I'd actually say Tesla is an innovator. I think Musk is more of the concept man and it's his engineers that come up with the solutions.
For sure Tesla hasn't invented anything ( that we know of ) but I would argue that it's the way they've used existing stuff that is where the innovation is. Innovation is about using things or doing things in different and somewhat unconventiona ways to the norm. My understanding is things like the Tesla drive motors are ( or were ) unique to Tesla. The way they arranged their battery packs and how they cooled them was some of their innovation.
There are plenty of Tesla deconstructed videos on youtube now where you can see this. That said, you can also see where some of it is surprising basic. Worth a watch if you're a industrial tech nerd like me.
Then there are his solutions. He understood that range anxiety is one of the biggest issues. So he started building a charging network to charge his cars. A bit ' build it and they will come ' type thinking.
The second thing with Musk is that he somehow made the electric car cool and popular. All the other manufacturers could and did build evs but they couldn't build them cheaply. Musk didn't worry about the price as is his long established business plan. He just built them anyway. That's the big difference. He was able to raise the money and somehow with clever marketing and a cool product, he managed to sell them.
That 's what he does and that's what conventional business does not do. I'm not sure whether you'd call that innovation or just marketing but he is the first guy to pull it off for evs and I think he deserves credit for that. There is no doubt that timing is also a factor. Musk has happened along in the internet and technology age that has certainly enabled him to do things imo.
Because of Musk , other entrepeneurs and other industries have started to follow his lead. Doesn't make Musk the first guy to do it but he is one of the few modern examples that I can think of. Richard Branson is another.
There have been plenty of Elon Musks in the past. Many lasted a very short time. Some endured like Henry Ford.
I would call all of them innovators but I reckon it's just an opinion thing that's not worth arguing over.
