Founded as Tesla Motors, Tesla Inc. was incorporated in July 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning, both of whom played active roles in the company's early development prior to and after Elon Musk's involvement.Founded as Tesla Motors, Tesla Inc. was incorporated in July 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning, both of whom played active roles in the company's early development prior to and after Elon Musk's involvement.
Musk was the controlling investor in Tesla and took an active role within the company. In addition due to Elon Musk's other endeavors being so ambitious and publicly covered, he soon became the face of Tesla as well. Under Musk's leadership Tesla's primary goal became to commercialize electric vehicles, starting with a premium sports car aimed at early adopters and then moving as rapidly as possible into more mainstream vehicles, including sedans and affordable compacts.