News
Tesla Model X Sightings and Spy Shots Gallery
Elon Musk has confirmed that first deliveries of the Model X to early reservation holders will take place by September. However with the Tesla Model X design studio not yet available, and with no official announcement that the Model X has even reached the final design phase, we thought it would be fun to create an ongoing list of recent sightings and spy shots of the Model X.
Join in on the fun and share your photos of the Model X (and any news from the rumor mill) through the comments section below. Or email us at
tips@teslarati.com.
- Location: Palo Alto, CA
- Date: August 29, 2015
- Description: A very first close up look at the Tesla Model X as caught on cell phone. A brave pedestrian courageously approaches the, previously covered in white transport wrap, blue Model X, and attempts to film around the vehicle, nearly catching a glimpse of the interior before it takes off from the traffic light.
- Source: YouTuber Missy P
- Location: San Jose, CA
- Date: August 27, 2015
- Description: A black Tesla Model X with falcon wing door, partially ajar, is seen driving down Hwy 85 in San Jose, CA. Illuminated rear brake lights seen on the retractable rear spoiler.
- Source: Submitted by Sameet via tips@teslarati.com
- Location: Palo Alto, CA
- Date: August 17, 2015
- Description: The first sighting of a blue colored Tesla Model X with protective plastic wrap. See the video.
- Source: Submitted by Instagram user SiliconValleyTeslas
- Location: Palo Alto, CA
- Date: July 31, 2015
- Description: A rare sighting of the Model X next to a Model S is spied on Page Mill Rd. near Tesla headquarters.
- Source: Submitted by Instagram user SiliconValleyTeslas
- Location: Palo Alto, CA
- Date: July 31, 2015
- Description: Model X Falcon Wing doors begin to take shape as delivery nears. See spy photos of the Model X leaving Tesla Headquarters.
- Source: Submitted by Lee
- Location: Gilroy, CA
- Date: July 22, 2015
- Description: Tesla Model X hauling a dump trailer with unidentified freight down Hwy 101 Northbound in Gilroy, CA. Read more
- Source: Submitted by Darin
- Location: Chandler, AZ
- Date: July 20, 2015
- Description: Video of a dirt covered Model X sparks rumors that Tesla is performing off-road testing of the electric crossover. Read more
- Source: YouTube
- Location: Berkeley, CA
- Date: July 21, 2015
- Description: New images (and video) surfaces of the Model X being tested with an active rear spoiler. Active spoilers and active aerodynamics have been used by performance carmakers for decades as a way to reduce drag coefficient by way of smoothing out airflow across the contours of the vehicle, but also as a way to increase downforce for added performance. The Model X is said to have range equivalent to the Model S and in order to achieve that goal, especially on a heavier and larger vehicle, Tesla will be outfitting the X with the new 90kWh battery pack and presumably the best possible aerodynamics in its class through the use of the active spoiler. Lower drag equates to less energy needed to propel the car forward at a given speed, and ultimately ensures maximum battery range.>>>> [VIDEO] Digital Wind Tunnel Technology Behind Tesla Model S Aerodynamics
- Source: Reddit
Fair warning: The owner of the cell phone video shot it while rotating the device making the video a little difficult to watch.
- Location: San Jose, CA
- Date: July 15, 2015 @7:15 pm
- Description: Randy Frei was driving down 280 South in San Jose, CA, near the Stevens Creek exit, when he came across the Tesla Model X. This is the first sighting of the Model X, submitted exclusively to TESLARATI, which shows testing equipment attached to the front contours of the vehicle. Other points worth noting are the taped gaps between the front body panels and the sharper nose design.
- Source: Randy Frei
- Location: Petaluma, CA
- Date: June 18, 2015
- Description: A side by side size comparison of the Model S and pre-production Model X posted by a member of Stocktwits.
- Source: User TslaUp via Stocktwits, Facebook
- Location: ???
- Date: June 13, 2015
- Description: The Model X falcon wing door is seen opened on the same test mule car that’s been spotted testing across Tesla headquarters. According to a reddit user (account has since been deleted by the user), presumably a contracted engineer working on the Model X, the user writes “Spent some time behind the wheel of a Tesla Model X today!”
- Source: Reddit
Updated June 26, 2015: The picture has been removed at the request of the user who originally posted the image.
- Location: Hwy 280N, Los Altos, CA
- Date: June 5, 2015
- Description: According to YouTube user kenken830, “Spotted on Hwy 280N in Los Altos Hills, California on June 5th, 2015 6:39 PM PD. No camouflage.”
- Source: kenken830
- Location: CA
- Date: May 27, 2015
- Description: A white Model X is seen testing on the streets with, what appears to be, new body panels. It’s questionable as to whether this will be the final version of the electric crossover, slated to go into production in a few months.
