- SNS Telecom & IT said that Tesla is now deploying a private 5G in Shanghai after introducing the technology in Berlin
- SNS has noted that Ericsson is the private 5G supplier for the Berlin network
- BMW and Porsche are among the other automakers deploying private 5G
Electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla appears to continue driving 5G private networks in its factories across the world.
SNS Telecom & IT’s analyst Asad Khan told Fierce that the automaker is continuing to roll out its private networks – this time in its Gigafactory in Shanghai, China – after deploying the technology in its factories in Berlin, Germany and Austin, Texas.
"Tesla continues to remain very tight-lipped about the scale of its private 5G infrastructure rollout," Khan told Fierce in an email. "In addition to Berlin and Austin (Texas), the electric automaker's Gigafactory Shanghai is one of the other facilities where on-premise 5G network equipment is being deployed."
There may be more Tesla news in SNS's update of its private networking report in a couple of weeks.
Tesla revealed in May this year it was starting to utilize 5G private networking in Berlin through a short video on X (nee Twitter). SNS analyst Khan then said that Ericsson is the sole supplier for the Tesla 5G private networking gear – radio access network (RAN), 5G core, etc. – and that the car manufacturer is also installing the technology in its Austin, Texas factory.
Tesla doesn’t like to talk to the press about anything. Billionaire blowhard and Tesla CEO Elon Musk shut down Tesla’s public relations department sometime in 2020.
Ericsson is – unsurprisingly – equally reticent in talking about any dealings with Tesla.
"Ericsson won’t comment on any business with Tesla. Any comments from SNS are not confirmed from Ericsson and would be hearsay from a third party," Kelly Dorsey, VP of communications at Cradlepoint, an Ericsson company, told us in an email at the end of May.
Fierce asked both Ericsson and Huawei about the Shanghai deployment and we’ll update this story if either tells us anything new.
Private networks go vroom!
German automakers appear to have taken the lead in 5G private network stakes.
This is partially because in Germany, the government has set aside spectrum in the mid-band 3.7 to 3.8 GHz frequency band for industry to use for private networks. That is the frequency Tesla is using for its Berlin private network. Porsche has already started to use the same spectrum for its factory in Leipzig, Germany. The BMW Group is working with Deutsche Telekom to roll out 5G at its factory in Leipzig (evidently the Detroit of Germany).
BMW said it would also roll out private 5G at its Spartanburg, South Carolina, logistics center. Operators like Verizon have also started to roll out private 5G at engine maker Cummins at upstate New York.