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Elon Musk had “handshake deal” with Saudi PIF reps before “funding secured” tweet: former aide
While testifying on Wednesday, Sam Teller, Elon Musk’s former chief of staff, stated that the Tesla CEO had a “handshake deal” with representatives from the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund before the infamous “funding secured” tweet was posted on Twitter. Teller had worked closely with Musk from 2014 to 2019.
Elon Musk had already taken the stand earlier in the trial. During his testimony, the CEO maintained that he had valid reasons for disclosing his plans to take Tesla private. Had it succeeded, Tesla would have gone private at $420 per share pre-split, and be worth about $72 billion. For context, Tesla is worth $572 billion as of writing.
Teller was called to the stand by Musk’s legal team as a means to provide more details on Musk’s testimony. In his testimony, the former chief of staff stated that Musk and representatives from the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund had held a series of meetings prior to the infamous tweet. The meetings reportedly began in January 2017 and the final one was done on July 31, 2018.
During the July 31, 2018 meeting, Teller noted that Musk was becoming excited about Tesla’s potential privatization. Musk reportedly spoke to Yasir al-Rumayyan, a governor for the Saudi fund, during the July 31, 2018 meeting. The former Elon Musk aide stated that when specific financing amounts were being discussed, the Tesla CEO pointed out that a Tesla buyout would be expensive.
“Yasir was, like, ‘Don’t worry about it, we’ve got a lot of money,’” Teller commented, noting that at the end of the meeting, he had a sense that a deal had been reached. “It was my sense they made a handshake deal to proceed,” the former Musk aide said, as noted in a report from The Seattle Times.
-->Musk posted his infamous tweet on August 7, 2018, a week after his positive meeting with the Saudi PIF governor. Interestingly enough, Musk’s tweet was reportedly posted shortly after the CEO was alerted that a report in the Financial Times revealing the Saudi fund’s 5% stake in Tesla was about to be published.
At the time, Tesla was facing numerous challenges, including a constant stream of vitriol from short-sellers eager to push the company’s stock down. Elon Musk outlined this in a later message to Tesla employees explaining his reasons for his take-private efforts. The message was published on the company’s blog.
“As a public company, we are subject to wild swings in our stock price that can be a major distraction for everyone working at Tesla, all of whom are shareholders. Being public also subjects us to the quarterly earnings cycle that puts enormous pressure on Tesla to make decisions that may be right for a given quarter, but not necessarily right for the long-term. Finally, as the most shorted stock in the history of the stock market, being public means that there are large numbers of people who have the incentive to attack the company,” Musk wrote.
Overall, Teller noted that his job as Musk’s aide was akin to an air traffic controller. He also stated that there was a lot of problem-solving involved at all hours. It is this grueling schedule, the aide admitted, that ultimately convinced him to stop working for the Tesla CEO in 2019. “I was pretty tired, and it was time to do something else,” Teller said.
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Tesla China delivery centers packed as Q4 2025 enters its final month
Fresh photos from delivery centers in the country show rows upon rows of Model Ys and Model 3s.
Tesla’s delivery centers in China are filled with vehicles as the company ramps up for its final push in Q4 2025. Fresh photos from delivery centers in the country show rows upon rows of Model Ys and Model 3s, signaling strong end-of-quarter momentum.
A delivery push for Q4 2025
A recent aerial shot from a Tesla delivery center in China captures the company’s efforts to deliver as many vehicles as possible as the year comes to a close. As could be seen in the image, which was posted by on X by Tesla enthusiast Nic Cruz Patane, the facility was filled with numerous Model Y and Model 3 units, each vehicle seemingly ready to be handed over to customers.
Echoing the scene, another post, reportedly from two weeks prior, showed a similar scene in a Shanghai location, which was packed with Model Y units. X user Roberto Nores shared the photo, noting that the image also shows multiple Model Y Ls, a six-seat extended wheelbase version of the popular all-electric crossover.
Towards a strong Q4 finish
China remains Tesla’s volume powerhouse, accounting for a good portion of the company’s global deliveries in recent quarters. That being said, reports did emerge in early November stating that the company only reached 26,006 retail sales during October, as noted in a CNEV Post report. The reasons for this remain to be seen, though a focus on exports could have been a contributing factor.
Tesla China does seem to be hinting at some momentum this November. Just recently, Tesla watchers observed that the order page for the Model Y in China shows a message informing customers that those who wish to guarantee delivery by the end of the year should purchase an inventory unit. This was despite the Model Y RWD and Model Y L showing an estimated delivery timeline of 4-8 weeks, and the Model Y Long Range RWD and Model Y Long Range AWD showing 4-13 weeks.
