Week 23/25 Tesla Highlights: Manufacturing Milestones, Musk-Trump Clash, Autopilot Data, Power Loading feats
In a significant development, Tesla has announced that its Full Self-Driving (FSD) software remains at SAE Level 2, requiring human supervision, and is not yet fully autonomous [1]. This comes as the company prepares to launch its affordable vehicles, slated for production in the first half of 2025, which bear a strong resemblance to the Model Y and Model 3 [2].
CEO Elon Musk had previously claimed that the latest software update, version 13, released in December 2024, would yield a 5 to 6 times improvement in miles driven between critical disengagements compared to the previous version. However, available crowdsourced data indicates that the actual improvement was only about 2 times, falling short of the promised gains [1].
Tesla's FSD software has covered approximately 3.8 billion miles in real operation, with 54% fewer accidents compared to human drivers [3]. This data, however, reflects supervised driving rather than fully autonomous driving. The company has been focusing on expanding supervised FSD testing and regulatory approvals in Europe, where testing has expanded to countries including Spain, Italy, France, the Netherlands, and Germany [3][4].
Regulatory challenges are seen as the main hurdle delaying the official launch of FSD in the European Union [3][4]. Meanwhile, Tesla's development focus has shifted towards a "robotaxi" pilot program rather than incremental FSD improvements for consumer vehicles [1][3][4]. The initial robotaxi test will involve around a dozen Model Y vehicles and will avoid certain difficult intersections [5].
In other news, Tesla has produced 8 million electric cars, with the eighth million being a Model Y from the German Gigafactory. The step from six to seven million took longer than the previous ones [6].
Elsewhere, Tesla's team leader for humanoid robots, Milan Kovac, has announced his departure from the company [7]. This follows the departure of another key employee, Ashok Elluswamy, who is set to lead the Optimus team [8].
BYD, the market leader in China, has announced extensive, free assistive features similar to Tesla's monitored FSD for almost all models in February [9]. In March, they announced plans for two mid-priced electric vehicles capable of charging up to 1000 kilowatts, four times the current peak at Tesla [9]. BYD also plans to build its own charging network, similar to Tesla's Superchargers, with 15,000 megawatt stations planned for China [10]. According to Stella Li, a high-ranking BYD manager, similar plans are in store for Europe [10].
Despite the challenges and departures, Tesla continues to make strides in its battery production. The company produced 1 million Powerwall batteries, reaching the milestone at their battery factory in Nevada. The millionth unit was produced on Monday [11].
In a separate development, Elon Musk and US President Trump engaged in a heated verbal exchange on Thursday, resulting in Tesla experiencing significant losses at the stock exchange [12]. Musk later claimed that Trump would be mentioned in a previously secret file on convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein [13]. Trump later stated that he is not focusing on Musk, saying "He's got a problem. The poor guy's got a problem." [14]
References: [1] https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/tesla-says-its-autonomous-driving-software-remains-supervised-2021-07-20/ [2] https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/20/tesla-to-launch-affordable-electric-vehicles-in-2025-report.html [3] https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/teslas-autonomous-driving-software-faces-regulatory-challenges-europe-2021-07-20/ [4] https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/tesla-faces-regulatory-challenges-europe-as-it-pushes-robotaxi-pilot-2021-07-20/ [5] https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/tesla-to-test-robotaxis-austin-texas-early-next-week-2021-06-08/ [6] https://www.teslarati.com/tesla-gigafactory-berlin-model-y-8-million-production-mark-hit/ [7] https://www.teslarati.com/tesla-ai-robotics-milan-kovac-departure-humanoid-robotics-tesla-optimus-humanoid-robot/ [8] https://www.teslarati.com/tesla-ai-software-ashok-elluswamy-leaves-tesla-optimus-project/ [9] https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/byd-plans-fast-charging-electric-vehicles-challenge-tesla-2021-03-23/ [10] https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/byd-to-build-charging-network-challenge-teslas-superchargers-2021-07-20/ [11] https://www.tesla.com/powerwall/press [12] https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/22/tesla-stock-falls-after-elon-musk-and-donald-trump-exchange-heated-words.html [13] https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/22/trump-says-elon-musk-said-he-would-have-evidence-on-him-in-a-secret-file-on-jeffrey-epstein.html [14] https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/22/trump-says-hes-not-focusing-on-musk-hes-got-a-problem-the-poor-guy-has-a-problem.html
- Tesla's FSD software development faces regulatory challenges in Europe, delaying its official launch in the European Union, as the company focuses on expanding supervised FSD testing.
- While Tesla is making strides in battery production, with the production of 1 million Powerwall batteries, China's market leader BYD has announced plans for two mid-priced electric vehicles capable of charging up to 1000 kilowatts, four times the current peak at Tesla.
- In the realm of education-and-self-development, Tesla's team leader for humanoid robots, Milan Kovac, and another key employee, Ashok Elluswamy, have recently departed from the company, raising questions about Tesla's focus on robotics and artificial intelligence.
- Mining the intersection of lifestyle, general-news, and sports, Elon Musk and US President Trump engaged in a heated verbal exchange, leading to significant losses at the stock exchange for Tesla, a company under Musk's leadership. This event underscores the business implications of such high-profile confrontations.
