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Tesla's Elon Musk updates worldwide Gigafactory naming convention

Tesla Giga Shanghai (Credit: Tesla China/Twitter)

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CEO Elon Musk said that Tesla will start referring to its Gigafactories using the word “Giga” and then adding the mostly understood location name.

The Tesla chief tweeted about the new naming convention Friday night. At the moment, Tesla has three operational Gigafactories and expects to begin construction of a fourth Gigafactory near Berlin soon.

Setting a convention on how Gigafactories will be referred to will help avoid confusion as mainstream media, consumers, and Tesla fans usually refer to these facilities as Giga followed by the number based on the date the factories went online. Others also refer to the factories as Giga followed by either the country or city where the factories are located.

The Gigafactory 1 will now be called Giga Nevada. This facility broke ground in June 2014 just outside Sparks, Nevada and is primarily focused on designing and producing batteries for Tesla. In 2018, the said Gigafactory became the highest-volume battery plant in the world with an annualized rate of roughly 20 GWh. Tesla’s battery acquisitions to help produce batteries that will ultimately extend the range of its vehicles are proving to be well worth their costs as they are helping the brand dominate competitors in the future.

The Gigafactory 2 in Buffalo will now be referred to as Giga New York. This 1.2-million sq. ft facility is key for producing the Solar Roof Tiles and the Powerwall. Tesla is stepping on the pedal this year and begins 2020 by offering its solar customers incentives in its latest referral program update.

Meanwhile, its Gigafactory 3 in China will simply be called Giga Shanghai. Tesla’s first car factory outside of the United State has now achieved a run rate of 3,000 units per week according to the company’s most recent updates. The Shanghai factory will be key in conquering the biggest automotive market in the globe and should help the brand in exploring other markets in Asia.

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In the same conversation on Twitter, Musk chimed in on the issues hounding the upcoming Gigafactory 4 in Grunheide which will now be referred to as Giga Berlin. The Tesla chief clarified that its first factory in Europe will not be using 372 cubic meters of water per hour as implied by those expressing concerns that Tesla might cause water supply issues in the community, and the carmaker is also trying to shed light on the confusion that it’s clearing a natural forest to build a factory for its green cars.

“Sounds like we need to clear up a few things! Tesla won’t use this much net water on a daily basis. It’s possibly a rare peak usage case, but not an everyday event. Also, this is not a natural forest — it was planted for use as cardboard & only a small part will be used for GF4,” Musk wrote.

“…Giga Berlin will build sustainable energy vehicles using sustainable energy, so net environmental impact will be extremely positive,” he added.

Tesla hopes to begin construction of the Giga Berlin in March. It is expected to create around 8,000 jobs for locals and and interested workers from across the region. The car factory will produce 150,000 vehicles during its initial phase and is expected to up production to 500,000 units in the future.

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A curious soul who keeps wondering how Elon Musk, Tesla, electric cars, and clean energy technologies will shape the future, or do we really need to escape to Mars.

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Tesla bolsters App with new safety, insurance, and storage features

The Tesla Smartphone App is one of the biggest and best features and advantages owners have. Everything from moving the vehicle with Summon, to getting Navigation sent to the car, to preconditioning the cabin can be done with the Tesla App.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla is bolstering its smartphone App with a series of new features to streamline operations for owners. The new additions include fixes to safety, its in-house insurance offering, and storage management for Dashcam clips.

The Tesla Smartphone App is one of the biggest and best features and advantages owners have. Everything from moving the vehicle with Summon, to getting Navigation sent to the car, to preconditioning the cabin can be done with the Tesla App.

But in classic Tesla fashion, the company is aiming to improve the offerings of the app, and it is doing so with a handful of new features. They were first discovered by Tesla App Updates.

Tesla Insurance – Safety Score 3.0

This is truly part of the Spring 2026 Update, but Tesla has now given more transparency on how FSD has saved people money on their premiums.

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Tesla intertwines FSD with in-house Insurance for attractive incentive

Additionally, Tesla is now automatically awarding a Safety Score of 100 for every mile traveled on Full Self-Driving (Supervised).

Update Tracking

Updates traditionally appear on the App or on the Center Touchscreen in the car. There is nothing better than seeing that Green Arrow at the top of the screen, or opening your app and seeing that there is a Software Update available.

Now, there will be no need to manually check the app and initiate the download. Tesla is enabling a new feature that will automatically download updates for you.

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Storage Management

Your USB drive can now be remotely formatted, and old Dashcam clips can be deleted straight from the phone. When you record a lot of things using the Dashcam feature, that storage fills up pretty quickly.

Now, manually deleting the Dashcam videos is easier than ever.

Trailer Light Test

This is perhaps the coolest and most crucial addition to the Tesla App, as those who tow and haul will now be able to trigger a diagnostic light sequence from the app while standing behind your trailer to ensure the brake lights work.

Verifying your trailer lights are connected properly and operating normally and as intended is normally a massive hassle.

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Now, a new trigger will be available to initiate a diagnostic light sequence directly from your phone.

