Tesla Expo returns for innovator’s 169th birthday celebration

Each year, the Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe celebrates the life and contributions of Nikola Tesla with the Nikola Tesla Expo, an exposition of technology and STEM programming that focuses on Tesla’s mission of innovation and sustainability.

This year’s expo is set for Saturday, July 12, from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Tesla Science Center on the grounds of Wardenclyffe, Tesla’s Long Island laboratory. Thousands of guests are expected to attend.

This family-friendly celebration of science, technology and innovation will feature speakers, exhibits, hands-on activities and other interactive experiences. There will also be refreshments and Long Island’s largest drone show.

“Guests can expect everything from high school robotics clubs to some of Long Island’s leading tech companies that are showcasing their technology and trying to educate people,” said Marc Alessi, executive director of the center. “Most of the tech that’s being showcased has a tie to Tesla’s work here on site or his career, whether it’s electricity and energy or wireless technologies.”

New this year are representatives from the Space Force, who will deliver presentations detailing how this new branch of the military is advancing work in space. There will also be a local oyster farm that will demonstrate how they use drone and robotic technologies to harvest their oysters.

In lieu of fireworks, Sky Elements, a Guinness World record-holder, will finish the night with a coordinated 300-drone routine. This non-polluting option is in line with Tesla’s desire for a sustainable future. 

“A lot of people don’t realize that Nikola Tesla, as early as the 1890s, was writing about the importance of sustainability in everything from food to energy,” said Mr. Alessi. “He was into hydropower, he wanted to explore wind power, and he would write about solar power, not knowing how it was going to be accomplished yet, but knowing that it would be a possibility.” 

Construction at the science center is slated to resume this year, beginning with the visitor’s center and then the lab building, which was damaged by fire in 2023. Even the construction project is being planned with Tesla’s legacy in mind.

“And so as we ramp up, even when we do the construction and we’re planning the buildings, we’re planning on using some of the latest technologies and showcasing them so that we can educate the public about what’s possible in terms of sustainability,” Mr. Alessi said.

Mr. Alessi is hopeful for the future of the center and grateful for the community’s response to the Expo.

“Year over year, it improves, and it’s a big shot in the arm for our community to be able to come out and get a taste of what this place is really going to represent once we fully open the doors,” he said.