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Elon Musk on humans in Mars before he dies, urges faster pace of progress
Elon Musk has a major goal: to get humanity to Mars before he dies. A lofty goal that he reiterated before a crowd on Monday at the Satellite 2020 conference in Washington D.C.
“If we don’t improve our pace of progress, I’m definitely going to be dead before we go to Mars,” Musk said to the journalists and industry leaders in attendance.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 11, 2020
SpaceX, founded by Musk in 2002, nabbed the first of many lucrative deals for the burgeoning rocket company in 2008 when the company was named one of two corporations that would ferry cargo to the International Space Station (ISS). (Orbital Sciences, now Northrop Grumman is the other.)
-->To date, SpaceX has flown 20 cargo resupply missions to the space station, and very soon will send an upgraded version of the Dragon to ferry astronauts to the orbital outpost as well. But this is just the beginning for Musk and SpaceX.
Musk has his sights set on the moon and Mars. But he’s worried that our current technology isn’t progressing as quickly as it should in order to make Mars happen. That’s evident if you look at the commercial crew program.
In 2011, NASA’s storied fleet of space shuttles retired, and space agencies around the world were forced to rely solely on the Russian Soyuz to transport astronauts to and from space. That agreement would only be temporary as NASA tapped SpaceX and Boeing with the task of building its next-generation astronaut taxis.
Innovation takes time, and after years of delays due to various reasons, SpaceX is on the cusp of launching its first set of astronauts. Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley will board the Crew Dragon spacecraft and fly to the ISS as early as this May. NASA is still trying to iron out the details (like how long they will stay) as SpaceX completes the last two parachute tests prior to launch.
Simultaneously, Musk and SpaceX are working on a massive rocket that will ferry people and cargo to Mars. Called Starship, the heavy-lifter is approximately 400-feet of stainless steel that could transport the first people to the red planet. That is if all goes as planned.
Eagle-eyed onlookers first spotted the towering silver craft in Jan. 2019 at SpaceX’s work site in Boca Chica, TX. That initial prototype was the first step towards reaching Mars and Musk’s goal of building a city on Mars with up to one million people in it, preferably sometime within the next 50 years.
-->To do so, SpaceX will need a fleet of massive, silvery spaceships. The company is on its third test article, but Musk hopes to ramp up production to one Starship a week by year’s end.
“Unless we improve our rate of innovation dramatically, then there is no chance of a base on the moon or Mars,” Musk said during the conference. “This is my biggest concern.”
Starship will launch atop a Super Heavy launcher. In true SpaceX fashion, both vehicles will be reusable, which lowers the cost significantly. Musk has said that eventually, each Starship mission could cost a mere $2 million.
-->Starship could launch as early as this year, especially if production rates ramp up the level that Musk hopes. So far, the craft is already booked for one trip around the moon sometime in 2023. That Starship will carry Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa.
Musk also squashed the notion that his Starlink internet service would go public. According to Musk, that endeavor could net his company as much as $30 billion, if it doesn’t go bankrupt. “Guess how many LEO constellations didn’t go bankrupt? Zero,” he said. “We just want to be in the non-bankrupt category.”
So for now, Musk says SpaceX is focused on getting the project off the ground and not spinning it into a publicly-traded company. SpaceX officials have said that the service could roll out later this year in a limited capacity until more satellites come online. To date, the company has launched 300 Starlink satellites, with another batch of 60 set to launch on Saturday (Mar. 14).
News
Tesla Model 3 named New Zealand’s best passenger car of 2025
Tesla flipped the switch on Full Self-Driving (Supervised) in September, turning every Model 3 and Model Y into New Zealand’s most advanced production car overnight.
The refreshed Tesla Model 3 has won the DRIVEN Car Guide AA Insurance NZ Car of the Year 2025 award in the Passenger Car category, beating all traditional and electric rivals.
Judges praised the all-electric sedan’s driving dynamics, value-packed EV tech, and the game-changing addition of Full Self-Driving (Supervised) that went live in New Zealand this September.
Why the Model 3 clinched the crown
DRIVEN admitted they were late to the “Highland” party because the updated sedan arrived in New Zealand as a 2024 model, just before the new Model Y stole the headlines. Yet two things forced a re-evaluation this year.
First, experiencing the new Model Y reminded testers how many big upgrades originated in the Model 3, such as the smoother ride, quieter cabin, ventilated seats, rear touchscreen, and stalk-less minimalist interior. Second, and far more importantly, Tesla flipped the switch on Full Self-Driving (Supervised) in September, turning every Model 3 and Model Y into New Zealand’s most advanced production car overnight.
FSD changes everything for Kiwi buyers
The publication called the entry-level rear-wheel-drive version “good to drive and represents a lot of EV technology for the money,” but highlighted that FSD elevates it into another league. “Make no mistake, despite the ‘Supervised’ bit in the name that requires you to remain ready to take control, it’s autonomous and very capable in some surprisingly tricky scenarios,” the review stated.
