Tesla CEO Elon Musk has credited the extraordinary success of the company's Shanghai Gigafactory directly to the "hardworking" local team, while hailing the facility as a "gem" built on exceptional Chinese talent and execution.
Speaking to the China Media Group (CMG) in an interview in Silicon Valley, California, on Tuesday, Musk shared his take on Tesla's Shanghai plant, which became the electric vehicle maker's first gigafactory outside the United States when it was established back in 2019.
The facility now turns out a new car roughly every 30 seconds, accounting for nearly half of Tesla's global electric vehicle deliveries.
Musk said that China's deep-rooted manufacturing prowess is the true engine behind the plant's stellar performance.
"China just has a very strong inherent ability to do manufacturing well, and this has been true, not just in the present day. I mean, if you're being totally frank, the magic of Tesla Shanghai is because of the Chinese, to be totally frank. What we have is that the Tesla China team is just incredibly talented, hardworking, and trustworthy. The quality is excellent and the efficiency is excellent. So the Tesla Shanghai factory is a gem. It's beautiful, actually, if anyone's ever been there," he said.
Musk's praise came after Tesla reached a historic milestone earlier this year, with the company rolling out its 10 millionth electric vehicle in late July, making it the world's first pure electric automaker to surpass the 10-million production mark.
Since beginning deliveries in late 2019, cumulative production at the plant has surpassed 4.5 million vehicles, accounting for approximately 45 percent of Tesla's total global output, making it Tesla's largest export center worldwide that serves both the Chinese market and other parts of the world.
In the first half of 2026, the plant delivered nearly 468,000 vehicles, marking a 28.4-percent year-on-year increase and hitting a three-year high for the same period.
