You don't have to spy from space to know Elon Musk is growing his business empire in Texas, but it shows just how massive his impact is becoming.This week, Musk announced he plans to step back from the DOGE office in May to focus more time on Tesla. Before Tuesday, Tesla stock was down 44% this year.Musk has said that he's led his companies "with great difficulty" during his time with DOGE. His stepping back might give him more time to refocus on his other core companies, too, all of which have a growing footprint in Texas.In the late 2010s, Musk had grown increasingly discontent with California laws and regulations and decided that Texas offered a more business-friendly environment.So, in 2020, Musk's tunneling firm, The Boring Company, moved its headquarters from California to Texas, followed by Tesla in 2021 and X and SpaceX in 2024. Musk's smaller companies, Neuralink and X.AI, also have ties to Texas.The satellite images below show his business's exponential growth across the Lone Star state over the last few years, and what Musk has in store next. Musk did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. To make way for its new rocket launch site — Starbase — SpaceX tried to buy out locals, telling some it was "not safe" to live there anymore. Many took the buyout, some stayed. Boca Chica in 2020, several years after SpaceX began building its launch facility. Maxar SpaceX is testing the world's largest rocket at Starbase. Potential pollution from launches and explosions has some environmentalists concerned for nearby water systems and wildlife habitats. Before and after satellite images of Boca Chica Village, Texas, in 2002 before SpaceX moved in and in 2023, showing a well-developed Starbase with Starship prototypes. Maxar / Business Insider About 500 people now live in Boca Chica, even Musk has a home there. On May 3, its residents are scheduled to vote on whether to make Starbase its own city. Before and after satellite images of Boca Chica in 2002 (left) before Starbase existed and in 2025 (right). Maxar / Business Insider About 350 miles north is Bastrop, which has gone from featureless farmland to a massive corporate campground for several of Musk's companies. Satellite images of Bastrop, Texas in 2021 (left) and 2024 (right). Maxar / Business Insider Recently, Texas awarded SpaceX a $17.3 million grant to expand its Starlink satellite manufacturing facility in Bastrop. Headquarters for X and The Boring Company are also here. Satellite image of Bastrop, Texas and facilities for Starlink, X, and The Boring Company. Maxar / Business Insider Satellite images suggest that The Boring Company's machines are building tunnels under the road. Satellite image of The Boring Company in Bastrop, Texas, in 2024. Maxar / Business Insider Musk's brain-computer interface company, Neuralink, is also planning to expand in the Austin area by building a $14.7 million facility in Del Valle. Musk founded Neuralink to developing brain-computer interfaces. Future Publishing Musk is also planning on building 110 homes on a plot near the Ad Astra school. He's calling the housing development "Project Amazing." Satellite image of Bastrop, Texas, with a sketch outlining what "Project Amazing" plans to look like. Maxar / Business Insider Texas isn't the only place where Musk is expanding his business. Tesla has a gigafactory in China… Satellite images of Tesla gigafactory in China before it was built in 2014 (left) and after in 2024 (right). Maxar / Business Insider …and another in Grünheide, Germany. It's Tesla's first manufacturing plant in Europe. Satellite images show Tesla gigafactory in Germany in 2021 (left) and 2025 (right). Maxar / Business Insider Watch this video for more on Musk's growing global empire.