Elon Musk said Tuesday on X that he is moving the headquarters of both SpaceX and the social media platform formerly known as Twitter to Texas — citing several criticisms he has of California and doing business in San Francisco.
Pointing to a new state law that bans teachers from telling families about student gender identity changes, Musk tweeted that he is moving the headquarters of SpaceX from Hawthorne in Los Angeles County to the company’s launch test site in Texas.
The move would be a blow to Southern California, where SpaceX has helped to anchor a burgeoning space economy.
“This is the final straw,” tweeted Musk shortly after noon. “Because of this law and the many others that preceded it, attacking both families and companies, SpaceX will now move its HQ from Hawthorne, California, to Starbase, Texas.”
The law the SpaceX founder cited was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday after a contentious battle between conservative school boards concerned about parental rights and LGBTQ+ activists worried about vulnerable youths.
Shortly after, Musk tweeted he would also move X, formerly known as Twitter, from San Francisco to Austin, noting that he has “had enough of dodging gangs of violent drug addicts just to get in and out of the building.”
Since acquiring Twitter in 2022 in a $44-billion deal, Musk has made sweeping and controversial changes to the social media site, firing top executives and laying off thousands of employees.
The announcement is the latest salvo in Musk’s long-running feud with California and comes nearly three years after he announced the move of Tesla’s headquarters to Austin from Palo Alto, citing the high cost of housing and long commutes for employees. The electric vehicle company maintains a manufacturing operation in Fremont.
In tweeting he would move SpaceX’s headquarters, it was unclear whether Musk means to only move the company’s executive offices or also production and other employees.
Founded in 2002, SpaceX has deep ties to Los Angeles. In 2007, it moved into a former Northrop Corp. facility off Crenshaw Boulevard that it rapidly expanded last decade.
The sprawling Hawthorne campus is the location of the company’s mission control center, and employs thousands of employees who build the company’s workhorse Falcon 9 rocket. The company’s Dragon capsule, made to service the International Space Station, also was built there under a $2.6-billion contract with NASA.
Other facilities in Southern California include one at Vandenberg Space Force Base near Lompoc, where it wants to expand operations. SpaceX is seeking approval to launch 90 rockets from the Santa Barbara County launch site by 2026.
The company also conducts rocket launches in Florida and from Starbase, a site in Boca Chica off the Gulf of Mexico. That is where it has launched its massive Starship rocket that SpaceX intends to send to the moon.
Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz applauded Tuesday’s announcement with a tweet that stated, “Let freedom ring!”
This is a developing story