From Joe Tegtmeyer.
Gigafactory Texas! This is where Model Y’s, and Cybertruck production happens and in 2025, the Next Generation Car(s), Cortex 1 & 2, Cybercab & the Optimus Robot!
Busy start to the work week & the last full week of the 2nd Quarter, so we see a lot of activity at the Direct Delivery Center & many of the cars on the outbound lot on Friday are gone!
What is better than seeing a bunch of Cybercabs at Giga Texas? How about 15 driving on the Test Track in a large pack? I was just in time to capture this testing underway. To my knowledge this is the largest group of Cybercabs on the track at any given time so far!
Timestamps:
Drone flight overview with discussion & illustration: 0:06 to 4:01
Drone flight footage & infographics: 4:23 to 33:01
In the video introduction,
I talk about and celebrate the 1 Year Anniversary of Tesla Robotaxi launch! One year ago, a small group or people including me received an invitation from Tesla to be among the first to participate in the launch of the Robotaxi service.
The launch took place in Austin Texas on 22 June 2025 and was punctuated by a lot of excitement, some uncertainty or what to expect, waiting for the app to download and then hailing the first ride as the small group of participants faced out in the initial service area and waited for their Robotaxi to arrive!
For this initial launch, Tesla used Model Ys with the "Robotaxi" logos on the doors and rear hatch and had supervisors in the passenger seat, but the cars all drove autonomously and did exceptionally well. We had all kinds of media trailing behind trying to get images, interviews or any information about our experiences, and this made for a surreal day, almost like paparazzi chasing after high-profile celebrities.
Over the next year, the Robotaxi service would slowly scale to new cities, initially Austin and the San Francisco areas, and then later to Houston and Dallas while preparations for several more cities were underway. The fleet did scale up but slowly, going through several revisions and updates of the autonomous software, becoming fully unsupervised and the fleet management aspects of the Robotaxi service were further developed.
Regulatory permits and filings also took place to position the Robotaxi service for what we all hope will be large-scale expansion including the addition of the new Cybercabs, which are now in limited production and are testing multiple locations around the US.
What will year 2 be like for Robotaxi? All indications are a very big year, but ultimately, Tesla needs to demonstrate they can execute on their plans, preparations and Cybercab production. I’m very hopeful they will be able to do so starting very soon!
Some additional items we see today include:
Progress continues the far N Optimus factory construction site, with more of the steel structure assembly, earthwork to the S & more footings!
The E Advanced Chip Fab site continues to be cleared of materials and workshops & we see a new clearing on the far W near Tesla Rd.
Lots of testing activity today at the crash testing facility, including what appears to be a new model under covers being moved into the main building. There is also a refreshed Semi partially covered with a tarp near the north end of the facility, along with more Cybercabs arranged around the perimeter fence.
More work in the 4680 battery cell production part of the factory was evident today, as crews continue to prepare additional production capacity.
On the east side of the factory, four receiving doors are being reconfigured, with the concrete loading dock having been removed and the windows above these four doors. Above that, support braces have been installed to help the concrete wall panels remain stable as obvious internal construction and likely additional mezzanine installation continues.
Thank you for watching and I hope this has been informative, educational, and entertaining for you. If you would like, please consider supporting me via Patreon (link is in the description of this video and in the video itself) so I can continue to make and share these incredible videos.
Follow me on
Patreon https://www.patreon.com/joeslastchancegarage
X @JoeTegtmeyer
Instagram (Joe’s Last Chance Garage) for the latest updates: #joeslastchancegarage
Facebook Joe Tegtmeyer and Joe’s Last Chance Garage
If you are interested in purchasing Tesla Products, consider using my referral code!
https://www.tesla.com/referral/joe66892
Be sure to check out additional Texas Gigafactory footage on these channels:
@Jeff Roberts
Video, photos, illustrations, and commentary on this video is by me, Joe Tegtmeyer unless otherwise annotated.
Music in this video is obtained from the YouTube free and unrestricted and royalty-free use library. Ending song is Mr. Sunny Face – Wayne Jones
Drones used are DJI Mini 2, Mavic Air 2 & Air 3.
Drone flight over Giga Texas is with permission of Tesla and CEO Elon Musk
