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Elon Musk quietly donates $480K to help Flint, MI schools get access to clean water

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School buildings in Flint, MI will soon get ultraviolet water filtration systems, thanks to a $480,350 donation by Elon Musk through the Musk Foundation, a private foundation founded by Elon and Kimbal Musk back in 2002. The installation of the water filtration systems is expected to be completed by January 2019.

Elon Musk’s donation to Flint’s schools was announced by the district on Friday. In a statement to MLive News, Derrick Lopez, the Superintendent of Flint Community Schools, noted that the new water filtration systems would play a notable part in helping students regain access to safe, clean water. Lopez further stated that Musk’s donation is enough to pay for the filtration systems in all 12 school buildings in the city, as well as the district’s administration building.

“We are deeply grateful for the generosity and the budding partnership between Flint Community Schools, the Musk Foundation and Elon Musk. The new water filtration systems will be instrumental in helping our students return to the normalcy of what should be a fundamental right: having access to safe, clean water from water fountains in their school,” Lopez said.

The UV water purification method within the filtration systems will disinfect lead and bacteria coming from water pipes, allowing students in Flint to safely drink from school water fountains once more. Flint school board president Diana Wright thanked the Musk Foundation for its donation, stating that it ensures that “students in Flint Community Schools have access to safe drinking water at the source — in drinking fountains — by way of the same type of water filtration system used by hospitals and colleges in Flint.”

Elon Musk’s donation to Flint was acknowledged on Twitter by the official Flint Schools account, as well as young activist Mari Copeny, better known as “Little Miss Flint.” Musk, for his part, noted that he hopes he could do more to help in the future. 

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Elon Musk’s initiatives in Flint came to light back in July when he pledged on Twitter that he would be helping the residents of the city get access to clean water. Since his announcements then, as well as his suggestion of a “barnstorming weekend” that would involve the installation of water filters in the homes of Flint’s residents, Musk has remained quiet about his initiatives to aid the city. If the recent announcement from Flint’s school district is any indication, though, it appears that Elon Musk continues to help the city, albeit in a more discreet manner.

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Flint’s water crisis began in April 2014, when the city’s drinking water source was shifted from Lake Huron and the Detroit River to the much cheaper Flint River. Due to insufficient water treatment, lead from the lead pipes used in the new system leached into the residents’ drinking water. The lead-contaminated water resulted in several grave problems for Flint. An estimated 6,000-12,000 children from the city have been exposed to drinking water with high levels of lead, and the percentage of children with elevated blood-lead levels is estimated to have risen from about 2.5% in 2013 to as much as 5% in 2015. Ten fatalities were also caused by an outbreak of Legionnaires’ Disease, which is believed to be linked to the city’s contaminated water supply.

Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Tesla Supercharger access has proven to be a challenge for one company

Interestingly, it seems to be the Volkswagen brand specifically that is having issues with compatibility with Tesla Superchargers. Other brands under the VW umbrella, like Audi and Porsche, have already gained access to the charging network.

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Credit: MarcoRP | X

Tesla Supercharger access has proven to be quite the challenge for one company, as it continues to delay the date that it will enable its owners to charge at the most expansive network in the world.

Tesla Superchargers have been opening up to other brands for well over a year, and many car companies that are manufacturing electric vehicles now have access to the vast network that has over 70,000 locations worldwide.

Tesla to launch Supercharger access for VW owners later this year

However, one brand has experienced some issues with what it is calling “technical challenges,” specifically failing to enable cross-compatibility between its vehicles and Tesla Superchargers.

Volkswagen has had to delay its ability to enable customers to charge at Superchargers because there have been some difficulties getting things to run smoothly. A report from PCMag cites a quote from a Volkswagen spokesperson who said there are still plans to deliver this year, but there have been some delays:

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“Volkswagen looks forward to making it possible for ID. Buzz and ID.4 vehicle owners to gain access to the Tesla NACS Partner Superchargers. The timeline has been delayed by technical challenges, and we ask for customers’ patience. We still expect to deliver access this year.”

