Tesla is bringing its electric vehicles to the heart of the oil-producing nation.
The automaker announced Monday that its first official venture in the Middle East will be in the United Arab Emirates.
The first cars, the Model S and Model X, will go on sale this summer.
“It seems like the right time to make a really important debut in the region, starting with Dubai.” Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk said at the World Government Summit in Dubai:
Tesla owners will have access to two existing Supercharger stations in the UAE, and Terrsa plans to open five more charging stations by the end of the year.
Despite having huge oil and gas reserves, the UAE has ambitious green plans. Last month, she announced that she would invest $163 billion to promote alternative energy use over the next 30 years.
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This is the latest in a series of expansion announcements from Tesla. Last week, Musk hinted that Tesla may soon be expanding into India.
Musk too Plans made fun of Build “heavy trucks and dense urban transit” and develop a ride-hailing network similar to Uber.
An entrepreneur speaking in Dubai explained the future of robotics.
“Autonomy and artificial intelligence will make great strides,” Musk said.
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But he also warned of the “disruptive” nature of self-driving cars.
“The disruption I’m talking about will happen over about 20 years. Yet 20 years is a short period of time for something like 12% to 15% of the workforce to be unemployed.”
Musk said governments need to pay close attention to artificial intelligence, build sustainable transportation, and watch out for mass unemployment.
“This will be a big social challenge. Ultimately we have to think about a universal basic income. I don’t think we have a choice,” he said. “There will be fewer and fewer jobs that robots can’t do well.”
— Seth Fiegerman contributed to the report.
CNNMoney (Dubai) First published February 13, 2017: 11:06 AM ET
