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Tesla gets open invite from Oklahoma to establish its headquarters in state

Credit: Wikipedia | Alexrk, tesla logo png red from freepnglogos.com

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Tesla has received an invitation to move its headquarters to the Central U.S. state of Oklahoma after CEO Elon Musk hinted last week that his company could be leaving its current Northern California location.

Tesla and Musk have both received a series of offers from multiple U.S. states over the past week. Musk claims Tesla could sever its relationship with California after Alameda County, the jurisdiction that the Fremont factory sits in, overruled State Governor Gavin Newsom’s approval for manufacturing and transportation businesses to resume production.

Oklahoma State Representative Ryan Martinez and Governor Kevin Stitt are among a group of Oklahomans willing to welcome the electric carmaker into their state with open arms, Fox affiliate KOKH in Oklahoma City reported.

After Musk stated Tesla would be moving its company to Nevada and Texas, Rep. Martinez said, “Oklahoma is a wonderful place to do business. We’ve got a low tax base, a low cost of living, great incentives and services, and plenty of space to build a manufacturing headquarters and house all of your people.”

Before the COVID-19 virus ripped through the United States, Musk stated that the company would be exploring lands in the center of the country so it could plan on building a new Gigafactory that would assist in Cybertruck and Model Y production. While Musk posted a poll on his personal Twitter account that specifically mentioned Texas, there is no indication that he or the automaker has settled on the Lone Star State as its next home.

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While speculation continues to persist over where Tesla will open its next Gigafactory, Oklahoma is indeed a state that fits all of the company’s needs in terms of land needed, location, and cost of operation.

Oklahoma is a flat and open state located in the center of the United States. When Musk talked about a new facility, he stated it had to be in the middle of the U.S., expediting the delivery process to East Coast customers.

Much of the land in Oklahoma is rural and maintained by farmers or is used for cattle grazing. However, there are large masses that remain unoccupied and would be perfect for Tesla’s newest, and perhaps most expansive, production facility to date.

As Rep. Martinez said, Oklahoma’s tax base, cost of living, and property value are significantly less than California’s. Less expensive operating expenses for the company would increase its profit margins and allow for a more comfortable living experience for employees.

According to bestplaces.net, the average cost of a home in California is $552,800. In Oklahoma, the average house costs just $124,800, making it much more affordable for workers who are on the production lines of Tesla’s factories every day.

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Tesla’s invitations to the different U.S. states indicates that many territories recognize the positive economic and environmental impact the automaker would bring. Tesla employs 10,000 people at the Fremont facility. With Musk stating the newest Giga facility would be its largest yet, the company could end up using even more people in its new home.

Elon Musk reopened Tesla’s Fremont facility earlier this week against the wishes of Alameda County. Explicitly focused on getting employees back to work and ramping production, Musk said, “If anyone is arrested, I ask that it only be me.”

Joey has been a journalist covering electric mobility at TESLARATI since August 2019. In his spare time, Joey is playing golf, watching MMA, or cheering on any of his favorite sports teams, including the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles, Miami Heat, Washington Capitals, and Penn State Nittany Lions. You can get in touch with joey at joey@teslarati.com. He is also on X @KlenderJoey. If you're looking for great Tesla accessories, check out shop.teslarati.com

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Tesla CEO Elon Musk announces major update with texting and driving on FSD

“Depending on context of surrounding traffic, yes,” Musk said in regards to FSD v14.2.1 allowing texting and driving.

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Credit: carwow/YouTube

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced a major update with texting and driving capabilities on Full Self-Driving v14.2.1, the company’s latest version of the FSD suite.

Tesla Full Self-Driving, even in its most mature and capable versions, is still a Level 2 autonomous driving suite, meaning it requires attention from the vehicle operator.

You cannot sleep, and you should not take attention away from driving; ultimately, you are still solely responsible for what happens with the car.

The vehicles utilize a cabin-facing camera to enable attention monitoring, and if you take your eyes off the road for too long, you will be admonished and advised to pay attention. After five strikes, FSD and Autopilot will be disabled.

However, Musk announced at the Annual Shareholder Meeting in early November that the company would look at the statistics, but it aimed to allow people to text and drive “within the next month or two.”

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He said:

“I am confident that, within the next month or two, we’re gonna look at the safety statistics, but we will allow you to text and drive.”

