1 / 2Pirelli Is Dropping $1.2 Billion in Georgia on Robot-Built Tires That Talk to Your CarFor more than twenty years, Pirelli's plant in northwest Georgia has been the kind of factory most enthusiasts never think about, even while running its product on their cars. That's about to change. Governor Brian Kemp's office announced that Pirelli will add 1,000 jobs through a multi-year, $1.2 billion expansion of its existing Rome facility, according to the governor's announcement.The details behind the headline number are more interesting: robot-built tires, a sensor-laden "smart" tire that needed federal sign-off to be sold here, and a boardroom where not everyone wanted this to happen.The numbers, minus the ribbon-cuttingPirelli set up its U.S. headquarters and manufacturing site in Rome in 2002 and currently has 234 employees in Georgia across manufacturing, R&D, and headquarters roles. Adding 1,000 jobs would make that workforce roughly five times bigger.Today in Automotive History: September 28, 2020 — A London Court Hands Uber Its License BackNHTSA Wants Your Ideas to Fix Recalls. Its Meeting Won't Be Streamed or Recorded.Don't expect a hiring rush next spring, though. Most of the hiring is scheduled to start in 2029, and the plant isn't expected to reach full operation until 2033. It's a seven-year build-out, so maybe hold off on quitting your current job.Pirelli's own board release puts the figure at about €1 billion and adds the number that matters most to anyone who buys tires. Construction starts in 2027, and by 2033 Rome's annual capacity is targeted at around 6 million car tires, including Cyber Tyre products. Six million tires works out to roughly 1.5 million four-tire sets a year coming out of one Georgia campus.Divide $1.2 billion by 1,000 jobs and you get about $1.2 million of capital per position. That ratio tells you this is mainly an automation play, with the jobs following the machines rather than the other way around.Two ways to build a tireThe expansion comes in two phases, and they use different approaches to manufacturing.Phase one gradually ramps up robotized production using the newest version of MIRS (Modular Integrated Robotized System), Pirelli's in-house technology, with output climbing from 2028 toward 3 million tires a year. Pirelli said earlier this year that this latest MIRS process would be the most advanced premium-production method in the whole group and would be exclusive to the Georgia plant.Phase two adds a separate, fully automated conventional facility for premium products, contributing another 3 million tires a year once it's running.Why run both? A conventional tire line is efficient when it builds a lot of the same thing. Modular robotic cells are better at the opposite problem, which is building many different sizes and specs in small runs without constant, costly changeovers. Pirelli's release says as much. The company notes that its High Value segment requires highly specialized processes and small-batch handling of a wide product mix. If you've ever waited weeks for an oddball staggered-fitment size for a European sports sedan, this is the production problem Pirelli is trying to fix.It also explains the location. Pirelli says the U.S. is the largest market in the world for its High Value segment, making up around 40% of global volume. Shipping premium rubber across the Atlantic to the company's biggest customer base has always been the long way around.The tire that talks backCyber Tyre is a hardware-and-software system that collects data from sensors embedded in the tire, runs it through Pirelli's proprietary algorithms, and communicates in real time with the vehicle's electronics to support driving and control functions. In other words, it's an electronic device wired into the car, and that's what put it in front of national-security regulators.That puts it close to Washington's connected-vehicle crackdown. The Commerce Department's rule treats Vehicle Connectivity System hardware and software, plus Automated Driving System software, as an unacceptable national-security risk when they come from parties with a sufficient link to China or Russia. The rule also lets companies apply for Specific Authorizations to carry out transactions that would otherwise be banned, according to the BIS rule announcement.Pirelli's ownership is what makes that relevant. Early this year, Camfin and MTP & C., the Italian shareholders, decided not to renew their shareholder pact with the Sinochem Group, which expired on May 18, 2026. Shareholder CNRC answered by proposing that the Cyber Tyre business be split off into a separate corporate structure. Pirelli's board rejected that idea. In a 9–5 vote in February, it backed CEO Andrea Casaluci's position that Cyber Tyre must stay fully integrated within the group, and management argued that separating it would not get around the restrictions imposed by U.S. law anyway, per the February board statement.Detroit's Share of U.S. Car Sales Is Headed for a Record Low. Here's What 36% Really Means.Honda Spent $1 Billion So One Ohio Line Could Build Anything. It Still Ran Out of Room.The outcome came with the Georgia announcement. After governance changes under Italy's 2026 Golden Power Decree, Pirelli received authorization from the Bureau of Industry and Security to sell the Cyber Tyre system in the U.S.The vote was not unanimous. The board approved the U.S. plan by majority, with directors Zhang Haitao, Xi Xiaohong, and Wang Kun voting against it. Zhang Haitao was also one of the five directors who opposed keeping Cyber Tyre integrated back in February. Draw your own conclusions about where the boardroom fault lines are.Will investors flinch?Pirelli is trying to head off any balance-sheet worries. The company says the project won't affect its 2026 targets and expects its capex-to-revenue ratio for 2027 through 2033 to stay broadly in line with previous periods, without hurting cash generation. Spreading the spending over seven years is how you fund a billion-euro factory without scaring shareholders.On the Georgia side, the deal was worked by the state's economic development department together with the Rome-Floyd Development Authority, Georgia Quick Start, and Georgia Power. The groundwork goes back to 2024, when Governor and First Lady Kemp met with Pirelli executives during an economic mission to Italy. The announcement doesn't include any incentive figures. That's a number taxpayers in Floyd County may reasonably want to see at some point.What it means for owners and buyersIn the short term, nothing changes. The new capacity starts arriving in 2028 and doesn't reach full volume until 2033, so this won't affect what's on tire-store shelves before your next alignment.The longer-term picture matters more. Rome already specializes in high-value tires for North America, including motorsport products, and has its own R&D center. Doubling down there points to more premium and performance fitments being built domestically. That could shorten supply chains for the large-rim, low-profile sizes that tend to go on backorder.Cyber Tyre is the one to watch if you're shopping for new cars. A tire with a sensor inside that talks to the car's control systems works more like a TPMS-equipped wheel than a plain replacement part. If connected tires show up on production cars you're considering, expect replacements and shop handling to be tied more closely to what the vehicle was designed for. It's worth asking a dealer how that works before you sign, especially on a car you plan to keep past its first set of tires.For Rome, it's the biggest bet Pirelli has made on the town since it arrived. For drivers, it's a sign that even tires are turning into electronics, and electronics now get vetted in Washington before they can be sold here.Would you pay more for a tire that reports back to your car's computer, or would you rather that part stay round, black and cheap? Tell us in the comments.The post Pirelli Is Dropping $1.2 Billion in Georgia on Robot-Built Tires That Talk to Your Car appeared first on The Auto Wire.
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