Electric car maker Tesla has said it will open up its patents for others to use in order to speed up the production of the vehicles.

"Tesla will not initiate patent lawsuits against anyone who, in good faith, wants to use our technology," the company announced in a blog post.

Chief executive officer Elon Musk said that while patents served a useful purpose in the past, they now merely entrench the positions of giant corporations and enrich those in the legal profession.

Initially, Tesla feared other manufacturers would steal its ideas and use their manufacturing and marketing advantages to overwhelm the company. In reality, many of the large automotive companies have failed to develop electric cars.

Tesla says it is impossible to develop electric vehicles at a rate that will keep pace with the market for new cars and address the carbon crisis. Mr Musk said Tesla competes with manufacturers of gasoline-powered cars rather than electric vehicles.