Launched in 2012 with the Tesla Model S, the NACS plug predates the widespread CCS—and now succeeds it—as the primary EV connector used in the United States. Found at Supercharger stations, the NACS connector is capable of up to 250 kilowatts of DC fast-charging following the upgrade to Tesla's Supercharger V3.

By contrast, the newer CCS was designed with loftier capabilities in mind. It's already capable of 350 kW at some Electrify America stations, and is designed to handle up to 800 kW with an upgrade to liquid-cooled cables. That's more than triple the power of a Tesla Supercharger V3, and more than twice what the most powerful Electrify America stalls can put out. When it arrived as a competing standard, and was adopted by most of the auto industry, it seemed only a matter of time before its superior potential would force even the pioneering Tesla to switch over. (To some degree, it has: a CCS variant is Tesla's standard connector in Europe.)