Dream Chaser

“BYD, which stands for ‘Build Your Dreams,’ is essentially banned from American roads by tariffs imposed to protect U.S. automakers that double the price of imported Chinese plug-ins. Erecting tariff walls may buy the domestic auto industry some time, but it ultimately won’t insulate American manufacturers from BYD or the bigger threat that it represents. The company embodies a Chinese industrial model that is leaving America in the dust.” NYT (Gift Article): Why Americans Can’t Buy the World’s Best Electric Car. “Earlier this year it unveiled an autonomous driving system that may be as good as Tesla’s, if not better, as well as technology that BYD says can charge cars in just five minutes — as quickly as filling a gas tank. Its top-end models include the YangWang U8, a luxury S.U.V. that can rotate 360 degrees in place and operate in water like a boat over short distances.” (As an added bonus, with all this innovation, the BYD CEO doesn’t have time to Tweet all day…)