News
Electric Vehicle sales increased 109 percent in 2021, China and Europe set the pace
Electric vehicle sales increased 109 percent in 2021 compared to 2020, a new report from analyst firm Canalys indicated. As the all-electric vehicle sector continues to heat up with competition, EVs made up 9 percent of the total automotive sales globally last year, a sharp increase from the year prior. China and Europe continue to lead other regions in EV adoption, with both areas making up 85 percent of the total global EV sales in 2021.
The report, released earlier today, indicates the global electric vehicle market is continuing to expand at a rate that many analysts cannot comprehend. Two areas, in particular, Mainland China and Europe are without a doubt the two regions to adopt EVs with the most enthusiasm. Mainland China accounted for 50 percent of the total EV sales globally in 2021, while Europe maintained 35 percent of the total deliveries. The United States accounted for 8 percent, while the rest of the world made up the remaining seven points.
China’s EV market is incredibly diverse and competition enters the sector nearly every day. Jason Low, Principal Analyst at Canalys, attributes China’s widespread adoption of EVs to the numerous body styles, sizes, and designs that consumers have available to them. “Over 3.2 million EVs were sold in Mainland China in 2021 – half of all-electric cars sold worldwide, and 2 million more than were sold in the country in 2020. Many new models are launching every month in each important market segment, from tiny, inexpensive city cars to mainstream and premium sedans and SUVs,” Low said.
Despite China’s incredible sales figures, Europe still is the region with the highest rate of EV adoption. Although the area had less cumulative sales than Mainland China, Europe has a higher concentration of EV drivers than China.“Demand for EVs continues to be strong in Europe. In fact, in many European countries EVs represented more than a quarter of new cars sold. but customers must be patient. A nine to 12 month wait time for a new EV is not unusual,” said another Canalys analyst, Ashwin Amberkar.
Tesla performed well in both the Chinese and European markets. In China, the Model 3 and Model Y were the most popular vehicles just behind the $5,000 HongGuang Mini EV. In Europe, the Model 3 dominated sales figures fueled by exports from Gigafactory Shanghai. The all-electric Model 3 was the best-selling EV in Europe in 2021.
Tesla Giga Shanghai shows off its Model 3 production efficiency in recent video
United States Electric Vehicle Share
Data from the Canalys report also indicated that, while U.S. EV sales made up just 4 percent of new vehicle sales last year, the momentum of the region’s sector shows promise. New electric vehicles are being launched regularly in the United States thanks to more committed efforts to electrification from legacy car companies. Additionally, the introduction of the all-electric pickup truck market is sure to help the U.S. EV market share grow in the coming years, especially with favorable offerings like the Ford F-150 Lightning, Tesla Cybertruck, GMC Hummer EV, and Chevrolet Silverado EV. Additionally, all-electric manufacturer Rivian started deliveries of the R1T all-electric pickup late last year. Rivian was the first company to offer an all-electric pickup.
“The competition’s EV sales are nowhere near Tesla’s in the US since Model 3 shipments ramped up in 2018. Tesla even outsells many premium car brands in the overall market,” Canalys VP and Chief Analyst Chris Jones said. “Pick-up trucks will give the US EV market a huge lift in 2022. Rivian was first to deliver at the end of 2021, while Ford and GM have had strong interest in the F-150 Lightning and GMC Hummer Pickup respectively.”
Tesla’s Culture of Dominance
Tesla made up 14 percent of worldwide EV sales, beating Volkswagen by two percentage points and SAIC by three percent. “Sales of the Model Y started in the major markets in 2021 and quickly overtook those of the Model 3 in Mainland China and the US. Tesla vehicle production is well established in Mainland China and will commence in Europe in the first half 2022 as it focuses on delivering existing models rather than launching new ones in 2022,” the report said.
Canalys full report is available here.
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Tesla’s reason for Starlink integration on Cybercab might surprise you, as the company’s Head of AI, Ashok Elluswamy, finally shed some light on the reason they are putting a satellite internet terminal on its ride-hailing-geared vehicle.
On Monday, Tesla officially confirmed that it would integrate Starlink V5 terminals into Cybercab vehicles, something many Tesla fans had figured the company would do, as the vehicle is primarily geared toward giving rides without any passenger intervention.
Starlink V5 directly integrated in Cybercab pic.twitter.com/FxzTtzjB6I
— Tesla (@Tesla) July 20, 2026
The ability to access the internet would allow riders to work or play in the car with their devices. It seemed like a more-than-reasonable feature to add to the Cybercab, which made its way off the production lines for the first time earlier this year.
Tesla reveals first vehicle model to receive Starlink integration
However, the move is not for the rider, as Elluswamy confirmed on Monday night. Instead, it’s actually for Tesla to be able to have a constant connection to the cars in the Robotaxi fleet so it can troubleshoot issues, contact riders, or resolve other issues.
Elluswamy said:
“It is still not required for safe operation of the vehicle. Connectivity is primarily meant for navigation, customer service and, in general, fleet management.”
It is still not required for safe operation of the vehicle. Connectivity is primarily meant for navigation, customer service and, in general, fleet management.
— Ashok Elluswamy (@aelluswamy) July 20, 2026
Many initially assumed the option of constant connectivity would be enabled on the Cybercab for passenger entertainment or work. With the Cybercab, passengers won’t be doing anything but enjoying the ride, so it seemed more than logical that they would be hanging out with Starlink internet access as an amenity.
