Tesla has long been talked about as a tech company rather than a car company, perhaps most commonly because of its sky-high stock market valuation. Being based in Palo Alto, California helped feed into that mythos. That's all set to change, however, with Musk announcing the move in Thursday's annual shareholder meeting.
The company has begun to experience growing pains in the Golden State. "There's a limit to how big you can scale it in the Bay Area," noted Musk,
commenting that "it's tough for people to afford houses, and a lot of people have to come in from far away." Land is expensive and space at a premium, which can make expanding difficult. "Now we're like spam in a can here," Musk said of the current headquarters.
Hints of a move to Texas first came last May, when the Tesla CEO rankled at California's shelter-in-place orders for the pandemic. Lawsuits were filed in response to Alameda County's safety measures, and Musk threatened that the automaker may abandon the Fremont manufacturing facility based on "how Tesla is treated in the future."
However, the CEO stated on Thursday that the company will in fact be expanding its manufacturing capacity in California, aiming to increase production by 50 percent. "This is not a matter of Tesla leaving California," said Musk.
With the company's new "Gigafactory" being built in Austin, it's clear the automaker sees value in the Texan city. With a lower cost of living and more room to stretch out, it should allow the company to expand its operations more easily. In an interview with Automotive News, Musk also noted that Texas was Tesla's second-biggest US market, despite the state's ban on the company's direct-sales model. The city is also apparently popular with Tesla employees, which helped seal the deal.
Timing and other finer details aren't available, and The Drive has not contacted Tesla for comment as the company does not maintain a PR department. It seems likely, however, that the residents of Austin should prepare for their new neighbors, many of whom will be driving American-built electric cars.
Tesla HQ Relocating from California to Texas
Discussion in 'Other News' started by Chinatown, Oct 7, 2021.
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Manufacturing will expand in California, but the headquarters will be in Austin, Texas.
Guess that's a big plus for Tesla corporate taxes.
nredfor88 Thanks this. -
That factory they're building East of Austin is going up fast. They're working 24/7.
JoeyJunk, drvrtech77, Tonkatrucksaresmall and 4 others Thank this. -
I hope they keep their Commiefornia politics out of my state, but they won't. Governor had to threaten Austin with paying the bill for state law enforcement when Austin started playing the "defund the police" game. They backed off this time.
JoeyJunk, drvrtech77, LameMule and 6 others Thank this. -
Meh, Austin sucks, wonder why that city of all towns in TX.
JoeyJunk, austinmike and PacoTaco Thank this. -
I saw this on Facebook and people were commenting that maybe Elon should pay a living wage so that his employees can afford housing.
I’m sure working at Tesla pays pretty well.
I’m 99.9% sure that the problem is California itself, that’s Why my little city has been overrun with these Californians coming in.JoeyJunk, drvrtech77, dwells40 and 1 other person Thank this. -
Texas and Tesla deserve each other.
And Tesla pays no income taxes.RedEddie Thanks this. -
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I lived in Fremont and that plant used to be the Toyota assembly plant NUMMI. Around 2002 they were paying $35 an hour. By 2010 they shut down for some reason.
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PacoTaco Thanks this.
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