Elon Musk has steered Tesla Inc. into the dominant position in the U.S. luxury segment by offering a high-tech alternative to legacy brands, managing supply chain constraints better than rivals and pushing the automaker’s California factory to its capacity limits.

After nearly passing BMW in 2021 for the U.S. luxury crown, Tesla jumped to an early lead this year that has grown month after month. Tesla’s new-vehicle registrations are up 50 percent year-over-year, and Musk is targeting a similar 50 percent sales gain every year for the foreseeable future.

Meanwhile, sales of German and Japanese luxury rivals have fallen.

Experian data puts new Tesla registrations at 346,827 vehicles through September, compared with 236,513 for BMW, 204,120 for Mercedes-Benz and 201,830 for Lexus. Tesla does not report U.S. sales, so new-vehicle registrations serve as an apples-to-apples proxy.

Musk bet early and big on electric power and innovative software to deliver a unique luxury experience. Rather than just targeting the EV market, he targeted the premium brands, regardless of fuel type, leaving the Germans and the Japanese playing catchup. 

The controversial CEO, who has weighed in on U.S. politics and geopolitical conflicts as the new owner of Twitter, has also deftly navigated the automotive supply chain. Despite rising vehicle prices and long wait times, Musk insists that Tesla is in good shape. He has pushed output at the automaker’s original factory in Fremont, Calif., to around half a million vehicles a year, making it the most productive auto plant in the U.S., according to Bloomberg. Tesla sales have held steady.

And Musk, 51, isn’t done.

Tesla opened an assembly plant this year in Austin, Texas, and is ramping production of the Model Y crossover, the bestselling EV in the world and the second-bestselling vehicle regardless of fuel type after the Ford F-150. Next year, Musk will launch the long-awaited Cybertruck pickup there to tackle a new vehicle segment.