AstraZeneca vs Tesla: Founders, CEOs and History

Company facts

Founders

CEOs and their tenures

Timeline: AstraZeneca and Tesla side by side

1. 1913AstraZeneca

   Astra AB Founded in Södertälje, Sweden

   400 doctors and apothecaries establish Astra AB to manufacture pharmaceuticals for the Swedish market, creating the foundation for what would become one of Europe's largest drug companies.

2. 1993AstraZeneca

   Zeneca Group Spun Off from ICI

   Imperial Chemical Industries demerges its pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals businesses to form Zeneca Group PLC, with initial products including Zestril, Nolvadex, and Zoladex generating approximately $3.2 billion in annual sales.

3. 1999AstraZeneca

   Astra and Zeneca Merge to Form AstraZeneca

   The all-share merger of equals completes on 6 April 1999, creating AstraZeneca PLC.

4. 2000AstraZeneca

   Nexium Launch Replaces Prilosec

   AstraZeneca launches Nexium (esomeprazole), the single-isomer successor to Losec/Prilosec, in Europe in 2000 and in the United States in 2001 after FDA approval on 20 February 2001.

5. 2003Tesla

   Tesla Motors Founded

   Tesla Motors was founded in 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning to prove that lithium-ion batteries could power a desirable electric car.

6. 2004Tesla

   Elon Musk Leads Series A

   Elon Musk led Tesla's Series A financing in 2004 and became chairman. The investment gave Tesla enough capital and public credibility to continue Roadster development.

7. 2006AstraZeneca

   Acquisition of Cambridge Antibody Technology

   AstraZeneca agrees in May 2006 to buy Cambridge Antibody Technology for 1,320 pence a share, valuing the UK biotech at 702 million pounds or about $1.32 billion.

8. 2007AstraZeneca

   Acquisition of MedImmune for $15.6 Billion

   AstraZeneca acquires MedImmune for $15.6 billion, entering the biologics market and gaining the Synagis respiratory syncytial virus franchise and antibody technology platforms. The Gaithersburg facility becomes one of three global R&D centres.

9. 2008Tesla

   Roadster Launch

   The Roadster launched in 2008 as a highway-capable electric sports car with more than 200 miles of range. It mattered because it proved an EV could be fast, premium and emotionally desirable.

10. 2008Tesla

    Elon Musk Becomes CEO

    Musk became CEO in 2008 during a severe financing and production crisis. He restructured operations, secured emergency funding and pushed the company toward a clearer product sequence.

11. 2010Tesla

    Tesla IPO

    Tesla went public in 2010, raising capital while still far from stable profitability. The IPO mattered because it gave Tesla access to public-market funding for product development and manufacturing.

12. 2012AstraZeneca

    Pascal Soriot Appointed CEO

    Pascal Soriot joins AstraZeneca as Chief Executive Officer on October 1, 2012, with a base salary of $1.4 million and a mandate to reverse declining revenue and R&D productivity through science-led investment.

13. 2012Tesla

    Model S Launch

    The Model S launched in 2012 and moved Tesla beyond the Roadster niche. It mattered because it combined range, software, performance and premium design in a vehicle Tesla controlled more fully.

14. 2014AstraZeneca

    Pfizer Hostile Takeover Rejected

    AstraZeneca's board rejects a $117 billion hostile takeover offer from Pfizer, with Soriot arguing that the undervaluation would destroy long-term shareholder value and pipeline potential.

15. 2014AstraZeneca

    Acquisition of Almirall Respiratory Portfolio

    AstraZeneca acquires the respiratory portfolio of Spanish pharmaceutical company Almirall for approximately $2.1 billion, strengthening the company's position in COPD and asthma with products including Eklira and pipeline candidates that become Breztri.

16. 2014Tesla

    Gigafactory Strategy Announced

    Tesla announced the Gigafactory strategy in 2014 with Panasonic as a key partner. The move mattered because batteries were the limiting input for EV scale, cost and range.

17. 2015AstraZeneca

    Tagrisso Approved for EGFR-Mutated Lung Cancer

    The FDA approves Tagrisso (osimertinib) in November 2015 for metastatic EGFR T790M mutation-positive non-small cell lung cancer, the first product from Soriot's reinvestment strategy to reach market.

18. 2016Tesla

    SolarCity Acquired

    Tesla's 2016 SolarCity acquisition is company-specific because it changed the portfolio rather than simply adding scale. The reported value was $2.6B.

