Tesla prepares to open Israel R&D office

In mid-November, Tesla registered a subsidiary in Israel under the name Tesla Motors Israel Ltd..

According to the entry in the company registry, the company business is "The importation, distribution, sale, maintenance and repair of electric vehicles and mobile energy storage systems, energy generation systems and equipment, including solar panels, solar energy systems, and / or other solar energy conversion systems, and in general all other energy generation systems, accompanying products, parts, accessories and accompanying equipment, and to develop, own, operate, purchase, sell, maintain, plan, engineer, obtain, build, install and order fixed energy storage systems, and energy generation systems and equipment (whether directly or by setting up special purpose entities formed for the purposes of maintaining assets as mentioned.) "

Tesla Inc. plans to begin operations in Israel in January, according to sources. A local team already decided to open a pop-up store at Ramat Aviv Mall in Tel Aviv.

Dizengoff Square and Bauhaus-style buildings in Tel Aviv. Photo by Orlov Sergei via shutterstock.com

Today, according to the sources of the Globes, it became known that Tesla opens an R&D office in Israel.

In the first stage, Israel R&D operations will focus on exploring for local startups and technologies involved in areas of interest for Tesla as well as talks and information exchange with Israeli companies, with some of whom Tesla has already had a business and technological relationship over the past two or three years.

These include at least two to three technology companies, as well as artificial intelligence (AI) developers and advanced avionics companies, as well as companies in other areas.

According to one source familiar with this, Tesla is also considering the possibility of creating a R&D center that will work directly with the company's R&D center in Palo Alto. If Tesla establishes an Israeli R&D center, it will employ dozens of engineers, and will have dimensions similar to the Israeli development centers of many other automakers, manufacturers and suppliers of automotive spare parts of the first level.

Sources say Tesla's R&D office in Israel will be run by Adi Gigi, an Israeli who has been based in California for several years and has been working at Tesla. She is a graduate of the IDF's Mamram Computing and Information Systems Unit and the Israel Navy Technology College. She has degrees from Bar-Ilan University and an MBA from Stanford.

Tesla Research and Development is today considered one of the largest and most advanced in the United States. He is involved in many futuristic and breakthrough engineering fields, including electric cars, next-generation batteries, rocket engines, modern communications, solar energy, artificial intelligence, laboratory planning, and more. In 2018, Tesla spent $1.5 billion on R&D.

Tesla entered the electric car market in Israel after the company increased production in the US and increased sales throughout Europe.

Until recently, Israeli law required that at least 90% of the shares of a company that imports cars in Israel be owned by Israelis. But, starting in September, for the company to work, it is only necessary that the company to be headed by an Israeli. After registration, Tesla began searching for a country manager by posting a wanted advertisement on its website.

Tesla is also working to promote a change in Israeli law that will increase the planned maximum tax breaks for cleaner vehicles.

Featured image: Tesmanian