Interestingly, it seems to be the Volkswagen brand specifically that is having issues with compatibility with Tesla Superchargers. Other brands under the VW umbrella, like Audi and Porsche, have already gained access to the charging network.

Volkswagen EV owners will need to use an official VW adapter to access the Tesla Supercharger Network once the issues are resolved. It still plans to launch access to its owners later this year, but its spokesperson did not announce any planned timeline.

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Tesla Giga Berlin makes big move amid strong sales and demand

“We currently have very good sales figures and have therefore revised our production plans for the third and fourth quarters upwards.”

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Credit: Tesla Manufacturing

Tesla is making a big move at its factory in Germany, known as Giga Berlin, as managers at the plant have indicated the company plans to increase its production rate for the remainder of the year.

Giga Berlin is responsible for manufacturing Model Y vehicles for several markets worldwide, including those outside of Europe. It was opened in March 2022, and it recently built its 500,000th Model Y in March and its 100,000th new Model Y just three weeks ago.

Due to some encouraging sales figures in the markets it provides vehicles for, Tesla said it is planning to increase production at the factory for the remainder of the year.

Andrè Thierig, plant manager at Giga Berlin, said to German news outlet DPA on Sunday that market data has encouraged a move to be made regarding the production at the factory:

“We currently have very good sales figures and have therefore revised our production plans for the third and fourth quarters upwards.”

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It is interesting to see this kind of narrative from Thierig, especially as data has shown Tesla has struggled in various markets, including Germany, this year.

Sales drops have been reported, but other markets are holding strong, especially those in Northern Europe, such as Norway, where the Model Y saw a nearly 39 percent increase in sales in August compared to the same month the previous year.

Tesla Model Y leads sales rush in Norway in August 2025

Gigafactory Berlin supplies vehicles for other markets, such as Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, which are strategically important to avoid tariffs. It also builds cars for the Middle East.

Thierig reiterated this point during the interview with DPA:

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“We supply well over 30 markets and definitely see a positive trend there.”

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Tesla analyst says Musk stock buy should send this signal to investors

“With Musk’s (Tesla stock) purchase, combined with the upward momentum for delivery expectations and robotaxi rollout, we are becoming more bullish.”

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(Credit: Tesla)

Tesla CEO Elon Musk purchased roughly $1 billion in Tesla shares on Friday, and analysts are now breaking down the move as the stock is headed upward.

One of them is William Blair analyst Jed Dorsheimer, who said in a new note to investors on Monday that Musk’s move should send a signal of confidence to stock buyers, especially considering the company’s numerous catalysts that currently exist.

Elon Musk just bought $1 billion in Tesla stock, his biggest purchase ever

Dorsheimer said in the note:

“With Musk’s (Tesla stock) purchase, combined with the upward momentum for delivery expectations and robotaxi rollout, we are becoming more bullish. This purchase is Musk’s first buy since 2020. To us, this sends a strong signal of confidence in the most important part of Tesla’s future business, robotaxi.”

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Musk putting an additional $1 billion back into the company in the form of more stock ownership is obviously a huge vote of confidence.

He knows more than anyone about the progress Tesla has made and is making on the Robotaxi platform, as well as the company’s ongoing efforts to solve vehicle autonomy. If he’s buying stock, it is more than likely a good sign.

Tesla has continued to expand its Robotaxi platform in a number of ways. The project has gotten bigger in terms of service area, vehicle fleet, and testing population. Tesla has also recently received a permit to test in Nevada, unlocking the potential to expand into a brand-new state for the company.

In the note, Dorsheimer also touched on Musk’s recent pay package, revealing that William Blair recently met with Tesla’s Board of Directors, who gave the firm some more color on the situation:

“We recently participated in a meeting with Tesla’s board of directors to discuss the details of Musk’s performance package. The board is confident of its position in the Delaware case and anticipates a verdict by end of year. It does not expect a similar situation to occur under new Texas jurisdiction. Musk has the board’s full support, and we expect he’ll get more than enough shareholder support for this to pass with flying colors.”

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Tesla stock is up over 6 percent so far today, trading at $421.50 at the time of publication.

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