Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Gov. Gavin Newsom met at Tesla’s new engineering facility in California, where Musk announced the facility would be the company’s global headquarters for engineering.
The rumors of a new Tesla facility in Silicon Valley turned out to be true. Tesla acquired a previous Hewlett-Packard building, primarily to improve its AI and R&D chops. Musk and Newsom met Feb. 22 at the location, allowing the governor rare access to Tesla’s vastly expanding AI program.
Tesla made the announcement the same day on Twitter, saying it was from Tesla’s “California Headquarters.”
Nikkei Asia discovered earlier in February that Tesla purchased a large facility in the Silicon Valley area. However, the specifics at the time remained murky.
Tesla’s new global engineering headquarters is a shock to many who have seen Musk clash with state officials, including Newsom, over the past two to three years. These initial interactions resulted in Musk moving Tesla’s headquarters to Texas, where it still operates today.
Neither Musk nor Newsom mentioned how this new facility would mesh with the rest of Tesla’s working areas, other than stating it would focus on AI and general R&D.
This shift in Musk and Newsom’s relationship is undoubtedly a relief to the governor, especially considering the record number of businesses leaving the state. With this move, Tesla has significantly increased its headcount in the state and may show other companies the Golden State is still the place to be for engineering and tech.
However, Tesla’s relationship with California remains hostile. Tesla is under investigation by California officials for alleged racial discrimination, and has recently faced off with state officials regarding the name of Tesla’s autonomous driving software.
The announcement of this new AI-focused office follows the introduction of Tesla’s long-awaited v11.3 Full Self Driving software. The added manpower will likely be needed as more Tesla drivers gain access.
Hopefully, Tesla’s new facility can show both investors and analysts the company remains on firm footing and is headed toward a continuing growth of its EV market share globally. However, the biggest hope is consumers can look forward to faster improvements and implementations of FSD with the help of Tesla's new engineering headquarters.
Abby Andrews