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The Boring Company's LA tunnel is poised for December opening
The Boring Company's traffic-dodging LA test tunnel might truly be able to give people free rides this December. Company chief Elon Musk has revealed on Twitter that he's just walked the full length of the "disturbingly long" tunnel and that it's on track for its December 10th opening party. He previously promised an opening event for that night followed by free rides for the public the next day.
Tesla's Summon upgrade turns vehicles into remote-controlled cars
Tesla's self-parking Summon feature is getting an upgrade, and it'll be ready in less than six weeks. In a series of tweets, chief executive Elon Musk revealed that the beefed-up feature will now allow vehicles to drive around parking lots, find empty spots and read parking signs. "Car will drive to your phone location & follow you like a pet if you hold down summon button on Tesla app," he wrote, without giving any further details.
Tesla's 'Navigate on Autopilot' goes live in North America tonight
When Tesla rolled out its 9.0 software to vehicles earlier this month, it held back one feature for some additional testing: Navigate on Autopilot. Now, CEO Elon Musk tweeted that a beta test of the feature will become widely available across North America tonight. In a move that Musk has previously described as a time when "we will begin to enable full self-driving features," it gives more control over to the car from highway on-ramp to off-ramp.
Musk: Model Y prototype approved to go into production
On Tesla's earnings call after announcing its first quarterly profit, CEO Elon Musk chatted about the company's upcoming products. While claiming it has "the most exciting product roadmap of any company on Earth," Musk mentioned the Model Y crossover EV we've only seen hints of so far, and said "I recently approved the prototype to go into production."
Tesla drops Model S and X interior options to simplify production
Tesla isn't just pulling exterior color options to keep its assembly lines humming. Elon Musk has announced that his company is removing "many" Model S and Model X interior configuration options after November 1st in order to "simplify production." He didn't say which features were getting the chop, but it's safe to presume that you'll want to order quickly if you demand an interior that's equipped just so.
The Boring Company's LA test tunnel is almost complete
Today, Elon Musk announced via Twitter that the first Boring Company test tunnel under Los Angeles is almost finished. When it's complete, the system will be able to carry pedestrians, cyclists and private vehicles at speeds of 155 mph. People will be able to try the loop out for free at a special event at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, CA, on December 10th.
Now you can buy a Model 3 for $45,000 before incentives
The Tesla Model 3 was originally announced with a promise that the car could be purchased for as little as $35,000 before federal and state tax incentives were applied, but until now, the cheapest model started at $49,000. Now, Elon Musk announced that his company has added a "mid range battery" option with a price that starts at $45,000 before incentives are applied. According to the exec, if you apply federal tax credits of $7,500 (hopefully you reserved one already) plus California's state tax rebate its price drops to $35k. In response to questions, Musk tweeted that "It's a long range battery with fewer cells." The still-cheaper-yet "standard" battery option that should cut the price more is still months away from availability, while the company can deliver this version (which is equipped with just rear wheel drive instead of a dual-motor AWD setup) right now. If you check its revamped ordering page right now, the next-highest priced model jumps up to $54,000 before incentives since it includes AWD -- an option that Electrek notes has seen a price bump back up to $5,000 -- but if you'd prefer the combination of a long-range battery with an estimated 310 mile range and RWD for $49k, it's still available for ordering "off menu" for a few days. Opting for this mid-range battery means living with an estimated 260 mile range, which should still be more than enough to cover most commutes and trips several times over.
Judge approves settlement between SEC and Elon Musk
Today, as first reported by Bloomberg, a judge has approved Elon Musk's settlement with the SEC over his tweets about taking Tesla private. Hopefully, this means that Tesla can move on and focus on its business, rather than its CEO's Twitter account. And Elon Musk can get back to the real work he has to do, which is apparently creating Tesla-branded tequila called Teslaquila.
Tesla's big software update arrives without new AutoPilot features
Tesla is rolling out a much-anticipated software update to every "Model S, Model X and Model 3 ever built" that will everything from Atari games hidden as Easter Eggs to 360-degree surround camera views, even as some driving assistance features are on hold. There's a new app launcher, and users can switch between apps by swiping up or down. Once you have this update (downloaded via WiFi, you can schedule it for convenience), you'll be able to trigger software updates remotely via the app, send navigations to the car's software from your phone's mapping apps, and let passengers control media playback using their phones.
Elon Musk's next move? Teasing the SEC on Twitter
Just days after announcing a settlement with the SEC that would cost him $20 million and his spot as chairman of the board, this afternoon Elon Musk tweeted "Just want to (say) that the Shortseller Enrichment Commission is doing incredible work. And the name change is so on point!" As a reminder, the Securities and Exchange Commission had accused him of "false and misleading public statements and omissions" based on his tweets about having "funding secured" to make Tesla a private company.
