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Tesla’s Elon Musk gets invited to hire Ohio’s GM workers: ‘Lordstown is ready for you’
When GM announced that it was closing several of its plants in the US and Canada, questions were raised if Elon Musk would jump on the opportunity to acquire more facilities for Tesla. The electric car maker, after all, has grown significantly over the years, starting as a niche carmaker that manufactured a small, quick two-door sports car, and evolving to a company that currently produces one of America’s best-selling passenger cars. With the Model 3 ramp, Tesla has found itself struggling to meet demand, and even its expansive Fremont factory, as Elon Musk put it, had become “packed to the gills.”
Tesla is poised for even more growth, as the company is set to release some of its most ambitious vehicles yet, such as the Model Y SUV, the Tesla pickup truck, the Tesla Semi, and the next-generation Tesla Roadster. With GM closing several of its plants, an opportunity appears to be emerging for Tesla to acquire more manufacturing capabilities in the US. This is an idea that Elon Musk is open to, as revealed during his recent segment in CBS‘ 60 Minutes. When asked by host Lesley Stahl if he is interested in acquiring facilities that GM would be retiring, Musk answered in the affirmative.
“It’s possible that we would be interested, if they (GM) were going to sell a plant or not use it, that we would take it over,” he said.
Musk’s statement appears to have resonated with Ohio officials, particularly Governor John Kasich. In a recent post on Twitter, Kasich invited Musk and Tesla to come to Ohio. Kasich even pitched the state’s workers to the CEO, stating that “there are no better workers than Ohio workers.” Directly referencing the GM plant set to be closed down in 2019, the Ohio governor added that “Lordstown is ready for you.” Musk, for his part, has issued a brief response to Kasich’s post.
Thanks, will consider next year
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 20, 2018
The past few years have not been kind to the seasoned auto workers from Lordstown, Ohio. Over the course of 2018, the 52-year-old assembly plant, which is responsible for building the Chevrolet Cruze, had seen several layoffs. Back in April, for example, GM cut the plant’s second shift, eliminating 1,500 jobs in the process. By late November, the American legacy automaker confirmed that it would be retiring the facility next year, as the company focuses on building crossovers, SUVs, pickups, and electric vehicles.
Ohio’s officials attempted to keep the Lordstown plant open for as long as they could. A report from local news outlet Cincinnati.com noted that US Sen. Sherrod Brown, Ohio’s senior senator, attempted to get a commitment from GM CEO Mary Barra. Ohio governor John Kasich did the same, even discussing the possibility of repurposing the facility with the GM CEO. Despite these efforts, the Lordstown assembly plant was listed as one of the facilities under GM’s chopping block nonetheless.
My statement on a conversation I had this morning with GM CEO Mary Barra. pic.twitter.com/B8Tf5xu4Tr
— John Kasich (@JohnKasich) November 29, 2018
If Tesla does end up acquiring GM’s Lordstown plant, the electric car maker would be able to tap into a seasoned workforce that has decades of experience building cars. This bodes well for Tesla, particularly as the company has several vehicles expected for release in the coming years. That said, acquiring the plant might present challenges for the electric car maker as well, particularly as the United Auto Workers union (UAW), an organization that is not in good terms with Tesla, was influential in the Lordstown facility.
Tesla’s mission of accelerating the world’s transition to sustainable energy is starting to take form. Faced with competitive, disruptive, zero-emissions vehicles like the Model 3, legacy carmakers such as GM are now taking on a more EV-friendly approach. As the established companies go through these transitions, though, there are bound to be casualties. For GM, some of these casualties are the Lordstown plant’s employees. For these seasoned workers, the possible arrival of Tesla might very well be what they need to ensure that the auto industry remains alive in the state for years to come.
Tesla Cybercab is using a unique strategy for picking up the correct rider, which is a crucial part of ride-hailing to ensure people end up in the right place and are charged the correct price.
Cybercab will utilize an RGB strip in its front light bar that will illuminate in a variety of different colors to mark itself.
This identifying mark will also appear in the Robotaxi app, giving riders in the same location a notable distinction in an effort to avoid any confusion regarding who should get in each vehicle.
🚨 Tesla is using different light bar colors to help riders understand which vehicle is theirs
Pretty cool strategy pic.twitter.com/eGMpEMeRpc
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 27, 2026
Other ride-hailing services use similar strategies: Lyft and Uber rides are recognizable through driver identity, vehicle type and color, as well as license plate. Waymo will display the rider’s initials on top of the vehicle, letting them know that the specific vehicle for them has arrived.
Tesla’s strategy is unique and interesting, but there are some flaws. Cybercab’s main purpose is aimed toward being an autonomous ride for all, including those who have disabilities like being blind or even color blind.
Tesla will likely have something in the pipeline for those who cannot see colors or have limited vision. There will definitely be multiple ways to identify which vehicle is the one that “you” specifically ordered.
Cybercab is set to start giving public rides next Thursday, September 3, in Austin, as it announced a dedicated event last week and invited many members of the Tesla community.
