Last night in Los Angeles, Elon Musk, founder of Tesla Motors, Inc, staged a brilliant show in an attempt to convince skeptics of electric vehicles that charging, or in this case swapping, EV batteries is easier than filling your gas tank.
He did it by simultaneously swapping the battery of a Tesla Model S car on stage, while a colleague filled his Audi at the fastest gas station in LA, which pumps at 10 gallons per minute, according to Musk.
The comparison was shown on screen via remote video feed with a timer running overhead.
Not only did the gas-powered car take longer than one battery swap, but two, as Musk rolled out a second Model S and swapped its battery well before the Audi's tank was full and the transaction completed.
Musk failed to mention that the swap was also less expensive than the gas filling, but he probably didn't want to rub it in.
It was a brilliant piece of showmanship, which is causing some to refer to Musk as the new Steve Jobs.
Here is the video. Watch it all the way through and watch it again, if you still have any doubts.