Welcome to Musklandia: Austin adjusts to life with Tesla and its eccentric billionaire boss Elon Musk

Welcome to beingness successful Musklandia.

As Elon Musk's sphere of power successful Austin and crossed Texas seems to grow by the day, the eccentric Texas-based billionaire is taking the portion and the authorities on connected the chaotic and often weird roller-coaster thrust that is his life.

It's been a small much than a period since Musk announced Oct. 7 that Tesla is moving its office to Austin, but adjacent earlier that, Musk was already spending an expanding magnitude of clip successful Austin. He has been moving much of his companies into the portion since astatine slightest 2020, astir notably with Tesla's $1.1 cardinal manufacturing installation presently being built successful southeastern Travis County.

As Austin becomes crushed zero for each things Musk, that leaves the remainder of america figuring retired however to navigate the caller landscape—good, atrocious and odd.

"Musk is simply a modern-day Albert Einstein successful the eyes of many, and the richest idiosyncratic successful the satellite by a wide margin. He's going to bring a batch much limelight and absorption connected Austin," said Dan Ives, an expert with Wedbush Securities.

Musk and Austin are apt to go inextricably linked successful the coming years, Ives said.

"When the mean idiosyncratic successful the satellite thinks Austin, Texas, they're not going to the euphony festival oregon Dell oregon for the large metropolis it is. Tesla and Elon Musk are going to go synonymous with Austin," Ives said.

Roger Kay, an expert with Endpoint Technologies, said Musk's presumption and property are definite to person an interaction connected Central Texas.

"He's the richest feline successful the world, which is interesting. So what he'll bash instantly is upstage (Dell Technologies laminitis and CEO) Michael Dell, astatine slightest connected that," Kay said. "Michael has been the benignant of king of Austin, I would say, each up until this point."

Expanding presence

While the $1.1 cardinal Tesla manufacturing installation and Tesla's planned office determination to Austin person drawn the astir attention, Musk's ventures person been softly expanding successful Central Texas for immoderate clip now. They see Musk's tunneling and infrastructure company, the Boring Co., which has facilities successful Pflugerville and Bastrop; a imaginable SpaceX enlargement determination successful Austin; a imaginable Neuralink office; and the office of his backstage foundation, the Musk Foundation.

Also, a Tesla subsidiary, Tesla Energy, was precocious licensed to run arsenic an vigor supplier successful Texas, according to documents filed with the Texas Public Utility Commission. The institution is already gathering the archetypal Tesla star vicinity successful Austin, called SunHouse astatine Easton Park, with solar- and alternative-powered energy.

Meanwhile, SpaceX—Musk's aerospace and rocket company—has aggregate facilities astir Texas, including a motorboat tract adjacent Boca Chica successful acold South Texas.

What's not wide is whether Musk has a residence successful Austin. Although assorted media outlets person listed Austin arsenic his home, helium has ne'er publically confirmed that. Musk announced past twelvemonth that helium had moved to Texas but said his main residence is simply a tiny location adjacent Boca Chica connected the SpaceX campus.

Whether Musk really lives successful Austin oregon not, his power successful and interaction connected Central Texas can't beryllium denied.

Kay said the influx of Tesla and different Musk-related companies volition pb to higher salaries successful the section tech industry, arsenic good arsenic adhd to the region's already booming lodging marketplace and nonstop existent property prices adjacent higher.

"For immoderate radical determination volition beryllium bully opportunities. Other people," Kay said, "are going to beryllium irritated."

'Most almighty dependable successful the world'

One of the places wherever Musk has drawn the astir attention—and possibly created the astir irritation— has been connected social media. Musk is progressive connected Twitter, wherever helium has much than 63 cardinal followers.

With his immense wealthiness and specified a immense audience, the power of what Musk posts connected societal media shouldn't beryllium downplayed, Ives said.

"He is 1 of, if not the astir almighty dependable successful the satellite successful presumption of societal media and a following," Ives said. "If Musk talks, everyone's listening. When you're connected the close broadside of that, it's great. When you're connected the incorrect broadside of that, it's a batch of downsides."

Few days spell by without Musk making immoderate benignant of header connected societal media, whether it beryllium for institution news, cryptic idiosyncratic statements, governmental commentary oregon conscionable posting a meme.

One illustration was aboriginal past week, arsenic aft polling his Twitter followers connected whether helium should merchantability 10% of his Tesla stock, Musk sold astir 900,000 shares, netting implicit $1.1 billion. His spot besides sold much than 3.5 cardinal shares worthy $3.88 billion. The banal options that were sold would expire adjacent twelvemonth and inactive permission Musk with astir 170 cardinal Tesla shares.

More income aboriginal successful the week, from some Musk and his trust, person brought the full banal sold to 6.4 cardinal shares, worthy a full of $6.9 billion. The income truthful acold magnitude to little than 4% of the shares helium holds.

Ives said that portion a merchantability of immoderate banal has been expected to wage upcoming taxes, holding a Twitter canvass to merchantability the banal is "another soap opera that tin lone hap to 1 institution and 1 CEO successful the world, Musk."

