The highest hurdle that innovative companies often face is not the theft of their ideas, but rather the development of new markets. Tesla opened all of its electric car patents to outside use. By utilizing its ideas, Tesla’s competitors would improve the product and marketing so that all electric car manufacturers could sell more vehicles and establish new markets. Tesla also stands to benefit if its roadside charging stations become the industry standard. Currently, Tesla has a network of 97 Superchargers across United States, so a lack of stations is an obstacle to long-distance travel in an electric car. But with other manufacturers using Tesla technology and making cars that could plug in at Tesla Superstations, Musk’s company stands to make a fortune simply from giving away its blueprints to “competitors.”