Finding
Tesla builds the pack, drive units, software and the car itself, but buys its cells, magnets and AI chip
The ring holds 29 supplier rows across 12 layers: eight in-house, one sole source, 13 China-supplied and zero with the supplier not disclosed.
Tesla keeps pack, BMS, drive units, software and assembly in-house at four plants, but the cells are bought: Panasonic (Nevada, Kansas) for US cars, while Shanghai and Berlin cars run on China-made cells (LG Energy Solution Nanjing NCM, CATL LFP, earlier BYD Blade for Berlin). The China dependence sits upstream: magnets (JL Mag, Zhong Ke San Huan), graphite (Shanshan), thermal valves (Sanhua) and chassis and aluminum parts (Tuopu, Xusheng), several of which built Mexico plants to follow Tesla. Single points: Samsung Foundry in Korea is the only AI4 fab, and IDRA, owned by China's LK Technology, builds the Giga Presses.
The ring
Who supplies each layer
In-house rows first in each layer, then sole, primary, second and multi-source suppliers. The left border shows the supplier country: red China, gold Japan, Korea or Taiwan, blue the US and Europe, gray not disclosed. Confidence: confirmed (company or filing), reported (credible press), inferred (deduced, not disclosed).
| Supplier | Component | Country | Plant or location | Relationship | Confidence | Evidence and links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cells | ||||||
| Tesla (Robstown lithium refinery) Parent: Tesla | Lithium hydroxide Started Dec 2024; spodumene feed from North American Lithium (Quebec, Piedmont/Sayona) | US | Robstown, Texas, US | in-house | confirmed | press report Lithium Refining |
| Panasonic Energy Parent: Panasonic | 2170 NCA cylindrical cells (US-built Model Y) Cells made inside Tesla Gigafactory Nevada; about 41 GWh a year | Japan | Sparks, Nevada, US | primary | confirmed | press report |
| Panasonic Energy Parent: Panasonic | 2170 cylindrical cells (second US cell plant) Mass production began 14 Jul 2025, about 32 GWh target; source does not name Tesla, Tesla is the main 2170 customer | Japan | De Soto, Kansas, US | primary | reported | company release |
| LG Energy Solution Parent: LG | 2170 NCM cells for Shanghai- and Berlin-built new Model Y 5,300 mAh cell; Berlin uses Shanghai-assembled packs, so European Model Y cells are China-made | South Korea | Nanjing, China | primary | reported | press report (Thelec via IT Home) LG Energy Solution |
| CATL | LFP prismatic cells (Shanghai-built RWD) Supply contract ran Jan 2022 to Dec 2025; renewal for Juniper not confirmed | China | Ningde, Fujian, China | primary | reported | press report |
| Ganfeng Lithium | Lithium hydroxide Three-year deal 2022-2024; current status not verified | China | Jiangxi, China | primary | reported | press report Lithium Refining |
| Sumitomo Metal Mining | NCA cathode active material for Panasonic cells SMM focuses its cathode supply on Panasonic; Tesla link is through Panasonic cells | Japan | Niihama, Japan | primary | reported | press report |
| FinDreams Battery (BYD) Parent: BYD | Blade LFP cells (Berlin-built RWD) Started 2023 on pre-Juniper Model Y; whether it carried into Juniper is not verified | China | China (shipped to Grunheide, Germany) | second source | reported | press report |
| Syrah Resources | Natural graphite active anode material Offtake signed 2021; Tesla alleged default 2025, resolution reported Jun 2026; flake from Balama, Mozambique | Australia | Vidalia, Louisiana, US | reported | reported | press report |
| Ningbo Shanshan | Graphite anode material (China-made cells) Named as a Tesla China battery-chain supplier; cell-level allocation not disclosed | China | China | reported | reported | press report |
| Pack and BMS | ||||||
| Tesla | Structural battery pack and BMS Tesla ranked 4th in China BMS installs Jan-Jul 2025 (306,564 sets) | US | Fremont, Austin, Shanghai, Berlin | in-house | confirmed | industry ranking (Gasgoo) Tesla |
| Thermal | ||||||
