Blog Tesla Moving Headquarters to Austin, Texas

Tesla is moving its headquarters to Austin, Texas.

Chief Executive Elon Musk announced the move during the company’s annual shareholder meeting. The CEO has relocated to the state and Tesla is currently building a factory near Austin. Tesla’s current HQ is in Palo Alto, Calif.

Last year, Musk disagreed with officials in California over certain coronavirus restrictions that temporarily shut down Tesla’s factory. He signaled at that time that the company may move to Texas. Tesla also released two press releases recently with a dateline of Austin rather than Palo Alto.

Construction at Giga Texas began in July 2020. Production of the Model Y at the factory is expected to begin by the end of the year and ramp up in 2022. The factory will also produce the Cybertruck, which Musk said will not be available until the end of next year. Volume production for Cybertruck will not kick in until 2023.

Musk said Tesla will explore a new factory next year and possibly make a decision in 2023.

 

[alexgr]

Same here. I have 3 Teslas - none of them (or my current Truck) will be replaced with a Tesla. I supported the company since 2012 at a time when it was most financially vulnerable. I feel ... defeated.

Thank you for your support of Tesla, it was a good investment into the future of humanity.

 

[dgpcolorado]

I forgot to mention Lucid. Their technology actually seems to be pretty advanced, based on what I have read. So far they are positioned as a niche luxury EV maker, but that could change. I would definitely look into a Lucid EV in a few years, if they become a more accessible auto manufacturer.

The problem with Lucid (and Rivian and some others) is that you will need to live near one of their very few service centers. Like Tesla in the early days — and for many of us, still — it will take some time to expand service, sales and all the rest so that the cars sold can be serviced. Car magazines gush over Lucid but they never bother to mention that.

 

[dduffey]

Same here. I have 3 Teslas - none of them (or my current Truck) will be replaced with a Tesla. I supported the company since 2012 at a time when it was most financially vulnerable. I feel ... defeated.

Not sure I get it, I googled "Tesla Austin politics" and as far as I could find it's politicians that are using Tesla's move for political gain, and not Tesla moving because of politics.

Tesla has lots of reasons A B C to move to Austin and then our idiot politicians, the same that said wind and solar where to blame for the water and energy crisis this winter say "see! reason D, which we passed recently, is why Tesla is moving to Austin"! Hurrah!

I find it hard to believe "D" is the reason Tesla is moving to Austin.

I don't disagree either because I don't understand what politics are at question. But it doesn't seem like Tesla is the one playing politics.

 

[daniel]

Then, in the best spirit of muskiism you can talk about not politics. For example, Tesla moved to not a blue state because not a red state failed to push not a political agenda down the CEO's throat.

I'm not going to try to get around the forum rules. The mods have asked us not to discuss politics, so I won't.

I forgot to mention Lucid. Their technology actually seems to be pretty advanced, based on what I have read. So far they are positioned as a niche luxury EV maker, but that could change. I would definitely look into a Lucid EV in a few years, if they become a more accessible auto manufacturer.

On their website there's a "Reserve Now" button but there's no "Buy" button. So I presume the car is not yet available. Until you can actually buy it it's vaporware. BTW, their website promises Level 3 autonomy... in three years. So, they're taking a page from Elon and promising something that doesn't exist yet.

 

[Srad600Volt]

I wonder if Tesla considers opening the stores on Nations' land in Oklahoma. Can be done by the border with Texas (1 hour drive from [somewhere in] Dallas).

I'd imagine that if this plan works out, they will implement it wherever they can.

 

[fuelsman]

Elon moves the headquarters of Tesla to a state which it is illegal to sell Tesla cars.

 

[fuelsman]

First...Yea, Texas was definitely not prepared for the "once in a 100 years" freeze.

I wonder how the other states are investing to cover every contingency that might possibly occur in their "once in 100 years" plan?

NERC requires it, ERCOT did not require it.

 

[CSig]

This will be great for expanding infrastructure around Texas!

Musk is going where the deal for Corporate welfare is better.

 

[Madatgascar]

At first I was a little annoyed that Musk would do this because of the history of breaks and privileges he was given from California, but there's a lot of reasons for Texas to be more enticing:

1) Tax breaks and tax policies (though it's really a race to the bottom)
2) Cheaper labor force
3) Fremont plant is pretty much land-locked for expansion while Texas has huge cheap empty spaces
4) Regulation is less restrictive
5) Litigation is much cheaper. Nuisance value cases in Ca is about $30K, while only $10K in Tx...and we all know Tesla sucks at litigation and settlements
6) Tesla's relationship with Ca might be tapped out, there are so many more opportunities in Tx especially considering their disastrous energy grid issues
7) Tx isn't the brain-drain it once was. College grads are sticking around instead of leaving for Ca, Ny, Ma, and the shale regions/other Gulf states
8) Tx is in the middle of the country and cuts distribution costs/time
9) Cybertruck will likely be more popular in the Great Plains/Midwest than the Pacific Coast regions

I think it's clear that Tesla will keep a strong presence in California, but moving their HQ to Texas is just too good to pass up. At least they aren't domiciling in Ireland like all the other Tech companies did a decade ago.