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Tesla Robotaxi-only Superchargers are starting to appear

For Tesla, these Robotaxi-only Superchargers represent more than convenient parking spots. They are the first bricks in a vertically integrated autonomy platform—vehicles, energy, and software working in seamless concert. 

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla is starting to build out Robotaxi-only Superchargers as the company is truly leaning on its Full Self-Driving and autonomy efforts to solve passenger travel.

Last week, the company filed pre-permits in Arizona’s East Valley for two dedicated, non-public charging sites stocked with next-generation V4 Superchargers. The filings mark the first visible evidence of purpose-built infrastructure exclusively for autonomous Tesla vehicles, as they state they are not for public use.

In Chandler, Tesla plans to install 56 V4 stalls on an industrial parcel along South Roosevelt Avenue. Site documents describe a high-capacity setup supported by new SRP transformers, switching cabinets, and upgrades to existing underground lines.

A second site in Mesa, located at 5349 E Main Street in another industrial zone, carries the same private-use designation. Both locations sit well away from public roads and customer traffic, ensuring the chargers serve only Tesla’s internal fleet.

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The sites were spotted by Supercharger observer MarcoRP.

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Phoenix’s East Valley offers an ideal launchpad for Robotaxi Supercharging: the location has a clean, grid-like street layout and year-round mild weather that minimizes camera degradation. Additionally, Arizona has welcomed self-driving pilots since Waymo’s early days.

By securing private depots now, Tesla can optimize charging cycles, reduce downtime, and maintain full control over vehicle hygiene and security, critical factors for high-utilization Robotaxi operations.

The type of Supercharger is telling as well, as they are V4, Tesla’s fastest and most efficient buildout.

V4 stalls deliver faster power and support bidirectional charging, features that will let idle Robotaxis feed energy back to the grid during off-peak hours. Because the sites are closed to the public, Tesla avoids congestion, vandalism risks, and the scheduling conflicts that plague shared stations.

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The timing is telling. With unsupervised Full Self-Driving hardware already rolling out across the lineup and Cybercab production targets looming, Tesla is shifting from vehicle development to ecosystem readiness.

Charging infrastructure has historically been the gating factor for ride-hailing scale; building it ahead of the vehicles signals confidence that regulatory and technical hurdles are nearing resolution.

Tesla has been spotted testing Cybercab units in Arizona over the past few months, as well.

Interestingly, the permits show V4 Superchargers in the plans, although Cybercab will likely utilize wireless charging:

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Tesla Cybercab spotted with interesting charging solution, stimulating discussion

For Tesla, these Robotaxi-only Superchargers represent more than convenient parking spots. They are the first bricks in a vertically integrated autonomy platform—vehicles, energy, and software working in seamless concert.

It appears Tesla is preparing to begin building out Robotaxi-only Superchargers to avoid the congestion and keep its autonomous fleet charged up to get ride-hailers to their destinations.

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ARK’s SpaceX IPO Guide makes a compelling case on why $1.75T may not be the ceiling

ARK Invest breaks down six reasons SpaceX’s $1.75 trillion IPO valuation may be justified.

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ARK Invest, which holds SpaceX as its largest Venture Fund position at 17% of net assets, has published a detailed investor guide to why a SpaceX IPO may be grounded in a $1.75 trillion target valuation.

The financial case starts with Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet constellation, which has surpassed 10 million active subscribers globally as of early 2026, with 2026 revenue projected to exceed $20 billion. ARK’s research puts the total satellite connectivity market opportunity at roughly $160 billion annually at scale, and Starlink is adding customers faster than any telecom network in history. That growth alone would justify a substantial valuation.

Additionally,  ARK notes that SpaceX has reduced the cost per kilogram to orbit from roughly $15,600 in 2008 to under $1,000 today through reusable Falcon 9 hardware. A fully operational Starship targeting sub-$100 per kilogram would represent a significant cost decline and open markets that do not currently exist. SpaceX executed a staggering 165 missions in 2025 and now accounts for approximately 85% of all global orbital launches. That infrastructure position took decades to build and would be nearly impossible to replicate at comparable cost.

SpaceX officially acquires xAI, merging rockets with AI expertise

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The February 2026 merger with xAI added a layer to the valuation that straightforward financial models struggle to capture. ARK argues that at sub-$100 launch costs, orbital data centers could deliver compute roughly 25% cheaper than ground-based alternatives, without power grid delays, permitting friction, or land constraints. Musk has stated a goal of deploying 100 gigawatts of AI computing capacity per year from orbit.

The $1.75 trillion figure itself is not a conventional earnings multiple. At roughly 95x trailing revenue, it prices in Starlink’s adoption curve, Starship’s cost trajectory, and the orbital compute thesis together. The public S-1 prospectus, due at least 15 days before the June roadshow, will give investors their first complete look at the financials to test those assumptions. ARK’s position is that the track record earns the benefit of the doubt. Fully reusable rockets were considered unrealistic for years. Starlink was considered financially unviable. Both happened on timelines that surprised skeptics.

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