June 16, 2014: A Patently Classy Move From Tesla

Not content with building amazing electric cars, Elon Musk has now challenged his competitors to match his game . . . by throwing the Tesla patent portfolio open. As he put it on the Tesla Motors blog, "Tesla will not initiate patent lawsuits against anyone who, in good faith, wants to use our technology."

He's doing this because he believes in electric vehicles, wants to see more of them, and is disappointed that the big carmakers haven't made a serious attempt to build really great electric cars. So he's making it easier for them . . . It's also worth noting that Tesla's know-how will have other important applications, including aircraft design.

One other thing that I haven't seen mentioned in any of the press coverage: he earns many, many style points for leading with an "All Your Base" reference.

-- Steve Jackson