The global automotive industry could shrink from nearly 30 major automakers to merely a half a dozen in the future.
That, at least, is the opinion of one auto industry analyst, due to “the balance of economic, competitive and technological forces.” Adam Jonas, auto analyst for Morgan Stanley, believes that the landscape of the industry is changing radically and if American automakers in Detroit want to survive, they’ll have to change their way of thinking.
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The analyst’s thoughts have been spurred by the technological advancements made by Tesla and believes the newest battle for automaker survival involves technology being developed outside the auto industry. Last year, General Motors set up a committee strictly to review Tesla’s operations to see if the American automaker can learn anything from it. But technology will be key heading into the future Jonas believes, noting that BMW has about twice as many tech professionals at the German automaker’s Mountain View technology center than all of Detroit’s automakers.
“Tesla could either end up being Detroit’s worst enemy or its salvation,” said Morgan Stanley auto analyst Adam Jonas. “In our opinion, the disruption from Tesla comes early enough to allow an incumbent sufficient time to adapt its culture, capital allocation and recruiting strategy to the changing forces. With proper execution, Detroit may thank Tesla Motors for being that stiff board in the back of the head right when they needed it.”
[Source: Detroit News]