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Tesla Model 3 production in China is opening doors to a lucrative car-sharing market
Tesla’s plans for China are ambitious, even by the company’s standards. By the end of summer, Tesla expects the initial construction of Gigafactory 3 to be complete, and by year’s end, the company plans to start Model 3 production in the facility. As the dust settles after the groundbreaking ceremony for Gigafactory 3, though, a notable opportunity for Tesla has also presented itself.
China represents the world’s largest auto market, and its EV industry is growing fast. Amidst this growth, the country has also seen the rise of car-sharing services, which provide commuters a way to get from Point A to Point B without the hassles of public transportation or the responsibilities of owning a car. An analysis from the Nikkei Asian Review last year estimated that car-sharing services in China could hire out as many as 2 million vehicles in 2020 — a notable increase from the 100,000 cars used in 2017.
Since CC Clubs, China’s first modern car-sharing company, was launched in 2010, the industry has seen a notable rise. Amidst the government’s initiatives that make car ownership trickier, the presence of car-sharing services was widely appreciated by the commuting public. Over the years, car-sharing services in the country have steadily transitioned to electric vehicles as well, augmented in part by the government’s subsidies in production and sales of EVs, as well as restrictions placed on ICE vehicles in a number of Chinese cities.
In response to this trend, Bloomberg noted that legacy automakers are launching initiatives to catch China’s car-sharing trend. Last April alone, Didi Chuxing, one of China’s most prominent ride-hailing firms, formed an alliance with auto companies such as Volkswagen AG and Toyota Motor Corp. to develop vehicles explicitly designed for car-sharing. Volvo Cars and Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd. have also launched a car-sharing feature for its new models through its joint venture, Lynk & Co.
It is this particular market that Tesla can breach with the vehicles that will be produced in Gigafactory 3. Tesla has established itself as a maker of premium, desirable electric cars in China, but its vehicles have always been weighed down by import tariffs, which hike up the cars’ prices. With Gigafactory 3 in the picture, though, Tesla would be able to produce and sell its vehicles on the same playing field as local automakers. This presents a valuable advantage to Tesla, which intends to exclusively produce affordable versions of the Model 3 and Model Y in Gigafactory 3.
Ridesharing actually forms a large part of Elon Musk’s vision for the future. In his Master Plan, Part Deux, Musk described his plan of launching a ridesharing service comprised of fully autonomous vehicles. During the third-quarter earnings call, Musk elaborated on his idea, stating that Tesla would be open to the idea of deploying its own fleet of vehicles in areas where there are few electric cars.
“Tesla will for sure operate its own ride-hailing service. There will be a company-owned fleet where there aren’t enough customer cars to be rented out. So if we find in a particular metro (where) there aren’t enough customers who are willing to add their car to the shared fleet, that’s where we’d supplant with the company-owned fleet. So that’s why it’s sort of a combination of the Uber-Lyft thing and Airbnb. We would charge something comparable to how you’d say the App Store works, or I don’t know, we’d charge 30% or something in order for somebody to add the car to the fleet. I think that’s a pretty sensible way to go.”
While Elon Musk’s Tesla Network would not be launched in China in the near future (Full Self-Driving is still under development and regulations for autonomous vehicles are yet to be decided), rolling out a simpler, more basic form of the service in the country would most likely bode well for the company. By deploying fleets of affordable, locally produced Model 3 in key cities for car-sharing, Tesla would likely be able to establish itself as a key player in China’s car-sharing market.
For now, Tesla’s entry into China’s car-sharing industry would likely depend on the progress of Gigafactory 3’s construction. With government support, there is little doubt that the facility would be completed within its target timeframe. If Tesla can keep up and establish a Model 3 assembly line on time, it might not be long before China’s car-sharing market welcomes another large, potentially dominant player.
Elon Musk
Tesla CEO Elon Musk trolls budget airline after it refuses Starlink on its planes
“I really want to put a Ryan in charge of Ryan Air. It is your destiny,” Musk said.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk trolled budget airline Ryanair on his social media platform X this week following the company’s refusal to adopt Starlink internet on its planes.
Earlier this week, it was reported that Ryanair did not plan to install Starlink internet services on its planes due to its budgetary nature and short flight spans, which are commonly only an hour or so in total duration.
Initially, Musk said installing Starlink on the company’s planes would not impact cost or aerodynamics, but Ryanair responded on its X account, which is comical in nature, by stating that a propaganda it would not fall for was “Wi-Fi on planes.”
Musk responded by asking, “How much would it cost to buy you?” Then followed up with the idea of buying the company and replacing the CEO with someone named Ryan:
I really want to put a Ryan in charge of Ryan Air. It is your destiny.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 19, 2026
Polymarket now states that there is an 8 percent chance that Musk will purchase Ryanair, which would cost Musk roughly $36 billion, based on recent financial data of the public company.
Although the banter has certainly crossed a line, it does not seem as if there is any true reason to believe Musk would purchase the airline. More than anything, it seems like an exercise of who will go further.
