Summary of John Doerr's Speed and Scale

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

#1 In 2007, Kleiner Perkins was approached by engineers who had named their startup after Nikola Tesla, the legendary inventor. They had partnered with a wildly successful PayPal entrepreneur who was now chairman of the board. They wanted to pitch their idea.

#2 The world must replace all gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles with a fleet of zero-emissions cars, trucks, and buses by 2050. The electrification of transportation is already under way, but the technology we need to scale is behind schedule. We must accelerate.

#3 If EVs are to capture the majority of the passenger car market, they must be broadly affordable. When people spend more to buy a green product over one that emits more carbon, they’re paying a green premium.

#4 To get to net zero, we’ll need better performance at comparable prices. In this context, the green premium is a rough measure of the difficulty of each problem, of how far we have to go to reach net zero.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Apr 15, 2022
• ISBN: 9781669386384

IRB Media

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Insights on John Doerr's Speed and Scale

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

In 2007, Kleiner Perkins was approached by engineers who had named their startup after Nikola Tesla, the legendary inventor. They had partnered with a wildly successful PayPal entrepreneur who was now chairman of the board. They wanted to pitch their idea.

#2

The world must replace all gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles with a fleet of zero-emissions cars, trucks, and buses by 2050. The electrification of transportation is already under way, but the technology we need to scale is behind schedule. We must accelerate.

#3

If EVs are to capture the majority of the passenger car market, they must be broadly affordable. When people spend more to buy a green product over one that emits more carbon, they’re paying a green premium.

#4

To get to net zero, we’ll need better performance at comparable prices. In this context, the green premium is a rough measure of the difficulty of each problem, of how far we have to go to reach net zero.

#5

General Motors has played a large role in the American economy and society. It began with talking to customers across the country, and hearing that everywhere: if it has the right range, and there’s the right charging infrastructure, and the vehicle meets your needs, you will consider it.

#6

To meet our goal of selling 1. 2 million EVs by 2030, sales of EVs must ramp up quickly. To do so, three existing policies must be strengthened: financial incentives, cash for clunkers, and a ban on fuel-burning engines.

#7

Buses are the mode of transportation that is the furthest along in adopting electric technology. The rise of BYD, a manufacturer in the city of Shenzhen on China’s central coast, shows how far a