However, Tesla’s primary concern with Robotaxi is safety, and nailing these first unsupervised rides is a crucial step to setting a good narrative on how effective driverless transportation can be.
Being able to get in touch with passengers or a vehicle if something is wrong is a crucial part of the overall experience, and preventative measures are being taken by Tesla to ensure a smooth process, even in the worst-case.
Tesla has expanded its Robotaxi program in Florida to include two new cities: Tampa and Orlando.
This marks the second and third cities to be added to the company’s available locations for autonomous ride-hailing in the Sunshine State, joining Miami, which was the first Florida city to offer Robotaxi rides.
Tesla announced the addition of Orlando and Tampa to the Robotaxi program on Tuesday morning. The cities now join Austin, Dallas, Houston, Miami, and the San Francisco Bay Area as locations where Tesla can operate its Robotaxi platform:
Robotaxi now in Tampa & Orlando! pic.twitter.com/fYtmXgJq3O
— Tesla Robotaxi (@robotaxi) July 21, 2026
These rides are unsupervised, as AI Head Ashok Elluswamy confirmed the suite in Florida is operating without safety drivers or anyone within the cabin to assist with operation.
Orlando Tesla Robotaxi Operation
The geofence in Orlando covers a prominent irregular shaded zone on the map, roughly 4-6 miles across in key dimensions, so it likely measures somewhere between 25 and 45 square miles, which is comparable to other early Tesla launches in other cities.
It encompasses central and southern areas bounded by major highways including SR-417 and SR-528, including parts of the Orlando metro core, tourism-adjacent zones, and residential/commercial districts. This represents an initial targeted rollout in a tourist-heavy region, positioned for quick expansion via Tesla’s software updates.
Tampa Tesla Robotaxi Operation
In Tampa, the shape of the geofence is a shaded polygon covering key neighborhoods, explicitly including West Tampa, Tampa Heights, Hyde Park, and downtown Tampa proper, with boundaries along major roads and the Hillsborough River area.
This focuses on high-demand central zones and will offer tourists and citygoers rides without drivers.
Robotaxi Progress
Tesla has been operating Robotaxi since last June, when it launched in Austin. The geofences in most regions have already expanded several times since their launch last year, but the bigger complaint is vehicle availability. Tesla has been working to add more Robotaxi-enabled vehicles to its fleet.
The company still plans to utilize its Cybercab, a new vehicle that is being produced at Gigafactory Texas, for the Robotaxi suite alongside the Model Y, which has been the vehicle of choice for Tesla with early operations.
News
Tesla’s AI Chief just hinted at something big for FSD v14 lite owners
Tesla’s AI chief suggests the newest FSD v14 Lite build may finally go wide release.
Tesla’s head of AI, Ashok Elluswamy, noted on Sunday that the newest FSD v14 Lite build rolling out to Hardware 3 cars is likely the version that goes to wide release, the strongest signal yet that Tesla is near to closing out an early access phase that Hardware 3 owners have waited more than a year for.
Elluswamy made the comment in response to an extensive review from Tesla owner Zack, known on X as @BLKMDL3, who tested software version 2026.20.6.10 and detailed the changes in a lengthy post. “FSD v14 Lite (for Tesla AI3 hardware vehicles) review.
The update restarts a rollout that had stalled after its initial release. Tesla began pushing FSD v14 Lite to Hardware 3 early access drivers on June 29, bringing driving behavior learned on the newer Hardware 4 computer down to the more limited chip that has powered Tesla vehicles built between 2019 and early 2023. That release, as we covered in detail, gave roughly 4 million HW3 vehicles their first meaningful update since being frozen on version 12.6 in early 2025.
Tesla Full Self-Driving v14 ‘Lite’ Release Notes: new capabilities and features
The latest build adds features that bring Hardware 3 closer in line with what Hardware 4 owners already have. FSD can now start directly from park without a brake pedal confirmation, a change Zack called a small but meaningful quality of life improvement. The interface also picks up the blue “P” park icon, approaching destination alerts, and a dedicated Self-Driving app with streak tracking, all details previously exclusive to the AI4 branch of v14, as outlined in Tesla’s original release notes.
The stakes around Hardware 3 go beyond software polish. Tesla sold the Full Self-Driving package for years on the promise that every vehicle equipped with it had the hardware needed to eventually drive itself without supervision. That promise broke down during Tesla’s Q1 2026 earnings call, when Musk acknowledged HW3 cars could not run unsupervised FSD, prompting Tesla to offer trade-in discounts and hardware retrofits alongside the Lite software track.
Tesla confirmed HW3 can’t do Unsupervised FSD but there’s more to the story
Tesla has continued to frame v14 Lite as the primary path forward for the HW3 fleet, telling owners in April that international markets would follow the U.S. rollout once regulatory approvals came through. For now, HW3 owners in the early access group are the only ones running the new build. A broader rollout would mark the second major software delivery to the legacy fleet since Tesla first released FSD v14 to Hardware 4 vehicles, and the first sign since June that the Lite program is still moving rather than stuck in early access limbo.
Tesla’s reason for Starlink integration on Cybercab might surprise you
Tesla Robotaxi program expands in Florida to two new cities