Starlink passes 9 million active customers just weeks after hitting 8 million
However, it is worth noting that if something is important enough, Musk will get involved. He bought Twitter a few years ago and then turned it into X, but that issue was much larger than simple banter with a company that does not want to utilize one of the CEO’s products.
The insufferable, special needs chimp currently running Ryan Air is an accountant. Has no idea how airplanes even fly.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 20, 2026
In a poll posted yesterday by Musk, asking whether he should buy Ryanair and “restore Ryan as their rightful ruler.” 76.5 percent of respondents said he should, but others believe that the whole idea is just playful dialogue for now.
But it is not ideal to count Musk out, especially if things continue to move in the direction they have been.
News
Tesla Robotaxi’s biggest rival sends latest statement with big expansion
The new expanded geofence now covers a broader region of Austin and its metropolitan areas, extended south to Manchaca and north beyond US-183.
Tesla Robotaxi’s biggest rival sent its latest statement earlier this month by making a big expansion to its geofence, pushing the limits up by over 50 percent and nearing Tesla’s size.
Waymo announced earlier this month that it was expanding its geofence in Austin by slightly over 50 percent, now servicing an area of 140 square miles, over the previous 90 square miles that it has been operating in since July 2025.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk shades Waymo: ‘Never really had a chance’
The new expanded geofence now covers a broader region of Austin and its metropolitan areas, extended south to Manchaca and north beyond US-183.
These rides are fully driverless, which sets them apart from Tesla slightly. Tesla operates its Robotaxi program in Austin with a Safety Monitor in the passenger’s seat on local roads and in the driver’s seat for highway routes.
It has also tested fully driverless Robotaxi services internally in recent weeks, hoping to remove Safety Monitors in the near future, after hoping to do so by the end of 2025.
Tesla Robotaxi service area vs. Waymo’s new expansion in Austin, TX. pic.twitter.com/7cnaeiduKY
— Nic Cruz Patane (@niccruzpatane) January 13, 2026
Although Waymo’s geofence has expanded considerably, it still falls short of Tesla’s by roughly 31 square miles, as the company’s expansion back in late 2025 put it up to roughly 171 square miles.
There are several differences between the two operations apart from the size of the geofence and the fact that Waymo is able to operate autonomously.
Waymo emphasizes mature, fully autonomous operations in a denser but smaller area, while Tesla focuses on more extensive coverage and fleet scaling potential, especially with the potential release of Cybercab and a recently reached milestone of 200 Robotaxis in its fleet across Austin and the Bay Area.
However, the two companies are striving to achieve the same goal, which is expanding the availability of driverless ride-sharing options across the United States, starting with large cities like Austin and the San Francisco Bay Area. Waymo also operates in other cities, like Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Orlando, Phoenix, and Atlanta, among others.
Tesla is working to expand to more cities as well, and is hoping to launch in Miami, Houston, Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Dallas.
Elon Musk
Tesla automotive will be forgotten, but not in a bad way: investor
It’s no secret that Tesla’s automotive division has been its shining star for some time. For years, analysts and investors have focused on the next big project or vehicle release, quarterly delivery frames, and progress in self-driving cars. These have been the big categories of focus, but that will all change soon.
Entrepreneur and Angel investor Jason Calacanis believes that Tesla will one day be only a shade of how it is recognized now, as its automotive side will essentially be forgotten, but not in a bad way.
It’s no secret that Tesla’s automotive division has been its shining star for some time. For years, analysts and investors have focused on the next big project or vehicle release, quarterly delivery frames, and progress in self-driving cars. These have been the big categories of focus, but that will all change soon.
I subscribed to Tesla Full Self-Driving after four free months: here’s why
Eventually, and even now, the focus has been on real-world AI and Robotics, both through the Full Self-Driving and autonomy projects that Tesla has been working on, as well as the Optimus program, which is what Calacanis believes will be the big disruptor of the company’s automotive division.
On the All-In podcast, Calcanis revealed he had visited Tesla’s Optimus lab earlier this month, where he was able to review the Optimus Gen 3 prototype and watch teams of engineers chip away at developing what CEO Elon Musk has said will be the big product that will drive the company even further into the next few decades.
Calacanis said:
“Nobody will remember that Tesla ever made a car. They will only remember the Optimus.”
He added that Musk “is going to make a billion of those.”
Musk has stated this point himself, too. He at one point said that he predicted that “Optimus will be the biggest product of all-time by far. Nothing will even be close. I think it’ll be 10 times bigger than the next biggest product ever made.”
He has also indicated that he believes 80 percent of Tesla’s value will be Optimus.
Optimus aims to totally revolutionize the way people live, and Musk has said that working will be optional due to its presence. Tesla’s hopes for Optimus truly show a crystal clear image of the future and what could be possible with humanoid robots and AI.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk trolls budget airline after it refuses Starlink on its planes
Tesla Robotaxi’s biggest rival sends latest statement with big expansion
