An opaque project within Tesla dubbed “Project 42” might be getting some transparency — the endeavor is said to involve a glass house for Elon Musk, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The project previously drew scrutiny within the company after an order for glass made as part of the building-planning efforts. At the time, the internal inquiry into the order had targeted Omead Afshar, an executive leading Tesla’s Texas factory, Bloomberg reported at the time.
Tesla’s board had also inquired into any involvement by Musk in the project, and also the amount of time any employees had spent on it, according to the Journal’s report.
It’s not clear if the building project is still in the works, or whether the glass order was ever delivered, the Journal reported.
Representatives for Tesla did not respond to Insider’s emailed requests for comment. An email sent to Musk’s Tesla address did not receive a response. Afshar did not respond to an email and a LinkedIn message seeking comment. Tesla’s chair Robyn Denholm did not respond to an emailed request for comment.
It’s also not clear what role, if any, Afshar still holds at Tesla (though an email that Insider sent to his Tesla email account did not bounce back). The executive, known for his proximity to Musk, also reportedly joined Musk’s other companies Twitter and SpaceX.
The project appeared to be for a “dramatic glass-walled building” close to Tesla’s headquarters in Texas, the Journal reported, and concept plans showed differing designs and features, but included residential elements like bedrooms.
Some of Musk’s ambitions to take space in Texas have been previously reported. He has plans to build housing for his employees in Austin, according to the Austin Business Journal, and appears to be planning to develop a town called “Snailbrook” where employees at his other companies could also live, the WSJ previously reported.