| Sanhua Intelligent Controls | Heat pump electronic expansion valves and Octovalve parts Built a Mexico plant (8 million heat control systems a year) to follow Tesla | China | Shaoxing, China; Monterrey, Mexico | primary | reported | press report EV Thermal Management Systems |
| Motor and drive | ||||||
| Tesla | Rear PMSRM and front induction drive units Tesla 4th in China motor and controller installs Jan-Jul 2025 | US | Fremont, Austin, Shanghai, Berlin, Nevada | in-house | confirmed | industry ranking (Gasgoo) Traction Motors and Magnets |
| Magnets and rare earths | ||||||
| JL Mag Rare-Earth | Sintered NdFeB magnets for PM motors 2020 agreement for Model 3 RWD motors; continued Model Y supply inferred | China | Ganzhou, Baotou, Ningbo, China | primary | reported | company filing (purchase agreement) Magnet Manufacturing for Motors |
| Zhong Ke San Huan | NdFeB magnets for drive motors Named as Tesla China drive-motor supplier | China | Beijing, China | reported | reported | press report Magnet Manufacturing for Motors |
| Power electronics and SiC | ||||||
| STMicroelectronics | SiC MOSFETs for traction inverter Model 3 inverter teardown 2018; same inverter family in Model Y | Switzerland | Catania, Italy; Sanan-ST JV Chongqing, China | primary | confirmed | teardown EV Power Semiconductors |
| onsemi | SiC MOSFETs (second source) Tesla said in 2023 it would cut SiC per vehicle by 75% | US | US; Czech Republic; South Korea | second source | reported | press report EV Power Semiconductors |
| Compute and AI chips | ||||||
| Samsung Foundry Parent: Samsung | AI4 FSD SoC (Hardware 4) Samsung makes AI4 since 2023; Taiwan-free but Korea-dependent | South Korea | South Korea | sole source | confirmed | press report on regulatory filing Tesla Terafab |
| Sensors | ||||||
| Samsung Electro-Mechanics Parent: Samsung | Camera modules (HW4) About $4B deal 2022; Juniper has no radar, vision-only | South Korea | South Korea (plant not disclosed) | primary | reported | press report Vehicle Camera Modules |
| LG Innotek Parent: LG | Camera modules Former primary camera supplier, displaced by Samsung | South Korea | South Korea; Vietnam | second source | reported | press report Vehicle Camera Modules |
| Software and autonomy | ||||||
| Tesla | FSD (Supervised), vehicle OS, OTA | US | Palo Alto, California, US | in-house | confirmed | company release Tesla and the Six Foundation Domains |
| Structure and body | ||||||
| IDRA (LK Technology) Parent: LK Technology | Giga Press single-piece front and rear castings IDRA is owned by LK Technology (Hong Kong/China); casting machines are the chokepoint, casting is in-house | Italy | Brescia, Italy | primary | confirmed | press report |
| Ningbo Xusheng Group | Aluminum alloy parts $276M Mexico line announced to follow Tesla | China | Ningbo, China; Mexico | reported | reported | press report |
| Tuopu Group | Lightweight chassis parts $200M Mexico plant; Tuopu also makes thermal modules | China | Ningbo, China; Mexico | reported | reported | press report EV Thermal Management Systems |
| Charging interface | ||||||
| Sanmina | Onboard charger (China-built cars) Sanmina OBC count (306,564) equals Tesla BMS count exactly; Tesla design, contract-built | US | China | reported | inferred | industry ranking (Gasgoo) EV Onboard Chargers |
| Final assembly | ||||||
| Tesla Fremont Factory Parent: Tesla | Vehicle assembly | US | Fremont, California, US | in-house | confirmed | company release |
| Tesla Gigafactory Texas Parent: Tesla | Vehicle assembly | US | Austin, Texas, US | in-house | confirmed | company release |
| Tesla Gigafactory Shanghai Parent: Tesla | Vehicle assembly (export hub) Also ships packs to Berlin | US | Shanghai, China | in-house | confirmed | company release |
| Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg Parent: Tesla | Vehicle assembly | US | Grunheide, Germany | in-house | confirmed | company release |
Sources
Sources and scope
- Scope
- Tesla Model Y (Juniper) supplier ring
- Sources
- ElectronsX flagship machine ring dataset: teardowns, company releases and filings, supplier disclosures and trade press; one source per row
- Updated
- 2026-10