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Today, Musk confirmed that the current version of Full Self-Driving, which is FSD v14.2.1, does allow for texting and driving “depending on context of surrounding traffic.”

There are some legitimate questions with this capability, especially as laws in all 50 U.S. states specifically prohibit texting and driving. It will be interesting to see the legality of it, because if a police officer sees you texting, they won’t know that you’re on Full Self-Driving, and you’ll likely be pulled over.

Some states prohibit drivers from even holding a phone when the car is in motion.

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It is certainly a move toward unsupervised Full Self-Driving operation, but it is worth noting that Musk’s words state it will only allow the vehicle operator to do it depending on the context of surrounding traffic.

He did not outline any specific conditions that FSD would allow a driver to text and drive.

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Tesla Semi just got a huge vote of confidence from 300-truck fleet

The confidential meeting marks a major step for the mid-sized carrier in evaluating the electric truck for its regional routes.

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Credit: Tesla

The Tesla Semi is moving closer to broader fleet adoption, with Keller Logistics Group wrapping up a key pre-production planning session with the electric vehicle maker’s team this week. 

The confidential meeting marks a major step for the mid-sized carrier in evaluating the electric truck for its regional routes.

Keller’s pre-production Tesla Semi sessions

Keller Logistics Group, a family-owned carrier with over 300 tractors and 1,000 trailers operating in the Midwest and Southeast, completed the session to assess the Tesla Semi’s fit for its operations. The company’s routes typically span 500-600 miles per day, positioning it as an ideal tester for the Semi’s day cab configuration in standard logistics scenarios. 

Details remain under mutual NDA, but the meeting reportedly focused on matching the truck to yard, shuttle and regional applications while scrutinizing economics like infrastructure, maintenance and incentives.

What Keller’s executives are saying

CEO Bryan Keller described the approach as methodical. “For us, staying ahead isn’t a headline, it’s a habit. From electrification and yard automation to digital visibility and warehouse technology, our teams are continually pressure-testing what’s next. The Tesla Semi discussion is one more way we evaluate new tools against our standards for safety, uptime, and customer ROI. We don’t chase trends, we pressure-test what works,” Keller said. 

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Benjamin Pierce, Chief Strategy Officer, echoed these sentiments. “Electrification and next-generation powertrains are part of a much broader transformation. Whether it’s proprietary yard systems like YardLink™, solar and renewable logistics solutions, or real-time vehicle intelligence, Keller’s approach stays the same, test it, prove it, and deploy it only when it strengthens service and total cost for our customers,” Pierce said. 

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Tesla extends FSD Supervised ride-alongs in Europe by three months

Needless to say, it does appear that FSD fever is starting to catch in Europe. 

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Credit: Grok Imagine

Tesla appears to be doubling down on its European Full Self-Driving (Supervised) push, with the company extending its demo ride-along program by three months until the end of March 2026. The update seems to have been implemented due to overwhelming demand. 

Needless to say, it does appear that FSD fever is starting to catch in Europe. 

Extended FSD demonstrations

Tesla EU Policy and Business Development Manager Ivan Komušanac shared on LinkedIn that the company is offering ride-along experiences in Germany, France and Italy while working toward FSD (Supervised) approval in Europe.

He noted that this provides a great feedback opportunity from the general public, encouraging participants to record and share their experiences. For those unable to book in December, Komušanac teased more slots as “Christmas presents.”

Tesla watcher Sawyer Merritt highlighted the extension on X, stating that dates now run from December 1, 2025, to March 31, 2026, in multiple cities including Stuttgart-Weinstadt, Frankfurt and Düsseldorf in Germany. This suggests that the FSD ride-along program in Europe has officially been extended until the end of the first quarter of 2026. 

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Building momentum for European approval

Replies to Merritt’s posts buzzed with excitement, with users like @AuzyMale noting that Cologne and Düsseldorf are already fully booked. This sentiment was echoed by numerous other Tesla enthusiasts on social media. Calls for the program’s expansion to other European territories have also started gaining steam, with some X users suggesting Switzerland and Finland as the next locations for FSD ride-alongs.

Ultimately, the Tesla EU Policy and Business Development Manager’s post aligns with the company’s broader FSD efforts in Europe. As per recent reports, Tesla recently demonstrated FSD’s capabilities for Rome officials. Reporters from media outlets in France and Germany have also published positive reviews of FSD’s capabilities on real-world roads. 

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