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A Tesla Supercharger V3 invasion is coming, and it’s starting in a nondescript building in Shanghai
Inside an unmarked, nondescript building less than four miles away from the growing, sprawling Gigafactory Shanghai complex, American electric vehicle maker Tesla is starting what could very well be another disruption in the making. Tesla announced recently that it had started operations in its first dedicated Supercharger V3 plant in Shanghai. The goal of the facility is simple: it would produce 10,000 Superchargers per year.
This goal is quite impressive considering that Tesla, in its official website, notes that it currently operates just over 20,000 Superchargers stalls in more than 2,000 stations across the globe. This means that if the Shanghai Supercharger V3 plant could hit its target production figures, Tesla should be able to double the number of its Superchargers in just a few years. But this is not the most impressive part of this ramp.
Drone operator WU WA, who has been following the progress of Tesla China’s Shanghai projects for over two years now, noted in a recent flyover that Tesla’s Supercharger V3 plant in Shanghai covers just about 5,000 sqm (about 54,000 square feet). That’s not a small area by any means, but it is very compact considering that the Roadrunner line, which hosts the company’s pilot 4680 battery production line in Fremont, covers over 180,000 square feet. It should also be noted that Tesla’s Roadrunner site is already one of the EV maker’s more conservatively-sized facilities.
The fact that Tesla could essentially produce 10,000 Supercharger V3 stations from a 54,000-sq ft facility every year bodes very well for the electric car maker’s efforts to thrive in the mainstream market. With a growing fleet of vehicles, after all, Tesla needs to expand its Supercharger Network to a significant degree. Adding 10,000 chargers to the network annually from one dedicated facility is a great way to support the company’s aggressive vehicle production ramp.
What is quite impressive is that Tesla was able to establish its Supercharger V3 plant in China in just a few months. Granted, this pace may be quite challenging to replicate in other locations like Giga Berlin considering China’s trademark quick construction, but even a Supercharger plant that takes twice as long to build would already increase expand the rapid-charging network to a significant degree. The fact that a 10,000-per-year Supercharger factory could take up only 54,000 square feet also means that Tesla may very well be able to add such a facility in projects like Giga Berlin and Texas.
As noted in a report from the Harvard Business Review, Tesla’s Supercharger Network is arguably one of the electric car maker’s trump cards in the EV race. Established at a time when the company was only building the Model S sedan, the Supercharger Network has become a tried and tested way for electric car owners to undertake long trips without range anxiety. Considering that Tesla is now attempting to break into new markets like the pickup and Class 8 segments, a robust charging network would likely become more important than ever. Fortunately, if Shanghai’s launch of its Supercharger V3 plant is any indication, it appears that Tesla has figured out a formula of sorts to expand its Superchargers worldwide.
Watch a flyover of Tesla’s Supercharger V3 facility in Shanghai in the video below.
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Elon Musk
Elon Musk highlights one of Tesla FSD Supervised’s most underrated features
In his post on X, Musk wrote, “Tesla self-driving now recognizes hand signals.”
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) is able to recognize and respond to hand signals, as highlighted recently by CEO Elon Musk.
In his post on X, Musk wrote, “Tesla self-driving now recognizes hand signals.”
Musk shared the update in a quote reply to a video posted by Tesla Europe, which showed a vehicle operating with Full Self-Driving (Supervised) navigating a tight lane in the Netherlands while responding to hand gestures from a person directing traffic.
Hand signal recognition is an important capability for advanced driver-assistance and autonomous systems. In real-world driving, pedestrians, construction workers, parking attendants, and other drivers frequently use hand gestures to direct traffic, yield right of way, or indicate when it is safe to proceed. For a self-driving system operating in mixed environments, interpreting these non-verbal cues is critical.
Musk’s post comes as Tesla owners have surpassed 8 billion cumulative miles driven with FSD (Supervised) engaged. “Tesla owners have now driven >8 billion miles on FSD Supervised,” the company wrote in a post on X.
Annual FSD (Supervised) miles have increased sharply over the past five years. Roughly 6 million miles were logged in 2021, followed by 80 million in 2022, 670 million in 2023, 2.25 billion in 2024, and 4.25 billion in 2025.
In the first 50 days of 2026 alone, Tesla owners logged another 1 billion miles. At the current pace, the fleet is trending toward approximately 10 billion FSD (Supervised) miles this year.