- Source: 60grayev
- Location: Foothill Expwy and Page Mill Rd. near Tesla Motors HQ in, Palo Alto, CA
- Date: May 8, 2015
- Description: A quick glimpse of the Model X interior shows that it’s largely the same design as the Model S. The large center touchscreen has been recessed under the protrusion of the center dashboard, identical to that of the Model S.
- Source: nbkagzw13
- Location: Rt 101 @ “near the University exit” by Palo Alto, CA
- Date: May 4, 2015
- Description: The contours of the Model X seen from the picture closely resembles that of the Model S. According to Ron’s comment from his Google+ page, the Model X “looks like a Model S with a pug nose. And the front had the classic black oval from the Model S.”
- Source: Ron Tailan
- Location: I-280 near Palo Alto, CA
- Date: Exact date unknown. Approx. Apr 21, 2015
- Description: Tesla Model X appears to be testing a lane departure system which automatically steers the car away from the shoulder and back into the lane.
- Source: Yann Kerhervé
- Location: I-280 near Palo Alto, CA
- Date: Exact date unknown. Approx. Apr 3, 2015
- Description: This appears to be the same test mule seen across much of Northern CA near Tesla Motors headquarters. Worth noting is the misaligned falcon wing doors, blacked out rear windows, fender flares and the trailer hitch.
- Source: Reported on imgur.
- Location: Palo Alto, CA
- Date: Mar 19, 2015
- Description:
- Source: YouTube user nbkagzw13 spotted the Tesla Model X testing on the streets near Tesla’s headquarters in Palo Alto, CA.
- Location: TBD
- Date: Mar 10, 2015
- Description:
- Source: Instagram user >@moriahdanielle
- Location: Arastradero Road leading to Tesla Motors HQ in Palo Alto, CA
- Date: Feb 26, 2015
- Description: “Tesla Suv out for a ride on 280, aka the test track.”
- Source: Twitter user @JKDmobile
Tesla Suv out for a ride on 280, aka the test track. pic.twitter.com/HFoN56FRis — John Donnelly (@JKDmobile) February 27, 2015
- Location: Alameda, CA
- Date: Jan 28, 2015
- Description: Tesla Model X sighting at a retired Naval Air Station 30 miles from Tesla's Fremont factory. [See the video]
- Source: YouTube user Juan del Real
- Location: CES 2015 Las Vegas, NV
- Date: Jan 5, 2015
- Description: Tesla Model X sighting at the Panasonic booth at the 2015 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. [See the video]
- Source: YouTube TechVideo channel
Elon Musk
OpenAI cites distrust of SpaceX in decision to drop Cursor partnership
OpenAI will cut SpaceX-owned Cursor’s model access in November, citing Musk’s history of broken contracts.
OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, announced late Friday that it is ending its partnership with Cursor, cutting off the coding tool’s access to its models on November 12. The move comes two weeks after SpaceX completed its $60 billion acquisition of Cursor’s parent company, Anysphere, folding the popular AI coding assistant into Elon Musk’s growing SpaceXAI division.
In a post on its website, OpenAI said the decision came down to trust, not technology. “We cannot be confident that SpaceX will use our technology within our terms of service, based on our experience with Elon Musk’s companies violating contracts,” the company wrote. OpenAI pointed to two specific incidents: X, now part of SpaceX, allegedly breaking the terms of an existing OpenAI contract after Musk bought Twitter.
That lawsuit is the backdrop for all of this. Musk cofounded OpenAI in 2015, left the board in 2018, and sued Sam Altman and Greg Brockman in 2024, arguing they abandoned the company’s nonprofit mission for profit. A federal jury sided with OpenAI in May, finding Musk waited too long to sue rather than ruling on the merits of his claims. Musk said at the time he would appeal to the Ninth Circuit, calling the outcome a “calendar technicality” rather than a real judgment.
SpaceX’s interest in Cursor predates that verdict by weeks. The company first struck a deal with Cursor in April, securing an option to acquire it for $60 billion or pay $10 billion for joint development work instead. As Teslarati reported at the time, the logic was straightforward: Cursor was paying retail prices to Anthropic and OpenAI, two of its most direct competitors, every time a developer used its product, while SpaceX had idle capacity on its Colossus supercomputer, roughly the equivalent of a million Nvidia H100 GPUs, that Cursor could use to train its own models instead. SpaceX exercised the option in June, days after its own IPO, and the deal closed in mid-August.
Once it closed, Musk moved fast. On an all-hands call with more than 1,000 Cursor employees, he reportedly told staff that SpaceXAI’s Grok was playing catchup in the AI race, unlike Tesla and SpaceX in their own markets, and singled out Anthropic as the company to catch. Cursor CEO Michael Truell now reports directly to Musk inside SpaceXAI.
Losing OpenAI’s models leaves Cursor leaning harder on Anthropic’s Claude, which has its own compute agreement with SpaceX, and on Cursor’s in-house Composer model, the one SpaceX’s compute was supposed to accelerate in the first place. OpenAI framed the November deadline as maximum notice under its contract, and said it wants to “go above and beyond” to help developers through the transition. Whether Anthropic makes the same call is now the open question in AI coding.
