Tesla’s Elon Musk and Hip-Hop Legend Kanye West are two industry leaders. Elon Musk is the CEO of Tesla, SpaceX, and the Boring Company, while Kanye has spent many years of his career as one of the best artists that the Hip-Hop/Rap genre has to offer. Both looked at as legends in their respective fields; the two men teamed up last week in a notorious picture that amassed hundreds of thousands of Retweets and Likes on Twitter.
Musk and West have a history as well. In December, Musk attended a party with Kanye and wife Kim Kardashian, accompanied by other rap superstars like Travis Scott and Quavo of “Migos.” Musk and Kanye, along with the other two artists, took pictures and celebrated the Holiday together.
The recent photograph, however, seemed to be a statement against the current Presidential Administration, as just a few days later, Kanye announced his intentions to run for the Office of President of the United States of America. The man who recorded some of rap’s most powerful songs would run as a representative of the “Birthday Party,” and the man who just led the first privatized company to put people into space would be the head of the West Administration’s Space Program.
You have my full support!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 5, 2020
West would continue a trend of U.S. Citizens electing celebrities with no “real” political experience into the White House. But, in all honesty, anything is worth a shot, right?
The partnership between Musk and West would be indicative of an administration comprised of two people who are Google’d more often than many people. West and Musk share a few similarities that have to deal with their fan bases. A cult-like following for both men follows their every move, justifying and supporting whatever the most recent choices of their respective idol are.
This is a preview from our weekly newsletter. Each week I go ‘Beyond the News’ and handcraft a special edition that includes my thoughts on the biggest stories, why it matters, and how it could impact the future.
A big thanks to our long-time supporters and new subscribers! Thank you.
As a fan of both individuals, I have called Elon Musk my favorite “businessperson” for several years, while Kanye has been my favorite “musical artist” since 2010. Both men, outspoken and passionate in their own rights, have attracted a type of attention that seems to be either love or hate, and there are very few people who are stuck in the middle.
Musk is a visionary. A man who sees a future past planet Earth and will do anything it takes to stop the destruction of the planet, along with the extinction of the human race. Developing sustainable transportation, backed up with a plan to escape the planet and head to Mars if things don’t go according to the Master Plan. Personally, I’ll never understand how someone can dislike the guy, but I have encountered people over the years who have refused to give Musk a chance to prove himself. Immediately writing him off, until they get an opportunity to ride in one of his cars, Musk is a man who speaks his mind, which is something of a dying breed. The CEO is one of the few examples of a “real” person that is left in this world, and to me, that is certainly respectable.
West is virtually no different, just more controversial. He has always been a man who has put his personal anecdotes into his music, lyrically. I remember when West confronted a paparazzi by taking his camera, which in turn became a lyric in the song “New Slaves,” where he described taking “recorders” from the paparazzo. The subjects of his music have been controversial, but they have described events in his life in a passionate way. After President Trump was elected, West showed up at the Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in New York City to have a conversation. After dawning the red “Make America Great Again” hat, West made his support of the newly elected President clear.
“So go and grab the reporters
So I can smash their recorders”
-Kanye West, “New Slaves,” 2013
Since then, “Ye” has halted his support for the President. In an interview with Forbes, West stated that he was “taking the red hat off with this interview.” It may have been an indication that West was fed up with Trump’s response to any of the recent conflicts that have plagued our country. More than likely, however, it was a nod of seriousness that he would be running to take the Presidency from Trump.
The two men’s photograph together captured the essence of a stance against a man who has gone against what both men have stood for since the beginning of their journeys. Musk has aimed toward a sustainable future for transportation and energy. On the contrary, Trump has taken put both issues on hold in favor of coal and natural gas supply because of employment measures. However, Trump implemented tariffs of solar energy, which sent 62,000 jobs to other countries, something he promised not to do while campaigning for office.
Kanye, although vocally supportive of Trump for the past few years, has decided to officially retire his duties as a supporter of the President. However, he didn’t speak badly about Trump to Forbes, but did have quite a few things to say about Democratic candidate Joe Biden.
The essence of Kanye’s presidential campaign is backed by religious beliefs, which has been the main focus of the West family for a few years. Kanye has started a “Sunday Service,” which hosts a gospel Church service on most Sundays in the Los Angeles area. The events are aimed toward spreading love, equality, and the word of God, and his campaign seems to be no different.
Many of the questions based on his campaign techniques were answered with responses that would come from someone who is religious. But, nonetheless, West’s political campaign is young and untested, and he only has a few months to prepare before November.
Most recently, developments between Musk and West may have taken a turn. After West posted, and quickly deleted, an anti-abortion Tweet and claimed he was anti-vaccine, Musk claimed, “We may have more differences of opinion than I anticipated.”
The question is: Is West’s run toward the U.S. Presidency real? If he wins, will Musk be the Head of the Space Force? Can the two men find common ground on their differences if West wins the election?
Only time will tell.
Please consider Subscribing and joining me next week as I go ‘Beyond the News’
Tesla is updating Cybertruck owners on its timeline of a massive feature that has yet to ship: Powershare with Powerwall.