-->At NZ$11,400, FSD is far from cheap, but Tesla also offers FSD (Supervised) on a $159 monthly subscription, making the tech accessible without the full upfront investment. That’s a game-changer, as it allows users to access the company’s most advanced system without forking over a huge amount of money.
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Tesla starts rolling out FSD V14.2.1 to AI4 vehicles including Cybertruck
FSD V14.2.1 was released just about a week after the initial FSD V14.2 update was rolled out.
It appears that the Tesla AI team burned the midnight oil, allowing them to release FSD V14.2.1 on Thanksgiving. The update has been reported by Tesla owners with AI4 vehicles, as well as Cybertruck owners.
For the Tesla AI team, at least, it appears that work really does not stop.
FSD V14.2.1
Initial posts about FSD V14.2.1 were shared by Tesla owners on social media platform X. As per the Tesla owners, V14.2.1 appears to be a point update that’s designed to polish the features and capacities that have been available in FSD V14. A look at the release notes for FSD V14.2.1, however, shows that an extra line has been added.
“Camera visibility can lead to increased attention monitoring sensitivity.”
Whether this could lead to more drivers being alerted to pay attention to the roads more remains to be seen. This would likely become evident as soon as the first batch of videos from Tesla owners who received V14.21 start sharing their first drive impressions of the update. Despite the update being released on Thanksgiving, it would not be surprising if first impressions videos of FSD V14.2.1 are shared today, just the same.
-->Rapid FSD releases
What is rather interesting and impressive is the fact that FSD V14.2.1 was released just about a week after the initial FSD V14.2 update was rolled out. This bodes well for Tesla’s FSD users, especially since CEO Elon Musk has stated in the past that the V14.2 series will be for “widespread use.”
FSD V14 has so far received numerous positive reviews from Tesla owners, with numerous drivers noting that the system now drives better than most human drivers because it is cautious, confident, and considerate at the same time. The only question now, really, is if the V14.2 series does make it to the company’s wide FSD fleet, which is still populated by numerous HW3 vehicles.
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Waymo rider data hints that Tesla’s Cybercab strategy might be the smartest, after all
These observations all but validate Tesla’s controversial two-seat Cybercab strategy, which has caught a lot of criticism since it was unveiled last year.
Toyota Connected Europe designer Karim Dia Toubajie has highlighted a particular trend that became evident in Waymo’s Q3 2025 occupancy stats. As it turned out, 90% of the trips taken by the driverless taxis carried two or fewer passengers.
These observations all but validate Tesla’s controversial two-seat Cybercab strategy, which has caught a lot of criticism since it was unveiled last year.
Toyota designer observes a trend
Karim Dia Toubajie, Lead Product Designer (Sustainable Mobility) at Toyota Connected Europe, analyzed Waymo’s latest California Public Utilities Commission filings and posted the results on LinkedIn this week.
“90% of robotaxi trips have 2 or less passengers, so why are we using 5-seater vehicles?” Toubajie asked. He continued: “90% of trips have 2 or less people, 75% of trips have 1 or less people.” He accompanied his comments with a graphic showing Waymo’s occupancy rates, which showed 71% of trips having one passenger, 15% of trips having two passengers, 6% of trips having three passengers, 5% of trips having zero passengers, and only 3% of trips having four passengers.
The data excludes operational trips like depot runs or charging, though Toubajie pointed out that most of the time, Waymo’s massive self-driving taxis are really just transporting 1 or 2 people, at times even no passengers at all. “This means that most of the time, the vehicle being used significantly outweighs the needs of the trip,” the Toyota designer wrote in his post.
-->Cybercab suddenly looks perfectly sized
Toubajie gave a nod to Tesla’s approach. “The Tesla Cybercab announced in 2024, is a 2-seater robotaxi with a 50kWh battery but I still believe this is on the larger side of what’s required for most trips,” he wrote.
With Waymo’s own numbers now proving 90% of demand fits two seats or fewer, the wheel-less, lidar-free Cybercab now looks like the smartest play in the room. The Cybercab is designed to be easy to produce, with CEO Elon Musk commenting that its product line would resemble a consumer electronics factory more than an automotive plant. This means that the Cybercab could saturate the roads quickly once it is deployed.
While the Cybercab will likely take the lion’s share of Tesla’s ride-hailing passengers, the Model 3 sedan and Model Y crossover would be perfect for the remaining 9% of riders who require larger vehicles. This should be easy to implement for Tesla, as the Model Y and Model 3 are both mass-market vehicles.
Tesla Model 3 named New Zealand’s best passenger car of 2025
Tesla starts rolling out FSD V14.2.1 to AI4 vehicles including Cybertruck
