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Elon Musk teases Tesla 'sentry mode' that captures video in 360 degrees
Elon Musk says Tesla is working on a "sentry mode" security feature that could let owners record damage and break-ins. The announcement came in response to a customer's tweet complaining of a dent to his Model 3 and suggesting a "360 dash cam feature while parked." To which Musk replied: "Tesla Sentry Mode coming soon for all cars with Enhanced Autopilot." He later clarified that the update would be available for all EVs with the Autopilot 2.5 Hardware.
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 opens Model 3 orders to more people and trims prices
If you're in line for a Model 3 then we have good news. The company has announced that it's opening pre-orders to all reservation holders in the US and Canada, now that it's able to produce more cars (apparently that tent manufacturing line is helping). Better yet, the pricing has improved, with certain options (like dual-motor AWD) getting cheaper, as well as lower starting prices for options like the Performance package, now that many of the features in it are optional. All of this points to the company's improved production process, which would help with the price cuts and make it easier to build different configurations. While a $35,000 Model 3 still has not appeared, the current base model with Long Range 310-mile battery is available for $49,000. The price to add a second motor and AWD (plus 0 - 60 MPH in 4.5 seconds) is now $4,000 extra instead of $5,000 and starts at $53,000. According to Electrek there are also updated color options available in the online design studio, however, estimates for a cheaper "standard" battery has changed to 6 - 9 months out.
Musk emails alleged Tesla saboteur, 'You're a horrible human being'
The story of Tesla suing a former employee for alleged theft and sabotage has taken another odd turn. While the company increased security at its battery producing Gigafactory after claiming a friend of Martin Tripp said he'd threatened to "shoot the place up," the Washington Post released emails from yesterday between Tripp and CEO Elon Musk. In them, Tripp denied trying to frame others for his actions, while accusing Tesla of waste and putting cars on the road with safety issues. In response, Musk said that having millions of dollars in scrap is "not news" and that Tripp was in line for legal penalties due to breaking his word as well as framing fellow employees. It was an exchange unlike anything we've ever seen released from a CEO, but as usual, Musk does things very differently. Tripp told CNNMoney that despite the lawsuit's claims, he was fired because he tried to tell investors and the public about allegedly damaged battery modules installed in Model 3s, excessive scrap stored in a dangerous manner and inflated Model 3 production numbers. According to the Post, Tripp said a report earlier this month posted to Business Insider about scrap metal at Tesla was based on his documents. The company, in turn, said his complaints were exaggerated or misconstrued.
Tesla lays off nine percent of its workforce
Tesla hasn't produced nearly as many of its vaunted Model 3 affordable EVs as it expected, which has led to a quarter of those who preordered the vehicle to demand refunds. As early as this year's first-quarter earnings call, Elon Musk told employees that a reorganization was coming -- and it came today. Musk published an internal email on Twitter revealing that the automaker is cutting around nine percent of jobs across the company.
Tesla: Model 3 production could hit 5,000 per week in two months
One of the major stories about Tesla's car business has been its struggle to build sufficient quantities of its Model 3 electric car. In a just-released earnings report the company said that prior to its most recent shutdown, it had managed to build over 2,000 cars per week for three weeks in a row for the first time, and anticipates it will manage 5,000 per week in two months. Following comments from Elon Musk that over-reliance on robots slowed production, the earnings report expanded on that angle. In certain production areas like "portions of the battery module line, part of the material flow system, and two steps of general assembly" it has "temporarily" dialed back automation in favor of semi-automated or manual processes. If it can hit its production goals, Tesla also claims that it can be profitable in Q3 and Q4 of this year. On an earnings call after the release, Musk specifically detailed a "Flufferbot" Tesla created to place fluff on a battery, before determining that humans were better at it and that the fluff wasn't necessary. He also chided journalists for coverage of Autopilot-related crashes, claiming that they shouldn't be writing about it, since, he said, it could lead to people turning off the feature and dying in a crash. Expect to see "quarterly safety statistics" from Tesla about the feature going forward. That people have died with the feature engaged did not come up. Musk also got tired of "boring" questions from investors and turned for a few minutes to crowdsourced questions from YouTube.
Nikola (Motors) is suing Tesla (updated)
Nikola Tesla invented alternating electrical current. Nikola Motors is a mobility company working on a hydrogen-powered semi truck. Tesla makes fully electric vehicles and last December unveiled its EV Semi. Nikola Motors is suing Tesla Motors over patent infringements, according to Electrek. Let the irony of that sink in for a moment before reading the rest of this post.
Tesla: Autopilot was engaged in fatal Model X crash
After a fiery crash in Mountain View, CA last week killed the driver of a Tesla Model X, the company provided an update on the incident with a blog post. It did not name the driver, identified by ABC 7 News as Apple engineer and former EA programmer Walter Huang, while confirming that its Autopilot feature was engaged at the time of the crash.
After Math: Business as usual
While most everybody's eyes were glued on the happenings at GDC 2018 this week, the rest of the business world quietly continued turning. Google offered $40 million for the Lytro camera company, DJI constructed a legion of drones for a construction crew, 2 million Spotify users nixed the ads on their free service and the President decided to start a trade war with China. Numbers, because how else will you figure out how much more your electronics and appliances will cost?
