

News
Tesla received a killer deal for Giga Texas
Tesla’s recently purchased Giga Texas property set the electric automaker back $97 million. But while that sounds like a substantial sum for a 2,100-acre piece of land, the deal ended up being Tesla’s best real estate transaction for a Gigafactory yet.
The land that Tesla purchased is located just 15 minutes outside of downtown Austin, Texas. Before the electric car company decided to pull the trigger on the property after several months of negotiating and considering other locations for its next facility, it was owned by TXI Operations LP, the Austin Business Journal reported.
TXI Operations is a subsidiary of the larger Martin Marietta Inc. Martin Marietta’s most recent quarterly earnings call revealed that the company had sold the plot of land for $97 million.
Interestingly, Tesla’s purchase of the Texas land plot was the best deal the electric automaker had received on a piece of property.
Comparing the Giga Texas site to the other Gigafactory locations in terms of price per acre shows that the facility was the best deal the company has received on a plot of land to date.
In China with Giga Shanghai, Tesla purchased 214 acres of land for over 973 million Chinese Yuan, or around $139.638 million. This price breaks down to approximately $652,514 per acre.
In Germany with Giga Berlin, Tesla purchased 740 acres of land for around $48 million. This would mean that Tesla paid just over $64,860 per acre.
However, the massive land plot that Tesla purchased in Texas proved to the company’s best real estate deal to date. The 2,100-acre land was purchased for $97 million, breaking down to around $46,190 per acre.
Martin Marietta’s Senior Vice President and CFO James A. J. Nickolas and Chairman, President, and CEO C. Howard Nye indicated that a “depleted sand and gravel location” in Austin was sold for nearly $100 million.
Tesla had purchased the land under a subsidiary company known as Colorado River Project, LLC. This detail was included in the company’s presentation to the Travis County Commissioners Court, where the electric automaker outlined the economic benefits its production facility would have on the area.
Tesla received what could be considered a “wholesale price” on the land because it purchased a sizeable portion of property. The purchase price is wholly indicative of a great deal for Tesla, who will bring thousands of jobs to the area and will help the Austin region pull out of a deep economic recession that was induced by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tesla plans to move swiftly during the development stages of the land, and the company has already started leveling the ground in Austin. Tesla plans to open the facility sometime in 2021 in time for the manufacturing of the Cybertruck, which will begin production toward the end of next year.
Elon Musk
USDOT Secretary visits Tesla Giga Texas, hints at national autonomous vehicle standards
The Transportation Secretary also toured the factory’s production lines and spoke with CEO Elon Musk.

United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) Secretary Sean Duffy recently visited Tesla’s Gigafactory Texas complex, where he toured the factory’s production lines and spoke with CEO Elon Musk. In a video posted following his Giga Texas visit, Duffy noted that he believes there should be a national standard for autonomous vehicles in the United States.
Duffy’s Giga Texas Visit
As could be seen in videos of his Giga Texas visit, the Transportation Secretary seemed to appreciate the work Tesla has been doing to put the United States in the forefront of innovation. “Tesla is one of the many companies helping our country reach new heights. USDOT will be right there all the way to make sure Americans stay safe,” Duffy wrote in a post on X.
He also praised Tesla for its autonomous vehicle program, highlighting that “We need American companies to keep innovating so we can outcompete the rest of the world.”
National Standard
While speaking with Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the Transportation Secretary stated that other autonomous ride-hailing companies have been lobbying for a national standard for self-driving cars. Musk shared the sentiment, stating that “It’d be wonderful for the United States to have a national set of rules for autonomous driving as opposed to 50 independent sets of rules on a state-by-state rules basis.”
Duffy agreed with the CEO’s point, stating that, “You can’t have 50 different rules for 50 different states. You need one standard.” He also noted that the Transportation Department has asked autonomous vehicle companies to submit data. By doing so, the USDOT could develop a standard for the entire United States, allowing self-driving cars to operate in a manner that is natural and safe.
News
Tesla posts Optimus’ most impressive video demonstration yet
The humanoid robot was able to complete all the tasks through a single neural network.

