EVwire brief: Tesla China VP Wang Hao stated that Giga Shanghai could help unlock the mass production of Optimus humanoid robots, calling the facility a “golden key to solving this challenge.”
“Like other Tesla factories, Giga Shanghai can shoulder important responsibilities in manufacturing all-new products, including robots. We are highly confident in welcoming the arrival of a new era of robots.”
Optimus is expected to be Tesla’s highest volume product, with its pilot line in the Fremont Factory being capable of producing 1 million units per year when ramped. A larger production line in Giga Texas is expected to produce 10 million per year.
Optimus is expected to be Tesla’s highest volume product
Context:
Wang made the comments during a government-organized tour of Tesla’s Shanghai factory, as noted in a report from the Associated Press.
While the VP did not detail how the site will support robot production, the implication was that Giga Shanghai could become central to scaling Optimus worldwide.
Industry data from Omdia highlighted that Tesla is still in this transition, with fewer than 500 general-purpose humanoid robots shipped in 2025.
Despite the low volume, Omdia ranked Tesla in its "First Tier" for AI intelligence and "Zero-Shot" learning capabilities.
Giga Shanghai is Tesla’s largest factory by output as of Q4 2025 (Source)
Giga Shanghai as a launchpad for scaling Optimus production
Since its launch in late 2019, Giga Shanghai has become Tesla’s primary vehicle export hub and largest factory by volume. In 2025, the facility produced about 851,000 Model 3 and Model Y, more than half of global deliveries.
The Giga Shanghai complex is quite small by raw land footprint relative to Tesla’s other factories, but it boasts the largest output.
It would then be unsurprising if Tesla brings Optimus production to the facility as well, considering its experience in large-scale manufacturing.
The company’s strategy of using Optimus internally mirrors its past approach with other products, enabling faster feedback loops and operational validation before scaling externally.
Tesla did this for products like the Semi, which was used internally until the company was ready to start a pilot program with its initial customers in December 2022.
Source: Associated Press
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