I Spent 48 Hours in Elon Musk’s “Utopia”

Elon Musk is building a Texas “utopia,", according to The Wall Street Journal. Bastrop County, Texas, has become the backdrop of Musk’s possible plans to continue developing land acquired by an LLC with ties to the Boring Company. The roughly 300-acre property already has facilities for The Boring Company, SpaceX, and now X, and a cluster of modular homes where employees currently live and work on-site.

[uncralph]

So he builds a company town, been going on for centuries, doesn't make it utopian

[daviddrahmann]

I think that every time a company builds a town or company housing, it never works out for the workers long term. See also the song "sixteen tons"

[helenwoodrum]

Sounds like the mining companies did back in the day. "I owe my soul to the company store."

[grodriguez]

As a resident, it's a great town even outside of what he is building out there

[nick]

modular homes is a very nice way of saying single wide trailers

[lucykavanagh]

As someone who's lived in staff housing, it's never with the wellbeing of the employees in mind

[bettina]

This scenario is depicted in Octavia Butler's prescient novel "Parable of the Sower" (published in 1994, set in 2024) in which an authoritarian president gets rid of labor laws and other protections and people choose to either live "safely" as slaves in company towns or "freely" in an unsafe collapsing society. Great book!

[DeeDee-pwpm]

Just another company town like history has seen before.
But maybe it'll be like China's factory dormitories, and be a dystopia instead.

[TaylorMMontgomery]

Hyperloop plaza is the most underwhelming, cheaply built warehouse shell buildng you'll ever go into.

[OttoNacht]

the temporary housing may be more for construction teams than the workers. its pretty common with longterm jobs

[Animalfarm]

The Choctaw’s built convenience stores, a truck stop, a gym, daycare centers, a health clinic, and an apartment complex near their hotel and casinos. It boosts the economy and it makes things more convenient for their employees.

[tixximmi]

The entire east side from Bastrop up to Taylor is becoming the new Silicon Valley. From Giga Texas to Samsung's new semiconductor factory. (4X larger than Giga Texas) This will be the future for the next few decades.

[jerryschwartz]

If you drove 45 minutes from the airport to the facility you're lost or you drive really, really slow. Its about 20 miles. I live in the area.

[SpeakingSeriously]

Bastrop was already a lovely town. Musk will bring money and interest. The Austin area quality of life is excellent. Glad to have him.

[ronyerke]

Utopia? From what you're presenting, it looks like a company town. Big boss owns and controls everything. It might be a utopia for the boss, but for everyone else, not so much.

[Robothamsta]

I grew up in Bastrop. Never ever thought anything significant would happen there.

[johnwilliamson]

Thanks for doing this video. A lot of people report that it's in Austin which is not the case. Bastrop and Austin are like two different countries. Everyone should also be clear that those homes are not long term company housing! They are for in-town execs visiting and temp housing until you can find a home to buy which is a great incentive.

[nunnaurbiznez]

Wow, nothing like living in your bosses branding bubble.

[killsun]

It will be a combination Jonestown and Techbro Branch Davidian compound.

[davidhansen]

Currently working on SpaceX expansion. Its in the middle of nowhere really, and 20min from “downtown” Bastrop. So far that if he built up around the area it wouldn't affect anything. Idk if he plans on building more around the SpaceX/Boring company, but if he is so what? Its his land and he's providing jobs for ppl. I'd never work there based on how the construction is going, but what he does with his land is none of my business.