Tesla’s latest North America safety data, covering all road types over a 12-month period, also indicates that vehicles operating with FSD (Supervised) were recorded one major collision every 5,300,676 miles. By comparison, the U.S. average during the same period was one major collision every 660,164 miles.
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Tesla hiring for Commercial Charging role hints at Semi push in Europe
The job opening was highlighted by David Forer, Senior Project Developer for Charging at Tesla, on LinkedIn.
Tesla appears to be expanding its Commercial Charging efforts in Central Europe. The job opening was highlighted by David Forer, Senior Project Developer for Charging at Tesla, on LinkedIn.
In a post on LinkedIn, Forer stated that Tesla is looking for a “high-energy executer to own Commercial Charging Sales in Central Europe.” He added that the role will involve closing commercial deals across Tesla’s “entire product range (Supercharging & Megacharging).”
The job listing specifies that the hire will lead the sale of Tesla’s high-power charging products, including Supercharger and Heavy Duty Charging, to major partners such as charge point operators, real estate owners, and retail companies. The role requires fluency in German and English and is based onsite in Munich.
Tesla already operates more than 75,000 Superchargers globally, though the Semi’s Megacharger network is still in its early stages. The inclusion of Heavy Duty Charging in the job description is notable, then, as it aligns with Tesla’s Megacharger infrastructure, which is designed to support the Tesla Semi.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently confirmed that the Tesla Semi is moving into high-volume production this 2026. In a post on X, Musk noted that “Tesla Semi starts high volume production this year.”
Aerial footage of the Tesla Semi Factory near Giga Nevada also shows that the facility looks nearly complete, with work now underway inside the facility.
Tesla has also refreshed the Semi lineup on its official website, listing two variants: Standard and Long Range. The Standard trim offers up to 325 miles of range with an energy consumption rating of 1.7 kWh per mile, while the Long Range version provides up to 500 miles.
Both variants support fast charging and can recover up to 60% of range in 30 minutes using compatible infrastructure such as the Megacharger Network.
The presence of Heavy Duty Charging in a Central Europe-focused sales role could indicate that Tesla is preparing charging infrastructure ahead of wider Semi deployment in the region. While Tesla has not formally announced a European launch timeline for the Semi, the vehicle, particularly its range, makes it an ideal fit for the area.
Tesla Full Self-Driving is set to get an awesome new feature in the near future, CEO Elon Musk confirmed on X.
Full Self-Driving is the company’s semi-autonomous driving program, which is among the best available to the general public. It still relies on the driver to ultimately remain in control and pay attention, but it truly does make traveling less stressful and easier.
However, Tesla still continuously refines the software through Over-the-Air updates, which are meant to resolve shortcomings in the performance of the FSD suite. Generally, Tesla does a great job of this, but some updates are definitely regressions, at least with some of the features.
Tesla Cybertruck owner credits FSD for saving life after freeway medical emergency
Tesla and Musk are always trying to improve the suite’s performance by fixing features that are presently available, but they also try to add new things that would be beneficial to owners. One of those things, which is coming soon, is giving the driver the ability to prompt FSD with voice demands.
For example, asking the car to park close to the front door of your destination, or further away in an empty portion of the parking lot, would be an extremely beneficial feature. Adjusting navigation is possible through Grok integration, but it is not always effective.
Musk confirmed that voice prompts for FSD would be possible:
Coming
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 21, 2026
Tesla Full Self-Driving is a really great thing, but it definitely has its shortcomings. Navigation is among the biggest complaints that owners have, and it is easily my biggest frustration with using it. Some of the routes it chooses to take are truly mind-boggling.
Another thing it has had issues with is being situated in the correct lane at confusing intersections or even managing to properly navigate through local traffic signs. For example, in Pennsylvania, there are a lot of stop signs with “Except Right Turn” signs directly under.
This gives those turning right at a stop sign the opportunity to travel through it. FSD has had issues with this on several occasions.
Parking preferences would be highly beneficial and something that could be resolved with this voice prompt program. Grocery stores are full of carts not taken back by customers, and many people choose to park far away. Advising FSD of this preference would be a great advantage to owners.
Elon Musk highlights one of Tesla FSD Supervised’s most underrated features
Tesla hiring for Commercial Charging role hints at Semi push in Europe