News
Tesla Theater might be getting plenty more streaming platforms
The in-car Tesla Theater is among the most unique features available within the cars. When charging, parked, camping, or just hanging out, vehicle occupants can access a variety of streaming platforms on the large center screen, helping keep them entertained during downtime.
However, the Theater might be getting plenty more streaming platforms, something that owners have requested for some time.
Tesla owners recently discovered that visiting Apple TV in the vehicle browser can launch a fullscreen interface that looks and behaves like a dedicated application rather than an ordinary webpage:
Today I learned that if you go to Apple TV in the Tesla browser, it will open up an actual Apple TV app, fully functional. Not just the site.
Apparently there are more apps than just the few that show on the apps page. pic.twitter.com/os1Ypfm4JR
— Jason W (@jmwilt21) August 20, 2026
The experience drops the usual address bar and browser chrome, presenting catalogs, continue watching rows, and playback controls in the same window Tesla Theater already uses for its listed services. Independent testers soon found similar treatment for HBO Max, Paramount+, Peacock, Disney+, and Prime Video when those sites are opened from the car browser.
This shift is a plausible early signal that Tesla is widening Theater support without a formal software note. Theater has long been a set of web views rather than native applications, so recognizing extra domains and stripping the browser frame is a small server-side change that can expand the catalog quickly.
Owners still lack permanent Theater icons for the newly recognized services, and video remains limited to Park, yet the smoother launch is a meaningful step toward a broader lounge while charging.
Tesla Theater arrived with software version 10 in September 2019. The first video services were Netflix, YouTube, and Hulu, available only while parked and originally tied to WiFi. Spotify arrived in the same era as music rather than Theater video. Disney+ joined officially in July 2021 with the 2021.24 update, giving owners another major catalog on the center screen. Twitch and TikTok later appeared among the default Theater tiles, and Tesla Tutorials remained a persistent educational tile.
Not every addition stayed put. In December 2023, a Holiday software build removed the Disney+ tile for many United States owners after a public dispute involving advertising on X. Hulu stayed visible even though Disney owned it. Visiting disneyplus.com in the browser often restored the tile, which suggested the removal was a recognition list change rather than a complete block. Owners have also reported occasional blank Theater grids after updates, usually fixed by language toggles, resets, or later firmware.
Tesla axes Disney+ from vehicles with Musk-Iger rivalry, but there’s a workaround
Code archives from 2024 listed many unused source names, including Apple TV and Prime Video, that never became official icons, which now looks like groundwork for the current fullscreen browser behavior.
Now that this hint toward an expanded Theater experience has been recognized, Tesla could follow through with these additional shortcuts as a sign that more streaming platforms are available in Teslas than ever before.
News
Tesla Semi’s biggest adoptee gives an update on production timeline
Tesla recently received its largest order for the all-electric Semi from Einride, a Swedish transport service, for 500 units, a groundbreaking invoice to receive before the first deliveries begin.
Even more remarkable, Einride CEO Roozbeh Charli said in a recent interview that he expects his company to take delivery of all 500 — the entire order — before the end of 2027. He even expects to have 75 Tesla Semi units in the Einride fleet before the end of this year.
🚨 Einride CEO Roozbeh Charli on the Tesla Semi partnership:
“If we start with the Amazon announcement that we did earlier this year, that was on the back of having gone through a proving period together with them and proving out our technology. Then we took that next step in… pic.twitter.com/oazkXjwoig
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 28, 2026
Charli said the Tesla partnership was part of a broader push, along with its earlier partnership with Amazon. Einride is assisting Amazon with the use of its Saga AI platform, which helps eliminate questions about budgeting and forecasting for logistics companies.
The Semi, as well as Tesla’s production and subsequent delivery of the units to Einride, will help the company “to have a good supply of vehicles that we can deploy on the [Saga AI] platform,” Charli said. “Tesla is also a relationship we’ve had for a while, and as the Tesla Semi deliveries are firming up, we decided to do a larger commitment to that and deploy that on our platform.”
In its initial announcement, Einride said it anticipated taking delivery of the trucks over the next two years, but now it appears the company is expecting all 500 units within the next 16 months.
Built at a dedicated factory in Sparks, Nevada, the Tesla Semi has been perhaps the biggest and most intensive testing process the company has ever had for a single vehicle model. For the past several years, Tesla has been working with many companies, most notably Frito-Lay and PepsiCo, to gain knowledge on the performance on regional routes.
Tesla plans to launch the Semi officially on September 24, five months after production started ramping.
Additionally, drivers have said they are happy about the Semi’s performance and that its numerous safety and productivity features have made their jobs and routes much easier.
![[Source: SiliconValleyTeslas via Instagram]](http://www.teslarati.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Tesla-Model-X-Covered-5-08172015-1024x628.jpg)


