Additionally, members of the public will be invited as well. Tesla has been offering employee rides in Cybercab for nearly two months.
Tesla has said goodbye to one customization option for its vehicles: the wrap service it launched several years ago.
After launching an in-house wrap service in August 2020 for the first time in China. In the U.S., it launched in October 2023. Tesla continued to expand the program and adjust it with better pricing and fewer options for the Cybertruck.
By December 2023, it was giving owners of the Model 3, Model Y, and the Cybertruck the opportunity to give their vehicle a fresh look with a vinyl wrap.
Tesla revamps in-house vinyl wrap service with better pricing
It was only available in five locations: Costa Mesa, Oceanside, Santa Clara, West Covina, all in California, and Seattle, Washington.
However, Tesla made some big adjustments to its shop, and the wrap service is officially gone:
Tesla has made a LOT of changes to its online shop recently — price increases, price cuts, new options, and several products being removed entirely.
Some of the biggest increases are wheel covers. 👀
📈 PRICE INCREASES
• 2017-2023 | Model 3 Aero Wheel Cover — Style: Refresh…— Phoenix Self-Driving 🐦🔥 (@PhoenixFSD) August 25, 2026
Wraps are very popular across the Tesla lineup, especially since the company offers relatively few colors. Many choose to wrap their Teslas with interesting colors, patterns, or even finishes, turning their cars from glossy to satin or matte.
However, Tesla’s wrap service was so limited geographically that it never really had a chance to get off the ground or compete with local shops. Every area in the United States is now overflowing with detailing shops, mobile detailers, and other automotive specialists, many of whom perform wrap services.
Tesla’s service was confined to the Pacific time zone and only spanned across two states. It was never going to be something Tesla was a major competitor in, nor was it going to disrupt the wrapping industry. Now that the program has ended, it seems pretty ideal to believe it was always going to be a short-term thing.
Along with the wrap service, Tesla removed several other products, but nothing too crazy. The Model 3 Door Pocket and Cupholder Liners, the Model S 19″ Magnetite Wheel and Winter Tire Package, Model X/Y Ski/Snowboard Carrier for Hitch Rack, Tesla’s Electric Summer Party Tee, and the Electric Summer Tee were the other items the company totally eliminated from its online shop.
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Tesla Robotaxi fleet gets a brain upgrade ahead of Cybercab launch event
Tesla’s Robotaxi service now runs longer hours nationwide as its unsupervised fleet quietly grows larger.
Tesla’s Robotaxi service just got easier to catch, with the company’s official Robotaxi account noting that rides are now available from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week, across its operating footprint. The account also said its unsupervised fleet is “a lot bigger” than before, though without specifics. The bigger change is what Tesla says upgraded intelligence in vehicle distribution and routing is what’s actually cutting wait times, not a new Full Self-Driving version.
While Tesla did not name the team behind the upgrade, the language points to its AI and fleet software group rather than the driving stack itself. Vehicle distribution and routing in Robotaxi has functioned mostly as a dispatch problem with the software deciding which idle car goes to which rider, and how far it has to travel to get there. “Upgraded intelligence” suggests a smarter version of that dispatch logic, likely using demand forecasting to position idle cars near where riders are about to request them rather than reacting once a request comes in. Tesla’s AI division has built similar prediction systems for other parts of the business, including the neural networks that power FSD itself, so applying that same approach to fleet logistics would be a natural extension rather than a new discipline for the team.
Robotaxi now runs 6am to 10pm, 7 days/week
Unsupervised fleet is a lot bigger
Also, upgraded intelligence in vehicle distribution & routing means you wait less pic.twitter.com/UFZ4bqg2dZ
— Tesla Robotaxi (@robotaxi) August 26, 2026
Tesla is also about a week away from a separate robotaxi milestone. The company plans to launch Cybercab, its purpose built two seat robotaxi with no steering wheel or pedals, in Austin on September 3. Cybercab has been giving employees rides on public and private roads for weeks, and the September event is expected to fold those vehicles into the existing Robotaxi fleet within days of the launch.
Thank you so much @Tesla for inviting us to the Cybercab launch in Austin! 🤠 pic.twitter.com/F1rAR8zd5O
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 22, 2026
Austin previously ran Robotaxi from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. as of last September, a schedule set before the service expanded into Dallas, Houston, Miami, Tampa, Orlando and the Bay Area. Wednesday’s post did not specify whether that extended overnight window still applies in Austin specifically or whether 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. is now the standard across every market. Tesla’s post, visible on its official Robotaxi account, framed the change simply as fewer riders waiting around for a car.
Whether the wider hours hold once Cybercab enters the fleet next week is the next thing worth watching. Tesla has tended to expand Robotaxi in increments, first geofence, then hours, then fleet size, and each step so far has arrived without much advance notice.
Tesla Cybercab uses a unique strategy for picking up the right rider
Tesla ends in-house wrap service that always seemed like a short-term program