Here are a fewer much highlights and lowlights from Musk connected societal media successful the past month:

• Over the weekend, helium clashed with U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders connected Twitter aft the erstwhile statesmanlike campaigner from Vermont said the highly affluent should wage their just share. Musk tweeted: "I support forgetting that you're inactive alive," and aboriginal added, "Want maine to merchantability much stock, Bernie? Just accidental the connection …"
• He criticized Tesla co-founder Martin Eberhard, with whom helium has feuded for years, connected Twitter. He claimed to "wish helium ne'er met" the co-founder, whom helium considers the "worst idiosyncratic I've ever worked with successful my full career," and said that Eberhard "came damn adjacent to sidesplitting Tesla."
• He tweeted a crass remark astatine Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden aft the person tweeted successful enactment of a billionaires income taxation and said Musk paying taxes shouldn't beryllium babelike connected a Twitter poll.
• He temporarily changed his Twitter sanction to Lord Edge, apt a notation to the operation "edge lord."
• He tweeted a gag that helium was considering starting a caller assemblage successful Texas, whose sanction could beryllium utilized to signifier a rude acronym.
• He acknowledged connected Twitter that Tesla's self-driving was having bundle issues and announced that an update would beryllium rolled backmost aft Tesla owners reported cars behaving erratically.
• He pushed backmost connected President Joe Biden's projected taxation plan, dubbed the Billionaires Income Tax, which would adhd a taxation connected the assets, not income, of billionaires. "Eventually, they tally retired of different people's money, and past they travel for you," Musk tweeted connected the aforesaid time helium gained $36 cardinal successful idiosyncratic wealthiness from the Tesla banal surge.
• He called Biden a "puppet" for the United Auto Workers national and pushed backmost connected his program for electric-vehicle acquisition taxation credits projected successful the president's infrastructure bill. The program would exclude nonunion automakers, specified arsenic Tesla.
• He exchanged tweets with David Beasley, manager of the U.N.'s World Food Program, who urged Musk to donate 2% of his estimated nett worth, oregon astir $6 billion, to assistance combat satellite hunger. Musk said if the programme laid retired a elaborate program for however precisely the $6 cardinal would beryllium utilized and the donation went done unfastened root accounting, helium would donate. Beasley said that was possible, and helium would conscionable him anywhere, "earth oregon space," to sermon further. No donation has been made.

While astir of that societal media enactment hasn't focused straight connected Austin oregon Texas, determination are signs Musk is starting to instrumentality much of an involvement successful what's going connected successful the Lone Star State.

'Going to beryllium immoderate ruffled feathers'

When Musk announced helium was moving Tesla's office to Austin, helium didn't notation erstwhile clashes he'd had with California officials. However, manufacture analysts accidental that portion Austin is much affordable than Silicon Valley and inactive has the tech and engineering endowment Musk needs for his companies, it seems wide helium decided helium preferred Texas' much business-friendly situation implicit California's much regulation-heavy approach.

"I deliberation Musk selected Texas successful peculiar due to the fact that of its benignant of frontier style. He's ever thought that California's dense regulatory situation was not peculiarly conducive to his style," Kay said. "He's made it truly wide that helium doesn't deliberation nationalist authorities person immoderate concern telling him what to do."

All of which means officials successful Texas—and successful Austin—could yet find themselves getting the aforesaid pushback California did from Musk if regulatory conditions hitch him the incorrect way.

Musk tends to bash what helium wants and is clever and assertive successful however helium goes astir disputes, Kay said. At the aforesaid time, helium volition bring a batch of jobs and taxation gross to the region, which gives him cards to play.

"He'll say, 'Well, listen, you privation maine to conscionable prime up stakes and spell to Mississippi?'" Kay said. "There's astir apt going to beryllium immoderate ruffled feathers determination erstwhile helium says, 'It's my mode oregon the road and present I ain your highway, You can't accidental thing astir it. You do—well, past I'll bring each my resources to carnivore upon you.'"

It remains to beryllium seen however Musk mightiness purpose to power authorities oregon section policymaking.

In September, Gov. Greg Abbott said that Musk supported Texas' societal policies. In response, Musk tweeted: "In general, I judge authorities should seldom enforce its volition upon the people, and, erstwhile doing so, should aspire to maximize their cumulative happiness. That said, I would similar to enactment retired of politics."

However, Musk has weighed successful connected immoderate Austin governmental issues already.

"Austin should beryllium its city, not a San Francisco copycat," Musk said successful a Halloween tweet replying to a tweet astir Proposition A, which didn't walk earlier this month. The proposition would person required the metropolis of Austin to prosecute hundreds much constabulary officers.

Whatever positions Musk takes, they are definite to person power successful Austin, crossed the authorities and globally, Ives said—in ample portion due to the fact that of Musk's immense wealthiness and the powerfulness that affords him.

Musk precocious became the archetypal idiosyncratic successful the Bloomberg Billionaires Index to person an estimated nett worthy of much than $300 billion, making him not lone the wealthiest idiosyncratic successful the state but besides the richest idiosyncratic successful history. Musk's existent estimated nett worthy is determination betwixt $280 cardinal and $300 billion.

Having Musk and Tesla present comes with "exponentially much positives than negatives for Austin," Ives said. "But Austin has to clasp Tesla and Elon, and not conscionable dainty him similar immoderate different concern person. There are 300 cardinal reasons he's not."

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