Elon Musk announced plans to roll out Tesla’s autonomous driving technology in Israel "soon", despite mounting boycott calls from Palestinian rights advocates targeting companies accused of supporting Israel during its ongoing war on Gaza.
The tech billionaire addressed Israel' s International Smart Mobility Summit on Sunday via video link from Texas, where he praised Israel’s technology sector and promoted artificial intelligence as the "future" of transport.
Speaking remotely after cancelling a planned appearance in Tel Aviv, Musk described himself as "a big fan of the entrepreneurship that comes from Israel" and claimed the country ranked first globally for innovation relative to population size.
Israeli Transport Minister Miri Regev promoted autonomous vehicles as a solution to traffic congestion and economic losses estimated at $40 billion annually, while making no mention of the severe movement restrictions imposed on Palestinians through checkpoints, road closures and Israel’s permit regime across the occupied Palestinian territories.
Musk's appearance further highlighted his increasingly close ties with the Israeli government during a war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza and drawn accusations of war crimes and genocide from rights groups, UN experts and international legal bodies.
Many have repeatedly raised concerns over Musk’s political alignment with Israeli officials and his growing influence over communications infrastructure through companies such as Starlink. Starlink, surveillance, and strategic alignment Musk’s relationship with Israel deepened during a widely criticised November 2023 visit, when he toured the southern Israeli kibbutz of Kfar Aza alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu weeks after the start of Israel's genocide in Gaza.
The trip came amid backlash over accusations that Musk had amplified antisemitic content on X, formerly Twitter.
Musk also reversed an earlier proposal to provide Starlink internet access to aid groups operating in Gaza after Israeli officials publicly threatened retaliation. At the time, Israel had cut telecommunications and internet services in the besieged enclave during indiscriminate and relentless bombardment.
Israeli Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi warned that Israel would "use all means at its disposal" to prevent unrestricted Starlink access in Gaza, claiming Hamas could use the service.
Musk later announced that Starlink would only operate in Gaza with explicit Israeli government approval, effectively granting Israel control over emergency satellite communications in the territory.
Hamas subsequently invited Musk to visit Gaza "to see the massacres and destruction with his own eyes", though he declined, citing security concerns. Boycott movement gains momentum Musk's ties to Israel have increasingly fuelled boycott efforts targeting Tesla and other technology firms accused of complicity in Israeli policies towards Palestinians.
Trade unions and activist groups across Europe have called for boycotts of Tesla over Musk’s support for Netanyahu and Israel’s genocide in Gaza, while Tesla sales declined sharply in several European markets earlier this year.
Campaigners argue that advanced technologies developed by major corporations are becoming deeply integrated into Israel’s military and surveillance systems used against Palestinians.
The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement has intensified campaigns against technology companies it says provide Israel with tools used for surveillance, targeting and military operations in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
Major firms including Google, Amazon, Microsoft and Palantir have all faced criticism and boycott campaigns over contracts linked to Israeli military infrastructure and artificial intelligence systems used during the war.