Billionaire Announces He’s Leaving California, Bringing Two Major Companies to Texas

AUSTIN, Texas (KPEL News) - California has been seeing a major outmigration problem in recent years as residents and business owners pack up and leave for other states.

One of the states that has benefited most from those fleeing the Golden State is Texas, which will now see two major companies heading there thanks to their owner, billionaire and activist Elon Musk.

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Elon Musk made the announcement on X, the website formerly known as Twitter, which also happens to be one of the companies he's moving to the Lone Star State.

Musk made his decision in response to California Governor Gavin Newsom signing a new bill into law, one that would bar school systems from passing rules regarding informing parents if their child identifies as transgender.

Musk announced that his space company, SpaceX, will move to Starbase, Texas, while the social media platform X will move to Austin.

It's a big move that Musk warned Newsom would be coming.

"I did make it clear to Governor Newsom about a year ago that laws of this nature would force families and companies to leave California to protect their children," he said in the comments to his original post.

"Have had enough of dodging gangs of violent drug addicts just to get in and out of the building," he said elsewhere.

Musk's other company, Tesla, already has a major Texas presence.

The billionaire's public profile has sharply risen in recent years, particularly with his purchase of Twitter, before renaming it "X" and vowing to protect speech on the platform. Musk has championed several populist positions shared by many of former president Donald Trump's supporters, and Musk recently announced he would be donating $45 million per month to a pro-Trump super PAC.