19. 2017AstraZeneca

    Imfinzi Approved Based on PACIFIC Trial

    The FDA approves Imfinzi (durvalumab) for unresectable stage III non-small cell lung cancer after chemoradiation, based on PACIFIC trial data showing survival benefits.

20. 2017Tesla

    Model 3 Production Crisis

    The Model 3 ramp in 2017 exposed severe bottlenecks caused partly by excessive automation. The crisis mattered because Tesla's mass-market strategy depended on producing a lower-priced vehicle at high volume.

21. 2020AstraZeneca

    COVID-19 Vaccine Development with Oxford University

    AstraZeneca partners with the University of Oxford to develop and manufacture the Vaxzevria COVID-19 vaccine, distributing billions of doses globally at nonprofit pricing during the pandemic peak.

22. 2020Tesla

    S&P 500 Inclusion

    Tesla joined the S&P 500 in 2020 after proving sustained profitability. The milestone mattered because it brought index-fund ownership, wider institutional attention and validation that Tesla was no longer a speculative startup.

23. 2021AstraZeneca

    Acquisition of Alexion Pharmaceuticals for $39 Billion

    AstraZeneca completes the $39 billion acquisition of Alexion on July 21, 2021, entering the rare disease market with Soliris and Ultomiris and creating a dedicated rare disease unit headquartered in Boston.

24. 2023AstraZeneca

    CinCor Pharma Acquired for up to $1.8 Billion

    AstraZeneca agrees on 9 January 2023 to acquire CinCor Pharma for up to $1.8 billion, $26 per share in cash plus a $10 per share contingent value right, to gain baxdrostat, an aldosterone synthase inhibitor for resistant hypertension.

25. 2023Tesla

    Global Price Cuts

    Tesla cut prices across major markets in 2023 to defend demand and pressure competitors. The move mattered because it showed Tesla could use its direct-sales model to adjust faster than dealer-based rivals.

26. 2024AstraZeneca

    Total Revenue Reaches $54.073 Billion

    AstraZeneca reports Total Revenue of $54.073 billion for fiscal year 2024, an 18% increase at actual rates and 21% at constant exchange rates, with 16 blockbuster medicines, 74 regulatory events, and 24 pipeline progression events.

27. 2024AstraZeneca

    Fusion Pharmaceuticals and Gracell Acquisitions

    AstraZeneca acquires Fusion Pharmaceuticals for $2 billion to access radiopharmaceutical technology and Gracell Biotechnologies for $1.2 billion for cell therapy manufacturing, expanding modality diversity into radiopharmaceuticals and CAR-T.

28. 2025AstraZeneca

    Total Revenue Reaches $58.739 Billion

    AstraZeneca reports Total Revenue of $58.739 billion for fiscal year 2025, an 8% increase at constant exchange rates, with 16 positive Phase III readouts, 43 major market approvals, and a commitment to invest $50 billion in U.S. manufacturing by 2030.

29. 2025AstraZeneca

    EsoBiotec Acquired for Up to $1 Billion

    AstraZeneca acquires Belgian biotech EsoBiotec for up to $1 billion to access in vivo cell therapy technology, eliminating the need for ex vivo manufacturing in CAR-T therapies.

30. 2025AstraZeneca

    $50 Billion US Manufacturing and R&D Commitment

    AstraZeneca announces on 21 July 2025 that it will invest $50 billion in United States manufacturing and research by 2030, including a new Virginia facility later raised to $4.5 billion.

31. 2025Tesla

    $94.8B Revenue and Delivery Decline

    In FY2025, Tesla reported $94.8B in revenue and delivered 1,636,129 vehicles. The milestone mattered because revenue and deliveries both showed the company had entered a more mature, contested phase.

32. 2026AstraZeneca

    Ordinary Shares Begin Trading on the NYSE

    AstraZeneca ordinary shares start trading on the New York Stock Exchange on 2 February 2026 under the ticker AZN, after the American Depositary Share programme and certain debt securities stopped trading on Nasdaq on 30 January 2026.

33. 2026AstraZeneca

    Baxfendy Approved in the US for Hypertension

    The FDA approves Baxfendy (baxdrostat) in May 2026 as the first aldosterone synthase inhibitor for hypertension, used in combination with other antihypertensives in adults who are not adequately controlled.

34. 2026AstraZeneca

    $15 Billion China Investment Through 2030

    AstraZeneca announces on 29 January 2026 that it will invest $15 billion in China through 2030 to expand manufacturing and research, in a market that is its second largest and about 12% of revenue.

Acquisitions

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