Tesla: Racial harassment lawsuit is a 'hotbed of misinformation'
Tonight Tesla responded to a report of another lawsuit where a former worker, Marcus Vaughn, said he suffered from racial harassment at the company's Fremont, CA assembly line. In a blog post titled "Hotbed of Misinformation," Tesla calls its response (firing three people who worked on or near his team) a "fair and just response to the facts that we learned." It also disputed Vaughn's account on several points, including whether he complained to Elon Musk about the harassment, and claiming he wasn't fired, but that his contract with a temp agency was not renewed.
Tesla Model 3 in-depth video review answers all your questions
There's no shortage of Tesla Model 3 clips out there, but a detailed video review has been sorely missing -- until now, that is. The arrival of a brand-spanking new vid from the folks at the Model 3 Owners Club should tackle any lingering questions you may have about the car. The 70-minute clip is especially useful for anyone mulling a buy or (patiently) waiting for their purchase to arrive.
Tesla fired 'hundreds' of workers this week
Tonight The Mercury News reports that Tesla -- which is in the midst of ramping up production of the Model 3 -- fired hundreds of workers this week at its headquarters and factory. In a statement, the company cited performance reviews as a reason for departures from its workforce of more than 33,000 and said that it is continuing to grow. Workers the paper spoke to estimated some 400 - 700 workers have been fired, however, the company expects that overall attrition will be similar to last year, and that this won't impact Model 3 production. Currently, we're still anticipating updated Model 3 production numbers (it only made 260 in Q3) when Tesla reports its earnings in a few weeks, as well as the unveiling of its electric semi on November 16th.
Tesla considers 'platoons' of self-driving electric semis
In April, Elon Musk revealed a project Tesla had been working on since 2016: Electric semi-trucks. Turns out he had more in store for the big rigs. Much like his company's work building self-driving consumer cars, a report alleges that Musk wants his electric semis to travel autonomously in 'platoons' led by a single lead vehicle.
Tesla is getting 1,800 Model 3 reservations per day
After narrowly meeting its promise to launch the Model 3 in July, Tesla has released its latest earnings report (PDF). Other than slightly higher than expected revenue, the company says that since the delivery event, it has averaged 1,800 Model 3 pre-orders per day. Of course, if you're getting in line now you could be in for quite a wait. The company expects to build about 1,500 Model 3s during the third quarter, but is maintaining its prediction that it will expand production to reach 5,000 of the cars per week by the end of this year.
I took a ride in Tesla's new Model 3
After celebrating the delivery of its first 30 Model 3's to eagerly awaiting pre-order customers, Tesla invited attendees at Friday night's event to take a spin in the brand new vehicles. So of course, we took them up on the offer.
YouTube video maker MKBHD wins Tesla's 'Project Loveday' ad contest
Tonight at 11:45 PM ET Elon Musk will deliver the first production Tesla Model 3s during a livestreamed event, and now the company has some new ads to play during any down time. Fans of its cars and technology submitted their own advertisements for the Project Loveday contest, which was inspired by a 10-year-old's letter. Musk announced the three winners tonight on his Twitter account, with YouTuber and tech reviewer Marques Brownlee aka MKBHD nabbing the top spot. The winner has been promised a trip to a Tesla product launch, and Tesla said it will play the most popular videos on the stream tonight. The winning isn't just a slick look at the car, it also shows off some of the high tech features like Summon and its appropriately-named Ludicrous Mode acceleration. Tesla has eschewed traditional advertising for its vehicles so far, but now that it has so many high quality videos to pull from -- and a car with a price closer to the mainstream -- maybe that could change.
Tesla opens 'Project Loveday' contest for fan-made ads
Tesla has refused to do traditional advertising for its electric vehicles, instead relying on PR and its reputation for innovation. Some fans love the cars so much that they've gone ahead and made advertisements for the company, inspiring a letter from "green" fan Bria asking Elon Musk to run a contest looking for the best one. A few days ago the CEO promised he'd do it, and just like that, Project Loveday is on, seeking out 90-second YouTube submissions that relate to "Tesla, SolarCity, our products, or our mission to accelerate the world's transition to sustainable energy."
Tesla drops 'Motors' from its name
In a move designed to cement the company as more than just a car maker, Tesla has dropped the "Motors" from its name. The firm posted the necessary SEC paperwork this morning and comes as Elon Musk moves his business well beyond its original mission. After all, with the purchase of Solar City, launch of Powerwall and the solar roof, Tesla is as much of an energy company as it is a car maker.
Tesla brings self-driving hardware to its entire fleet
If you're wondering if the Model 3 will be ready for our eventual autonomous future, wonder no more. Tesla announced that beginning today, all the cars it builds will have the necessary hardware to drive completely on their own if the owner decides they want to enable the option. The full self-driving hardware suite will cost an additional $8,000.
Tesla's major Autopilot update starts rolling out today
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has taken to Twitter to announce the latest update to his company's EVs will begin rolling out tonight. We've heard quite a lot about the "major overhaul" that is version 8.0 already, since it includes significant tweaks to the semi-autonomous Autopilot mode -- a reaction to the feature's role in a fatal crash this summer. Following the update, Autopilot will rely more heavily on radar, rather than these sensors playing second fiddle to camera feeds. The idea is radar is much more reliable than cameras when visibility is poor, such as when you're driving through snow or fog.
