Collective

GIGACITIES COLLECTIVE started as a transnational collaborative project exploring the impact of Tesla’s Gigafactories in Austin, Berlin, and beyond. Early in the process, the collective understood that Gigafactories are not standalone industrial complexes. Instead, they are embedded in socio-capitalist and environmental networks spanning the globe. With astonishing speed, omnivorous Elon has spread across the world like a force of nature, occupying public domains and news outlets at high speed. He has become the center of attraction for Silicon Valley, rightwing politicians, tech bros, and suburban yuppies. We knew the time was ripe to start undressing the personality traits and problematic influences. 

In the two years we have been working not his project, the real Elon has started to emerge. After he bought Twitter and incorporated the company into his vision of an “everything app” called X, the brown stains of the messianic savior became increasingly visible to the public. In this sense, the world is catching on to his tricks: the eco-hype, the empty promises, the authoritarian labor practices, and endless trolling. 

The GIGACITIES COLLECTIVE never fell for the promises of clean and green mobility that Musk was selling. So, we embarked on a journey to create the ELON MAGAZINE. Working together as scholars, journalists, artists, and activists, we have tackled the Elonious Hype Machine, the macho staging of his vexing personality, the undermining of the public good for maximum techno-capitalist exploitation, and the psychedelic mindsets that have fueled his rapacious quest for domination. We hope it sheds new light on the most powerful CEO in the world today.