-->Elon Musk
SpaceX’s Starship FL launch site will witness scenes once reserved for sci-fi films
A Starship that launches from the Florida site could touch down on the same site years later.
The Department of the Air Force (DAF) has released its Final Environmental Impact Statement for SpaceX’s efforts to launch and land Starship and its Super Heavy booster at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s SLC-37.
According to the Impact Statement, Starship could launch up to 76 times per year on the site, with Super Heavy boosters returning within minutes of liftoff and Starship upper stages landing back on the same pad in a timeframe that was once only possible in sci-fi movies.
Booster in Minutes, Ship in (possibly) years
The EIS explicitly referenced a never-before-seen operational concept: Super Heavy boosters will launch, reach orbit, and be caught by the tower chopsticks roughly seven minutes after liftoff. Meanwhile, the Starship upper stage will complete its mission, whether a short orbital test, lunar landing, or a multi-year Mars cargo run, and return to the exact same SLC-37 pad upon mission completion.
“The Super Heavy booster landings would occur within a few minutes of launch, while the Starship landings would occur upon completion of the Starship missions, which could last hours or years,” the EIS read.
This means a Starship that departs the Florida site in, say, 2027, could touch down on the same site in 2030 or later, right beside a brand-new stack preparing for its own journey, as noted in a Talk Of Titusville report. The 214-page document treats these multi-year round trips as standard procedure, effectively turning the location into one of the world’s first true interplanetary spaceports.
-->Noise and emissions flagged but deemed manageable
While the project received a clean bill of health overall, the EIS identified two areas requiring ongoing mitigation. Sonic booms from Super Heavy booster and Starship returns will cause significant community annoyance” particularly during nighttime operations, though structural damage is not expected. Nitrogen oxide emissions during launches will also exceed federal de minimis thresholds, prompting an adaptive management plan with real-time monitoring.
Other impacts, such as traffic, wildlife (including southeastern beach mouse and Florida scrub-jay), wetlands, and historic sites, were deemed manageable under existing permits and mitigation strategies. The Air Force is expected to issue its Record of Decision within weeks, followed by FAA concurrence, setting the stage for rapid redevelopment of the former site into a dual-tower Starship complex.
SpaceX Starship Environmental Impact Statement by Simon Alvarez
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Tesla Full Self-Driving (FSD) testing gains major ground in Spain
Based on information posted by the Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT), it appears that Tesla is already busy testing FSD in the country.
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) program is accelerating across Europe, with Spain emerging as a key testing hub under the country’s new ES-AV framework program.
Based on information posted by the Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT), it appears that Tesla is already busy testing FSD in the country.
Spain’s ES-AV framework
Spain’s DGT launched the ES-AV Program in July 2025 to standardize testing for automated vehicles from prototypes to pre-homologation stages. The DGT described the purpose of the program on its official website.
“The program is designed to complement and enhance oversight, regulation, research, and transparency efforts, as well as to support innovation and advancements in automotive technology and industry. This framework also aims to capitalize on the opportunity to position Spain as a pioneer and leader in automated vehicle technology, seeking to provide solutions that help overcome or alleviate certain shortcomings or negative externalities of the current transportation system,” the DGT wrote.
The program identifies three testing phases based on technological maturity and the scope of a company’s operations. Each phase has a set of minimum eligibility requirements, and applicants must indicate which phase they wish to participate in, at least based on their specific technological development.
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Tesla FSD tests
As noted by Tesla watcher Kees Roelandschap on X, the DGT’s new framework effectively gives the green flight for nationwide FSD testing. So far, Tesla Spain has a total of 19 vehicles authorized to test FSD on the country’s roads, though it would not be surprising if this fleet grows in the coming months.
The start date for the program is listed at November 27, 2025 to November 26, 2027. The DGT also noted that unlimited FSD tests could be done across Spain on any national route. And since Tesla is already in Phase 3 of the ES-AV Program, onboard safety operators are optional. Remote monitoring would also be allowed.
Tesla’s FSD tests in Spain could help the company gain a lot of real-world data on the country’s roads. Considering the scope of tests that are allowed for the electric vehicle maker, it seems like Spain would be one of the European countries that would be friendly to FSD’s operations. So far, Tesla’s FSD push in Europe is notable, with the company holding FSD demonstrations in Germany, France, and Italy. Tesla is also pushing for national approval in the Netherlands in early 2026.
Tesla China delivery centers packed as Q4 2025 enters its final month
SpaceX’s Starship FL launch site will witness scenes once reserved for sci-fi films