Only #1 supports moving the HQ. All the others can be realized by establishing a factory in TX, which made a lot of sense.

 

[ohmman]

Tesla is just moving their Palo Alto headquarters to Texas. the "abandoned GM/Toyota plant" is in Fremont no manufacturing jobs are going to relocate to Texas. How many employees actually work at Tesla's corporate headquarters?

Seems hard to find this answer. The Austin-American Statesman looked into it and only came up with the following:

When Tesla moved its HQ there in 2009, the company said it had 350 workers on the site and had room for it to grow to 650.

So 650 max. Maybe 500-600 considering growth since 2009?

 

[uujjj2]

My impression is that real estate is getting pretty expensive in the Austin area, so not so sure how much the cost of living is lower. Some, perhaps, given how crazy Bay Area prices are.

I wonder how many of the current Palo Alto headquarters staff will make the move?

So cost of living is a bit more complicated than just the price of houses. You have to look at the total cost of ownership over the long term. That's mortgage interest, property tax, insurance, utilities, and depreciation on your house. The total cost of ownership of a house in Silicon Valley, over the long term, is actually LOWER than the TCO of the same house in Austin.

People who move to the Bay Area don't always realize this until they've lived here many years. Living and buying a house in the Bay Area sounds like a stupid financial decision at first but in the long run it is a great financial decision, if you're hard core enough to survive your early years here.

The outrageous house prices serve the purpose of weeding out the people that aren't hard core enough to make it in the Bay Area.

Very few people in Palo Alto are going to move, aside from naive young apartment dwellers that haven't yet figured out how the Bay Area works.

 

[_Redshift_]

For me the reasons to move away from Tesla have been increasing since last week, when I started reading the posts on this forum. Long time Tesla owner, TSLA holder since 2013. Two Teslas, very happy with both.

The moves regarding the yoke, radar deletion, stalk deletion, moving to Austin.. It’s like Tesla is on a war path to make its longtime fans abandon them or what?

Yes, companies always look to maximize profits, and Bay Area is very expensive. But Austin is not exactly very cheap. Plus, their HQ employed mostly R&D folks, being well paid employees and being able to afford the Bay Area prices.

To me, this move smacks of other motivations than just the bottom line, but that’s just me.

 

[daniel]

this is a interesting subject considering they did away with their PR dept ( which I cannot comprehend and should be most important especially for a new automotive company) so that leaves a legal dept and? There is no contact info for anybody in corporate. I managed to find a phone # to corporate after searching for hours 650-680-5000 it's just a automated recording and unless you know the persons extension # it is useless. Does anyone in TMC have a legitimate phone # to corporate? does anyone in TMC know what Tesla's corporate office consist of (departments, how many employees) ? I bet all I will hear is crickets! Elon Musk sold all his real property and bought a $50k 500sq ft. pop-up house to live in somewhere in Texas I find that unbelievable, he and his six children are going to live in a 500sq ft box? that's all he probably need to move corporate into since corporate office is a mystery as to what it consists of. to the members of TMC that are so involved in Tesla in every aspect please just one contact info for corporate. I bet all I will hear is crickets and thumbs down to this post.

What good would it do to have a phone number to corporate? You'd get to pester a secretary who would likely refuse to connect you to anybody, and wouldn't be authorized to tell you anything. Frankly, any information of interest that gets out will probably end up here on TMC.

I presume the lack of a PR department would be because these cars sell themselves.

Pretty sure Musk and his family are not living in a 500 square-foot house. Either that information is bogus and he and/or his wife do own a nice home, or they're living in a house owned by Tesla or SpaceX rather than by Musk personally.

For me the reasons to move away from Tesla have been increasing since last week, when I started reading the posts on this forum. Long time Tesla owner, TSLA holder since 2013. Two Teslas, very happy with both.

The moves regarding the yoke, radar deletion, stalk deletion, moving to Austin.. It’s like Tesla is on a war path to make its longtime fans abandon them or what?

Yes, companies always look to maximize profits, and Bay Area is very expensive. But Austin is not exactly very cheap. Plus, their HQ employed mostly R&D folks, being well paid employees and being able to afford the Bay Area prices.

To me, this move smacks of other motivations than just the bottom line, but that’s just me.

Is the Yoke real, or is that just another crazy Musk tweet? Radar deletion: same question. I don't think they can eliminate the stalk. I think some things are required by law. Of course the car without driver controls will have to wait until they actually have L5 technology.

When I hear "yoke" I think of the control in an airplane that controls both the ailerons and the elevator. What would it even mean to have a yoke in a car? Just a chopped-off steering wheel? Dreadful idea! I think that would be a deal-breaker in itself were I buying a new car.

