In fact, the first electric car appeared back in the 19th century. Moreover, around 1900, electric cars were quite popular and accounted for a significant share of cars on US roads. But then gasoline won.

The reason wasn't that people didn't know about batteries. The problem lay in their capabilities. Old batteries were heavy, expensive, and had a small capacity. A car could only travel a relatively short distance, after which it took a long time to recharge. At the same time, gasoline was becoming cheap and readily available, gas stations and good roads were appearing, and the internal combustion engine was constantly being improved.

And herein lies the main answer to the question. The battery has been around for a long time, but a modern car battery is virtually nonexistent. Lithium-ion batteries, which made the current leap possible, only came into commercial use in the early 1990s. Even the first lithium-ion batteries weren't powerful enough for automotive use.

Furthermore, an electric car requires more than just a battery. It also requires powerful electronics, an electric motor, fast charging, infrastructure, and mass production. All of this has been gradually developing over decades.

Therefore, today's electric car isn't just an "old battery-powered car." It's the result of a huge number of technologies finally converging.

But will it truly be the future? Or will we laugh in 20 years at the debates we had today between gasoline, diesel, and electric? Or will the future lie in a combination of several technologies?