View of the inside of the Tesla Giga Texas manufacturing facility during a tour ahead of the “Cyber Rodeo” grand opening party on April 7, 2022 in Austin, Texas. (Suzanne Cordeiro /AFP via Getty Images)
Tesla first opened its massive Austin plant in the spring of 2022. After three years of operating, it has passed a major milestone.
On Wednesday, Tesla congratulated its Austin-based team for building half a million vehicles at the site. CEO Elon Musk chimed in with praise, saying, “nice work” in a post on X.
The latest achievement comes as Tesla moves on further growth in Central Texas. In addition to projects recently registered as sites and centers for visitors with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, the automaker also started a lease at Austin Hills Commerce Center this past summer. Located only about 10 miles north of its existing Austin plant, the almost 300,000 square feet site is reportedly at the industrial park located off Highway 130.
Meanwhile, as Tesla prepares to share financial results for the quarter on Oct. 22, the EV industry is entering shaky territory. In September, incentives to buy an EV expired in accordance with President Trump’s spending bill.
Tesla says it produced more than 447,000 vehicles and delivered over 497,000 vehicles-a record-during the third quarter. But by other measurements, the EV brand is facing trouble.
The automaker sold just 5,385 Cybertrucks in the third quarter, according to data shared by Kelley Blue Book. That’s 63 percent lower than its sales this time last year. In 2025, Tesla has sold more than 16,000 Cybertrucks in all, a number that doesn’t put the automaker on track to sell the 250,000 a year vehicles that Musk previously set out to achieve.
Rebounding from the slower sales on its Cybertruck will be a challenge, as experts note that consumers might not be as encouraged to switch to an electric vehicle as they once were.
“The training wheels are coming off,” Cox Automotive’s Director of Industry Insights Stephanie Valdez Streaty said of the future of EV vehicles. “The federal tax credit was a key catalyst for EV adoption, and its expiration marks a pivotal moment. This shift will test whether the electric vehicle market is mature enough to thrive on its own fundamentals or still needs support to expand further.”
Texas consumers, however, can still take advantage of a perk for buying an EV. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has its own incentive program that opened Oct. 13 for people who purchase or lease an eligible new light-duty motor vehicle. Tesla vehicles, along with cars from competitor brands such as Rivian, are among those listed as eligible vehicles for the up to $2,500 grant for electric or hydrogen vehicles.