 

[_Redshift_]

What good would it do to have a phone number to corporate? You'd get to pester a secretary who would likely refuse to connect you to anybody, and wouldn't be authorized to tell you anything. Frankly, any information of interest that gets out will probably end up here on TMC.

I presume the lack of a PR department would be because these cars sell themselves.

Pretty sure Musk and his family are not living in a 500 square-foot house. Either that information is bogus and he and/or his wife do own a nice home, or they're living in a house owned by Tesla or SpaceX rather than by Musk personally.



Is the Yoke real, or is that just another crazy Musk tweet? Radar deletion: same question. I don't think they can eliminate the stalk. I think some things are required by law. Of course the car without driver controls will have to wait until they actually have L5 technology.

When I hear "yoke" I think of the control in an airplane that controls both the ailerons and the elevator. What would it even mean to have a yoke in a car? Just a chopped-off steering wheel? Dreadful idea! I think that would be a deal-breaker in itself were I buying a new car.

It’s real. Folks who have gotten used to it say it’s neither better, nor worse. Many others say it’s a dealbreaker for them, they will look elsewhere for their next car. I’m in the latter camp, as of now.

I live 4 miles from their Fremont factory. I’m going to take a test drive or three and make up my mind. Right now, I don’t think I’ll like the yoke.

 

[WhiteWi]

It’s real. Folks who have gotten used to it say it’s neither better, nor worse. Many others say it’s a dealbreaker for them, they will look elsewhere for their next car. I’m in the latter camp, as of now.

I live 4 miles from their Fremont factory. I’m going to take a test drive or three and make up my mind. Right now, I don’t think I’ll like the yoke.

Let me fix this for you.
Many people like the yoke and got used to it real quick, small minority makes big deal out of it and say silly things like it’s unsafe and etc. Now it’s more realistic.

 

[dgpcolorado]

Let me fix this for you.
Many people like the yoke and got used to it real quick, small minority makes big deal out of it and say silly things like it’s unsafe and etc. Now it’s more realistic.

Among reviews I read, there were a lot more objections to the lack of control stalks and the use of small buttons to control turn signals, wipers and the horn. As you say, the yoke was less of an issue.

 

[_Redshift_]

Among reviews I read, there were a lot more objections to the lack of control stalks and the use of small buttons to control turn signals, wipers and the horn. As you say, the yoke was less of an issue.

Exactly. Whitewi goes around thumbing down anything remotely critical of Tesla. I’ve put him on ignore.

 

[dgpcolorado]

How many are affected by this move? From a NY Times article:

Mr. Musk’s announcement that Tesla would be moving its headquarters from Palo Alto, Calif., came with few details. It is not clear, for example, how many workers would move to Austin. It’s also unknown whether the company would maintain a research and development operation in California in addition to its factory in Fremont, which is a short drive from headquarters and which it said it would expand. The company has around 750 employees in Palo Alto and about 12,500 in total in the Bay Area, according to the Silicon Valley Institute for Regional Studies.

 

[uujjj2]

For me the reasons to move away from Tesla have been increasing since last week, when I started reading the posts on this forum. Long time Tesla owner, TSLA holder since 2013. Two Teslas, very happy with both.

The moves regarding the yoke, radar deletion, stalk deletion, moving to Austin.. It’s like Tesla is on a war path to make its longtime fans abandon them or what?

Yes, companies always look to maximize profits, and Bay Area is very expensive. But Austin is not exactly very cheap. Plus, their HQ employed mostly R&D folks, being well paid employees and being able to afford the Bay Area prices.

To me, this move smacks of other motivations than just the bottom line, but that’s just me.

Just between us people from Fremont: Tesla's move is totally different from what Toyota did. Toyota abandoned California. They closed their offices and shut down the factory. Fired their employees. Screwed over Fremont. And then topped it off by collaborating with Trump to undermine California's fuel economy and EV push. Toyota is off my list for good.

Tesla is still here. Tesla not only hasn't closed anything in California, they pledged to keep expanding in California.

Won't lie to you, I don't feel as warm and fuzzy about Tesla as I did a couple years ago. But Tesla isn't joining Toyota on my s**t list either.

 

[_Redshift_]

Just between us people from Fremont: Tesla's move is totally different from what Toyota did. Toyota abandoned California. They closed their offices and shut down the factory. Fired their employees. Screwed over Fremont. And then topped it off by collaborating with Trump to undermine California's fuel economy and EV push. Toyota is off my list for good.

Tesla is still here. Tesla not only hasn't closed anything in California, they pledged to keep expanding in California.

Won't lie to you, I don't feel as warm and fuzzy about Tesla as I did a couple years ago. But Tesla isn't joining Toyota on my s**t list either.

I agree, Toyota just outright abandoned Fremont.

I’ve actually worked with Tesla on a professional level and have been to their HQ in Palo Alto many times.

I personally doubt any of the Tesla folks I know would move to Texas, but I will be able to check with them soon, as our work begins in a few weeks time.

I desperately want to stay with Tesla. It’s the company I loved, and still love. But their technical missteps are piling up, and this move adds another layer.