BYD overtakes Tesla as world’s top EV seller

January 2, 2026 10:14 AM EST

Investing.com -- Chinese auto giant BYD has surpassed Tesla to become the world’s largest seller of electric vehicles in 2025.

BYD reported Thursday that sales of its battery-powered cars increased nearly 28% to 2.26 million units in 2025. By contrast, Tesla announced Friday that it delivered 1.64 million vehicles during the same period, representing an 8% decline from 2024 and marking the company’s second consecutive annual drop.

Tesla’s fourth-quarter 2025 deliveries fell approximately 16% compared to the same period in 2024, when the company reported 495,570 deliveries.

This milestone represents a remarkable rise for BYD, a company that Tesla CEO Elon Musk once dismissed during a Bloomberg TV interview in October 2011. When asked about BYD at that time, Musk laughed and stated he did not view the company as a competitor to Tesla, adding: "I don’t think they have a great product."


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