When Elon Musk spoke with CNBC’s David Faber in an interview at Giga Texas, he reiterated the idea that Optimus will be one of Tesla’s biggest products. Seemingly to highlight the CEO’s point, the official Tesla Optimus account on social media platform X shared what could very well be the most impressive demonstration of the humanoid robot’s capabilities to date.
Optimus’ Newest Demonstration
In its recent video demonstration, the Tesla Optimus team featured the humanoid robot performing a variety of tasks. These include household chores such as throwing the trash, using a broom and a vacuum cleaner, tearing a paper towel, stirring a pot of food, opening a cabinet, and closing a curtain, among others. The video also featured Optimus picking up a Model X fore link and placing it on a dolly.
What was most notable in the Tesla Optimus team’s demonstration was the fact that the humanoid robot was able to complete all the tasks through a single neural network. The robot’s actions were also learned directly from Optimus being fed data from first-person videos of humans performing similar tasks. This system should pave the way for Optimus to learn and refine new skills quickly and reliably.
Tesla VP for Optimus Shares Insight
In a follow-up post on X, Tesla Vice President of Optimus (Tesla Bot) Milan Kovac stated that one of the team’s goals is to have Optimus learn straight from internet videos of humans performing tasks, including footage captured in third person or by random cameras.
“We recently had a significant breakthrough along that journey, and can now transfer a big chunk of the learning directly from human videos to the bots (1st person views for now). This allows us to bootstrap new tasks much faster compared to teleoperated bot data alone (heavier operationally).
“Many new skills are emerging through this process, are called for via natural language (voice/text), and are run by a single neural network on the bot (multi-tasking). Next: expand to 3rd person video transfer (aka random internet), and push reliability via self-play (RL) in the real-, and/or synthetic- (sim / world models) world,” Kovac wrote in his post on X.
News
Starship Flight 9 nears as SpaceX’s Starbase becomes a Texan City
SpaceX’s launch site is officially incorporated as Starbase, TX. Starship Flight 9 could launch on May 27, 2025.

SpaceX’s Starbase is officially incorporated as a city in Texas, aligning with preparations for Starship Flight 9. The newly formed city in Cameron County serves as the heart of SpaceX’s Starship program.
Starbase City spans 1.5 square miles, encompassing SpaceX’s launch facility and company-owned land. A near-unanimous vote by residents, who were mostly SpaceX employees, led to its incorporation. SpaceX’s Vice President of Test and Launch, Bobby Peden, was elected mayor of Starbase. The new Texas city also has two SpaceX employees as commissioners. All Starbase officials will serve two-year terms unless extended to four by voters.
As the new city takes shape, SpaceX is preparing for the Starship Flight 9 launch, which is tentatively scheduled for May 27, 2025, at 6:30 PM CDT from Starbase, Texas.
SpaceX secured Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval for up to 25 annual Starship and Super Heavy launches from the site. However, the FAA emphasized that “there are other licensing requirements still to be completed,” including policy, safety, and environmental reviews.
On May 15, the FAA noted SpaceX updated its launch license for Flight 9, but added: “SpaceX may not launch until the FAA either closes the Starship Flight 8 mishap investigation or makes a return to flight determination. The FAA is reviewing the mishap report SpaceX submitted on May 14.”
Proposed Texas legislation could empower Starbase officials to close local highways and restrict Boca Chica Beach access during launches. Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino, Jr., opposes the Texas legislation, insisting beach access remain under county control. This tension highlights the balance between SpaceX’s ambitions and local interests.
Starbase’s incorporation strengthens SpaceX’s operational base as it gears up for Starship Flight 9, a critical step in its mission to revolutionize space travel. With growing infrastructure and regulatory hurdles in focus, Starbase is poised to become a cornerstone of SpaceX’s vision, blending community development with cutting-edge aerospace innovation.
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