ive had this discussion with a couple of my friends- what exactly are the innovations in those three fields that put them so far ahead? do they make more efficient cells? their cars dont have anything particularly novel as far as i know, just well designed and made, as well as marketed. what is the software that tesla makes that is so good?
Tesla made electric cars cool and desirable (starting in the 2000's when most people associated electric with the prius). They've introduced or improved a lot of tech: better battery chemistry in new form factors, more efficient motors, over the air updates, nationwide fast charging network, increasingly sophisticated self driving features etc. Tesla is exiting because they paved the way for other car companies to electrify their products.
There is so much to tell, I will mention only a few key points for the each field.
Software: self driving capabilities (i.e. autopilot), FSD (Full Self Driving) beta, shadow-mode neural net testing, OTA (Over The Air) updates, games and entertaiment, Autobidder energy trading platform, etc.
Battery: tabless design, dry electrode, new 4680 form-factor, nickel instead of cobalt, manufacturing and cost improvements, etc.
Electronics: efficient motors and inverters, custom ASIC chip for FSD computer, Dojo supercomputer, etc.
Mechanical engineering: "octovalve" thermal management, structural battery pack without modules, "mega casting" aluminium body design, etc.