Will Elon Musk Build the Tesla Cybertruck Factory in Nashville?

The new Gigafactory will be somewhere in the central U.S., at least

Electric vehicle manufacturing plant in California
Tesla’s electric-vehicle factory in Fremont, California.
Tesla

Another day, another viral Elon Musk tweet. 

On Tuesday, the Tesla CEO sent out an update about the location of the electric-vehicle company’s new factory. And despite its recent expansion in both China and Germany, it looks like the next outpost will be right here in the U.S.

That’s right, this isn’t just any ol’ Model 3 factory — the new factory will be building the controversial, Lara Croft-inspired Cybertruck, as well as the Model Y crossover for East Coast markets, according to a follow-up tweet. But “central USA” is a little vague; where exactly is he looking?

For the moment, Tennessee looks to be a front runner. As TechCrunch writes, “Tesla is in talks with Nashville officials to locate a factory there … according to a source familiar with the discussions.” That would make sense, as the website explains the Nissan Leaf has been produced in the state since 2013 and Volkswagen is centering its North American EV production there as well. 

However, it’s not over just yet. TechCrunch also notes that there is a “short list” of potential cities, though that wasn’t revealed. Some officials have been courting Musk on Twitter, as Jalopnik points out, from places like Missouri, Colorado and Oklahoma.

Will Nashville win out in the end, or will another central U.S. town come from behind? It probably depends on who shells out the most, or maybe whose residents are least offended by the Cybertruck design. 

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