Tesla hits Model 3 production goals for Q3
Today, Tesla reported that it met its ambitious Model 3 production goal for the third quarter of 2018. It produced 80,142 vehicles during Q3 of 2018, which is 50 percent more than the company's all-time record set during Q2 of this year. This included 53,239 Model 3 vehicles. The company delivered 83,500 vehicles to customers during the same quarter; 55,840 were Model 3s. Clearly, the company is moving past its Model 3 production woes, as Tesla delivered roughly twice as many Model 3s in Q3 as it had in all previous quarters combined.
After Math: Hello Darkness, my old friend
Well, this week lasted years. While we weren't being bludgeoned by the cantankerous Kavanaugh confirmation hearings, we were learning about how 50 million Facebook users had their accounts hacked, that Elon Musk is being sued by the SEC for his Twitter posts (the ones about privatizing Tesla, not the ones wherein he libels a rescue diver), and that Red Dead Redemption 2 will rustle the remainder of your hard drive's free space.
Elon Musk settles with SEC over fraud charge
Elon Musk's SEC drama is over almost as soon as it begun -- the entrepreneur has settled with the SEC over the securities fraud charge for his tweets about taking Tesla private. He'll get to keep the CEO position and won't have to admit guilt, but he'll have to step down as Chairman and let an independent person take that position. He won't be eligible for that position for three years, the SEC said. Tesla will also have to appoint a total of two new directors, create a committee of independent directors and establish "additional controls and procedures" for Musk's communications. Both Musk and Tesla will pay $20 million each in penalties, all of which will go toward "harmed investors."
Tesla asks employees to beta test its full self-driving system
To get Tesla's full self-driving capabilities, you'd have to pay between $5,000 and $10,000 for an upgrade, depending on the package you choose. The company is offering some of its employees the chance to get it for free, though -- so long as they're willing to share around 300 to 400 hours of driving feedback, that is. In an internal email obtained by Bloomberg, company chief Elon Musk is asking around 100 to 200 employees thinking of buying a Tesla to join an internal testing program for the automaker's full-fledged autonomous system.
Elon Musk reportedly backed out of SEC deal at the last second
Yesterday, the SEC sued Elon Musk over his ill-thought August tweets about having "funding secured" to take Tesla private. (Spoiler alert: He didn't have funding secured and Tesla will remain public.) Now, CNBC reports that the SEC was very close to settling with Musk, but he backed out at the last second.
Government sues Elon Musk for tweeting about taking Tesla private
The Securities Exchange Commission has filed a lawsuit against Tesla CEO Elon Musk in a Manhattan federal court on Thursday, as first reported by Bloomberg. The agency alleges that Musk's tweets in August about having "funding secured" for a potential bid to take the company private constitute fraud for being "false and misleading statements". What's more, the lawsuit seeks to ban Musk from serving as an officer of a public company.
SpaceX gives us a glimpse of its Mars base vision
SpaceX chief Elon Musk has tweeted two photos that give us a peek into the company's Martian dreams. One of the images shows the BFR, the massive rocket SpaceX is developing for deep space missions, while the other shows the BFR and what he called "Mars Base Alpha." It's no secret that the private space corporation wants to build a human settlement on the red planet. Back in 2017, it announced its plans to launch two BFR cargo missions to Mars by 2022 to prepare for the arrival of the first Martian settlers by 2024. Before any of that can happen, though, SpaceX has to be able to start testing its BFR system in the first half of 2019.
Who is Yusaku Maezawa, SpaceX's first lunar tourist?
Elon Musk shocked the world on Monday when he revealed the identity of SpaceX's first lunar orbit tourist to be Mr. Yusaku Maezawa, a Japanese billionaire who made his fortune in online fashion retail.
Tesla reportedly faces DOJ investigation over Elon Musk tweets
It looks like Tesla is in more hot water over Elon Musk's tweets that the company might go private. Bloomberg reports that, according to two people familiar with the matter, the Department of Justice is investigating Tesla because of the CEO's statements. In August, Musk tweeted that he was considering taking his company private, adding that funding had already been secured. Musk later announced that Tesla would remain a publicly traded company for the time being.
Tesla's built-in dashcam feature is coming with Autopilot 9
Tesla's upgraded Autopilot hardware comes with eight cameras equipped all over a vehicle. All those "eyes" will eventually enable full autonomy, but they also make another smaller-but-important feature possible: a built-in dashcam for Tesla's cars. The automaker has been working on the feature for quite a while, and now according to company chief Elon Musk, Tesla is giving its customers a way to use their vehicles' cameras as a dashcam with Autopilot version 9.
