of Chinese electric vehicles, there will be more and more cooperation like this between overseas brands in the future. Of course, we are not afraid of technical competition. The experience of the past 30 years has taught us that in a real fight, the bravest will always win. What we are afraid of is tricks, like some things in the Olympics, where athletes have suffered from various diseases such as "asthma" since childhood that require lifelong medication, but they always win gold medals on the track and in the swimming pool.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.