Audi's $4B Georgia Plant: 4,500 Jobs, 200,000 SUVs a Year — The Brand's First US Factory Won't Build a Car Until the Early 2030s, and Still Needs Final Approval

Audi plans its first American assembly plant at the Middle Georgia Mega Site, but production is years away and the decision is not yet final.

Audi has said it will build its first factory in the United States, committing about $4 billion to a greenfield plant at the Middle Georgia Mega Site near Perry. The company expects roughly 4,500 jobs and a capacity of up to 200,000 vehicles a year, all of them premium SUVs aimed at North American customers.

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Meet the Audi Q9. (Audi USA)YouTube ↗

The timeline is the part buyers should read twice. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2027, but production is planned for the early 2030s. Until then, every Audi sold in America keeps arriving by ship or rail from plants in Europe and Mexico. Nothing about this announcement changes what is on a dealer lot today.

What Audi has actually committed to

Volkswagen Group's own statement, dated October 25, 2026, describes the project as still subject to approval by the relevant committees. Trade coverage on November 2 adds that the Volkswagen Group Supervisory Board has yet to sign off, with Audi's supervisory board chair, Manfred Döss, supporting the plan. In other words, the headline figures are a plan with strong backing, not a finished contract.

Audi CEO Gernot Döllner framed it as a bigger bet than a building: "This is about building a stronger Audi business in America — not only about building a factory." Production chief Gerd Walker pointed to the advantage of starting from scratch: "Building a new plant from the ground up allows us to rethink manufacturing from day one."

Which models will be built there?

Audi has not said. Its statement refers only to premium SUVs. Reuters has reported that the Q7, Q8 and the new Q9 are the likely candidates; all three are currently built in Slovakia, according to that reporting, and none of it is confirmed by Audi. The Q9, a larger three-row SUV that Audi has presented as tailored to US buyers, is the most obvious fit for a market that favors big family SUVs, but treat it as informed speculation.

Audi of America president Vito Paladino said about half of the plant's output would be for the US market, which would leave up to 100,000 vehicles a year for export. Audi has not named export destinations.

The tariff backdrop

The money follows the trade bill. Volkswagen Group paid about $4 billion in US tariffs in 2025, of which roughly $1.4 billion fell on Audi. Reuters sources say the Trump administration promised Audi tariff relief, with Audi reportedly seeking a cut in the rate on EU-built imports from 15 percent to 7.5 percent and the Commerce Department expected to agree to a ceiling around 10 percent. Audi declined to comment, and Commerce did not respond to Reuters.

Volkswagen's statement gives the strategic reason in plainer terms: the US is the world's second-largest premium market, and building locally would reduce exposure to trade and currency swings, making North America a third production pillar next to Europe and China.

What it means for shoppers

For now, very little. Prices on current Audis will keep reflecting whatever tariff rate applies to imports, and the plant cannot soften that before the 2030s. The longer-term signal is for the segment: Audi joins the long list of luxury brands that have decided importing alone is too costly in the American market. Paladino also hinted at more to come, saying Audi has other investments it looks forward to announcing soon.

We will update this story if Volkswagen's board approves the plan or Audi names the first model.

Original coverage: Audi first US plant in Georgia