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(Smnt/Wikimedia via Creative Commons)
Austin will soon be home to Tesla's fourth Gigafactory. The company's other factories are in Fremont, California; Sparks, Nevada (shown here); and Buffalo, New York.
A new site plan filed by electric carmaker Tesla provides another glimpse at the company's forthcoming $1.1 billion, 2,100-acre Gigafactory in southeast Travis County.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said the plan outlines "a huge & spectacular facility," in a Facebook post. "Construction equipment (has) been hard at work for weeks at the site where Tesla will build electric vehicles & may cast an even larger vision," he wrote.
The document lays out Tesla's plan for 280 acres of the site, including the construction of a massive vehicle manufacturing plant that, including parking space, will cover 7.9 million square feet.
But it remains unclear what the company plans to do with the remaining 1,820 acres.
Some analysts have speculated that, in addition to producing the Cybertruck pickup and Model Y SUV, the Austin factory may also manufacture batteries, similar to the one in Nevada.
There has also been chatter that Tesla may consider relocating its headquarters from California, where CEO Elon Musk has clashed with county officials over coronavirus orders, to Texas.
Musk announced Austin would be home to the next Gigafactory in late July, after a competitive selection process that saw Del Valle ISD and Travis County offer the company tax rebates for building the factory in their jurisdictions.
In early August, construction supplier Martin Marietta disclosed it had sold the factory site—at the intersection of SH 130 and Harold Green Road, near the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport—to a Tesla entity for $97 million, according to the Austin Business Journal.
Prior to both announcements, however, the site was a hotbed of construction activity as Tesla began reclamation work, that a city staffer said "would be the first step in preparing the site for future development."
New Tesla Gigafactory site in Austin, Texas (youtube)
The first substantial completion, or construction milestone, is scheduled for next spring with the full factory expected to be up and running by the end of 2021, a spokesperson for the Austin Chamber of Commerce confirmed to Austonia, .
As proposed, the factory will provide at least 5,000 jobs, not including the thousands of construction workers who will build the facility.
The company currently has 21 Austin-based job postings for the Gigafactory, including a construction project manager and site architect, in addition to other postings for jobs such as game developers.
Some of Musk's other ventures are also looking to lay down roots in the Austin area, including his "Fitbit in your skull" startup, Neuralink, which is hiring four positions locally.
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Janice Omadeke of The Mentor Method was one of five Black entrepreneurs in Austin to earn $100k from Gogle for her startup. (The Mentor Method/Facebook)
The fund gave $100,000 to 50 founders nationwide, including Austin companies CustomerX.i, Journey Foods, Sandbox Commerce, The Mentor Method and Tadeblock.
The founders will receive the funding without giving up any ownership of their startups and will gain access to Google technical support including up to $120,000 in donated search Ads from Google.org and up to $100,000 in Google Cloud credits. The Austin companies will also join a select few—the fund is only two years old and last year rewarded 76 Black-led startups with up to $100,000 as well.
Google's Startup funds can be used to boost Black founders' companies into success—last year, founders raised up to $50 million in capital after recieving the funds, and 80% of the companies used their funds to create jobs.
Founders from last year's batch then paid it forward by nominating new companies and announcing the winners via Zoom.
Here's a look at those 5 founders in Austin:
Hakeem James- Customer X.I
Customer X.I founder Hakeem James wants to help small restaurants thrive.
Customer X.I founder Hakeem James wants to keep mom-and-pop shops alive. That's why he started his company to bridge "the gap between online and offline" and give restaurants and small businesses a centralized location to analyze their data against competitors.
"The question we ask internally: is it simple enough for my grandmother to use? For the record, my grandmother sometimes picks up the phone upside down," James told Microsoft.
The company's data can help businesses small and large better understand their customers—from their names to their drink choices—to build better relationships and customer loyalty.
But it hasn't been easy, especially as labor shortages and COVID safety policies affect restaurants during the pandemic. James said he heard about Google for Startups at Austin's entrepreneur hub, Capital Factory. He and the team will use the funding to create "freemium" plans as they seek to keep restaurants open.
"It has also allowed us to offer our products to restaurants that need it most on a freemium basis to keep their doors open and accelerate their growth when it has never been harder to do so," James said. "Being recognized and backed by Google is monumental for us; it is a signal to our partners of our growing success in the market and the expanded capacity we now have to serve our clients."
Riana Lynn- Journey Foods
Journey Foods' CEO Riana Lynn was named to Inc's Female Founders 100 last year, and the company has continued to work toward its mission of helping create global food sustainability.
Lynn said the startup fund will help level the playing field for Black entrepreneurs that may not get the funding they need.
"The Google for Startups Black Founders Fund is a strong step in increasing the significant discrepancies in funding to many groups of founders, especially founders of color," Lynn said. "The funds will be used to add more science and engineering talent to our team and improve our impact in supply chains."
The company takes a step further back in the food industry process by merging research and development for food companies. Through comprehensive food data, Journey Foods helps provide insights on ingredients, pricing, manufacturing, and supply chain information to companies across the food industry.
From suppliers to packaging companies, Journey Foods hopes to reduce waste and costs by streamlining the food creation process.
Sterling Smith- Sandbox Commerce
Sandbox Commerce CEO Sterling Smith wasn't given a heads-up when he earned a spot in the Black Startups Fund- instead, he thought he was in his final interview.
Smith, who founded the app company in 2018, expressed his gratitude for the funding.
"Everyone involved, I really appreciate you guys betting on Sandbox," Smith said. "I can tell my mom now, right?"
Sandbox Commerce looks to create simple apps for companies without any technical or coding skills needed. The company looks to especially help the underdogs, including small businesses or underrepresented companies, in bridging the gap between computer skills and entrepreneurs.
Janice Omadeke- The Mentor Method
The Mentor Method is a consulting firm that helps companies recruit and retain employees through mentorship. (The Mentor Method/Facebook)
The Mentor Method, founded by Janice Omadeke, has been featured by Forbes and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for its multi-step method of promoting employee retention and fulfillment. Omadeke has also won Capital Factory's $100k Female Founder competition award.
The company focuses on inclusivity, closing opportunity gaps and building talent through its mentorship method, which involves a matching algorithm that brings employees and mentors quickly together. The Mentor Method has been used by high-profile programs including the Department of Education and Glassdoor.
Omadeke said the startup will use its fund to create jobs, including a Product Coordinator, and boost an employee benefits package.
"The Google for Startups Black Founders Fund will help us scale faster and address the core needs of companies seeking to retain their employees," Omadeke said.
Mbiyimoh Ghogomu- Tradeblock
Now a company used by tens of thousands, Tradeblock had humble beginnings—it was once just an Instagram page for sneakerheads.
Founder Mbiyimoh Ghogomu teamed up with childhood friends Tony Malveaux and Darren Smith to transform the page throughout the pandemic and create a network for sneaker lovers to enjoy. With their motto "Kicks as Currency," sneakerheads can trade sneakers without ever touching their piggy bank.
For Ghogomu, the company and Black Starters fund are both about one thing-fostering community.
"Getting recognized by Google as part of the Black Founders Fund is a game-changer for us," Ghogomu said. "My co-founders and team have been working really hard to disrupt the sneaker x tech space and inspire community building. The funds, relationships and overall support that Tradeblock is gaining will take us to the next level."
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