Tesla’s logo is iconic – it’s a T, with the text “T E S L A” below it. However, it hasn’t always looked the same, and it does have a deeper meaning than just T representing the first letter.
So, let’s look at Tesla’s logo.
Meaning of the Tesla Logo
We’ll start with what the Tesla logo represents. As Elon Musk put it, the T is like the cross-section of an electric motor, similar to how SpaceX’s logo is like the trajectory of a rocket.
The outer line on top of the T represents the stator of the electric motor – the stationary component that contains the windings and generates a rotating magnetic field when current is applied to it. The lower section of the logo is one of the poles of the rotor, the moving component that is also wound with wire, forming a magnetic pole.
All together, putting the rotor and stator together is how Tesla’s EVs generate their movement and the basics behind how Nikola Tesla put together the first induction motor. The first induction motor was created in 1887, and Tesla the company is named after Nikola Tesla, the inventor of the electric motor.
Tesla’s fairly minimalist logo also aligns with its minimalist approach to things. No part is the best part, and a minimalist interior is the best interior.
Evolution of the Tesla Logo
Tesla's logo has evolved since its 2009 version
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Tesla’s logo hasn’t always been the same. The original logo, back when the company was known as Tesla Motors, had the Tesla “T” inside of a shield emblem, representing safety. The word “Tesla” was also part of the logo and displayed within the shield.
In 2017, Tesla Motors simplified its name to just Tesla. At the same time, they redesigned their logo. Like the company’s name, the logo was also simplified. The shield was removed and the word Tesla moved to the bottom of the T. In 2017, Tesla also transitioned to using red in its logo, instead of the previous gray/black color combination.
The current Tesla logo we see today is a revision of the logo unveiled in 2017. The curve at the top of the logo is now more pronounced, the indent on the T is larger and the “T” is a little slimmer.
Tesla's old shield logo and font
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Other Great Logos
Although Tesla doesn’t receive a lot of recognition for its creative logo, it’s a simple, creative logo with a deeper meaning that sits right up there with other great logos like those from the Pittsburgh Zoo, Black Cat and Sony VAIO (photo below) and others.
Today, Tesla’s simplistic logo also matches its philosophy of minimalism and simplistic approaches to solving difficult problems, such as solving full self-driving with a vision-only approach.
The creative logos from Pittsburgh Zoo, Sony VAIO and Black Cat.
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Following the recent departure of longtime deputy Omead Afshar, Elon Musk has stepped up to personally oversee Tesla’s sales operations in North America and Europe, according to a new report from Bloomberg, which cites people familiar with the matter.
This is a big shake-up that places Elon directly in charge of fixing Tesla’s sales slump in two key markets. The move has come as Tesla reported nearly on-the-ball deliveries for Q2 2025, hitting 384k deliveries, against a consensus street estimate of 385k deliveries.
New Leadership Structure
According to the report, Afshar’s former responsibilities are being divided between Elon and Senior VP Tom Zhu. Elon will now directly oversee the sales organizations in the US and Europe. As part of this change, Troy Jones, Tesla’s VP of North America Sales, will now report to Elon.
Tom Zhu, who is based in China, will continue to manage sales in Asia while also taking on the critical new responsibility of overseeing global manufacturing operations. Leadership of Tesla’s factories in Fremont, California, and Texas will now report to Tom. Tesla Energy’s factories will still report to Michael Snyder, VP of Energy and Charging.
For now, we’re unsure whether this is a temporary management structure, if the reporting lines will shift, or if Tesla will either hire or promote a new Senior VP of Sales to cover the duties.
Tackling the Sales Slump
The restructuring is a response to the recent downturn in sales. Analysts estimated that Tesla would deliver approximately 385k vehicles, which they essentially managed to achieve. However, deliveries fell short of production numbers, with Tesla delivering just 373k of the 410k vehicles produced.
This situation is particularly challenging in Central Europe. Europe has been noted as Tesla’s weakest market, according to Elon. Interestingly, Elon previously stated in several interviews over the last few months that there was no demand issue, but it now seems that there have been some issues with growing sales.
With Tesla’s new vehicle registrations across Europe having plunged 37% since the start of this year, and the rollout of the new affordable model, as well as more affordable versions of the Model 3 and Model Y seemingly delayed, there is a lot to do. Some analysts are projecting a second consecutive annual decline in Tesla’s global car sales for 2025.
The Rise of Tom Zhu
A key note in this reshuffle is the return of Tom Zhu to a top global operations role. Tom had previously led the construction and ramp-up of Giga Shanghai and was then promoted to Senior VP of Automotive Operations in 2023. Last year, he was sent back to China to focus on tackling regulatory hurdles with the launch of FSD in China.
His return to overseeing global manufacturing, even while staying in China, is a significant vote of confidence in his abilities. It also comes as Chinese authorities have begun drafting new autonomy guidelines to clear a path for the broader rollout of both Supervised and potentially Unsupervised FSD.
Wrap Up
This major restructuring shows that Elon is once again focused on Tesla and plans to personally tackle the company’s biggest issues. This will require a careful hand, as Elon’s forays into politics have caused self-admitted brand damage. If anyone can turn this around and have the Model Y return as the Best-Selling Vehicle of 2026, having just missed out by a few thousand vehicles to the Toyota RAV4, it is Elon.
Alongside him, Tom Zhu will be responsible for streamlining global manufacturing and ensuring that Tesla is ready to launch their new affordable variants in the near future, which should also make a considerable dent in sales.
Tesla has released its Q2 2025 production and delivery numbers, revealing an improvement in production and deliveries over Q1, but still down from a year ago.
Tesla produced 410,244 vehicles in Q2, nearly equal to their production a year ago, which was 410,831 vehicles. Production for this quarter was significantly up compared to Q1 2025, which only saw 362,615 vehicles produced. While production numbers matched those of a year ago, actual deliveries were down.
Q2 2025 saw Tesla deliver 384,122 vehicles, which was down approximately 59,000 units compared to the same period last year, but up by approximately 48,000 vehicles, or about 14% compared to Q1.
Breakdown by Model
The Model 3/Y segment continues to dominate Tesla’s production profile, accounting for 396,835 units produced and 373,728 delivered in Q2 2025. Deliveries for the “Other Models” category—which includes the Cybertruck, Model S, and Model X—were down compared to the previous quarter, with just 10,394 vehicles delivered, a 20% decline. Compared to a year ago, the drop for these vehicles is even more drastic, with sales being down 52%. Tesla refreshed its Model S and Model X last month with new features; however, the update was much smaller than expected and likely didn’t help much in increasing sales for these vehicles.
Tesla doesn’t break down Cybertruck sales separately, but those deliveries are expected to be down as well.
Tesla noted that 2% of total deliveries this quarter were accounted for under operating lease agreements, consistent with the same quarter last year.
Quarter
Production
Deliveries
Model 3/Y Deliveries
Other Models Deliveries
Lease Share
Q2 2025
410,244
384,122
373,728
10,394
2%
Q1 2025
362,615
336,681
323,800
12,881
4%
Q2 2024
410,831
443,956
422,405
21,551
2%
Context and Market Response
While the numbers exceeded some bearish expectations, the year-over-year delivery drop is Tesla’s second straight quarterly decline. Analysts attribute declining sales to increasing EV competition and reputation issues.
Still, investors found relief in the improved quarter when compared to Q1. The stock rebounded about 4% yesterday on the news.
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