Tesla Texas: First It Was Model Y Castings, Now Working Robots
It seems Tesla is already testing the robots at Giga Austin that will potentially build the Model Y.
Tesla's upcoming production facility in Texas – coined Giga Austin – isn't officially open for business. With that said, it appears Tesla may be at the point that it could build cars at the site if it wanted or needed to. C'mon, Tesla has been building cars in a tent at Fremont for some time.
We've published a few recent articles highlighting Tesla's Giga Press in Austin. It has been seen working and has even cranked out a myriad of Model Y castings, though we're not sure if they'll be used for actual vehicles, or if Tesla is just testing the machines.
Some drone flyover footage suggests the Model Y castings have left the area and were perhaps shipped to Fremont, but we have no way of knowing for sure. As Tesla works to complete its Texas factory, we now have footage that's reported to be robots working inside the facility. Again, we don't have any official details from Tesla, and we're not sure if the automaker is starting test builds of the Model Y, or just getting the robots installed and functional.
At any rate, the fact that Tesla has casted Model Y parts in Texas, and is now at least testing robots, is pretty big news. Check out the clip below, discovered by Drive Tesla Canada and slowed down and reposted by Tesla Owners of Austin.
Interestingly, Tesla Owners of Austin shared that the video wasn't recorded or officially shared by Tesla, but it was found on "snap" at the factory and was made public for anyone to see. However, there is no official word on who recorded the video.
Teslarati reminds us that Giga Shanghai opened fairly quickly after the robots were installed. In fact, the publication says the first phase of the factory was opened less than a year after Tesla broke ground, and only a few months after we learned that the robots were installed.
While the media is packed with stories about Tesla's delays in Germany, it seems the Texas factory is rolling along nicely. Do you think Tesla could be sandbagging? Will Giga Austin start building full vehicles in the near future, at least at a small volume for testing?
As always, we love to read your comments. Scroll down and start a conversation. In the meantime, check out the video below:
Sources: Tesla Owners of Austin via Teslarati, Drive Tesla Canada
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