For one thing, range is a sore point. You're looking at a modest 100-mile range with that 140kWh pack. That's fine for inter-city deliveries, but it won't cut the mustard for longer trips. And while there's talk of extending that distance to 300 miles with extra packs, that would only make it competitive with Tesla's anticipated 200- to 300-mile range.

And more importantly, this is a concept, not a production vehicle ready to roll off the manufacturing line. There should be a production model in a couple of years, according to CNET, but that gives Tesla plenty of time to get its own EV semi on the road. Not that we're going to complain about both companies having a fighting chance -- more electric big rigs means more competition and fewer polluting trucks.