Powershare is a bidirectional charging feature exclusive to Cybertruck, which allows the vehicle’s battery to act as a portable power source for homes, appliances, tools, other EVs, and more. It was announced in late 2023 as part of Tesla’s push into vehicle-to-everything energy sharing, and acting as a giant portable charger is the main advantage, as it can provide backup power during outages.
Cybertruck’s Powershare system supports both vehicle-to-load (V2L) and vehicle-to-home (V2H), making it flexible and well-rounded for a variety of applications.
However, even though the feature was promised with Cybertruck, it has yet to be shipped to vehicles. Tesla communicated with owners through email recently regarding Powershare with Powerwall, which essentially has the pickup act as an extended battery.
Powerwall discharge would be prioritized before tapping into the truck’s larger pack.
However, Tesla is still working on getting the feature out to owners, an email said:
“We’re writing to let you know that the Powershare with Powerwall feature is still in development and is now scheduled for release in mid-2026.
This new release date gives us additional time to design and test this feature, ensuring its ability to communicate and optimize energy sharing between your vehicle and many configurations and generations of Powerwall. We are also using this time to develop additional Powershare features that will help us continue to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.”
Owners have expressed some real disappointment in Tesla’s continuous delays in releasing the feature, as it was expected to be released by late 2024, but now has been pushed back several times to mid-2026, according to the email.
Foundation Series Cybertruck buyers paid extra, expecting the feature to be rolled out with their vehicle upon pickup.
Cybertruck’s Lead Engineer, Wes Morrill, even commented on the holdup:
As a Cybertruck owner who also has Powerwall, I empathize with the disappointed comments.
To their credit, the team has delivered powershare functionality to Cybertruck customers who otherwise have no backup with development of the powershare gateway. As well as those with solar…
— Wes (@wmorrill3) December 12, 2025
He said that “it turned out to be much harder than anticipated to make powershare work seamlessly with existing Powerwalls through existing wall connectors. Two grid-forming devices need to negotiate who will form and who will follow, depending on the state of charge of each, and they need to do this without a network and through multiple generations of hardware, and test and validate this process through rigorous certifications to ensure grid safety.”
It’s nice to see the transparency, but it is justified for some Cybertruck owners to feel like they’ve been bait-and-switched.
Tesla has opened its northernmost Supercharger in Fairbanks, Alaska, with eight V4 stalls located in one of the most frigid cities in the U.S.
Located just 196 miles from the Arctic Circle, Fairbanks’s average temperature for the week was around -12 degrees Fahrenheit. However, there are plenty of Tesla owners in Alaska who have been waiting for more charging options out in public.
There are only 36 total Supercharger stalls in Alaska, despite being the largest state in the U.S.
Eight Superchargers were added to Fairbanks, which will eventually be a 48-stall station. Tesla announced its activation today:
North America’s northernmost Supercharger Fairbanks, AK (8 stalls) opened to public. https://t.co/M4l04DZ6B5 pic.twitter.com/zyL6bDuA93
— Tesla Charging (@TeslaCharging) December 12, 2025
The base price per kWh is $0.43 at the Fairbanks Supercharger. Thanks to its V4 capabilities, it can charge at speeds up to 325 kW.
Despite being the northernmost Supercharger in North America, it is not even in the Top 5 northernmost Superchargers globally, because Alaska is south of Norway. The northernmost Supercharger is in Honningsvåg, Norway. All of the Top 5 are in the Scandanavian country.
Tesla’s Supercharger expansion in 2025 has been impressive, and although it experienced some early-quarter slowdowns due to V3-to-V4 hardware transitions, it has been the company’s strongest year for deployments.
🚨🚨 Tesla Supercharging had a HUGE year, and they deserve to be recognized.
🍔 Opened Tesla Diner, a drive-in movie theater with awesome, Chef-curated cuisine
🔌 Gave access to Superchargers to several EV makers, including Hyundai, Genesis, Mercedes-Benz, Kia, Lucid, Toyota,… pic.twitter.com/yYT2QEbqoW
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) December 10, 2025
Through the three quarters of 2025, the company has added 7,753 stations and 73,817 stalls across the world, a 16 percent increase in stations and an 18 percent increase in stalls compared to last year.
Tesla is on track to add over 12,000 stalls for the full year, achieving an average of one new stall every hour, an impressive statistic.
Recently, the company wrapped up construction at its Supercharger Oasis in Lost Hills, California, a 168-stall Supercharger that Tesla Solar Panels completely power. It is the largest Supercharger in the world.
News
Tesla shocks with latest Robotaxi testing move
Why Tesla has chosen to use a couple of Model S units must have a reason; the company is calculated in its engineering and data collection efforts, so this is definitely more than “we just felt like giving our drivers a change of scenery.”
Tesla Model S vehicles were spotted performing validation testing with LiDAR rigs in California today, a pretty big switch-up compared to what we are used to seeing on the roads.
Tesla utilizes the Model Y crossover for its Robotaxi fleet. It is adequately sized, the most popular vehicle in its lineup, and is suitable for a wide variety of applications. It provides enough luxury for a single rider, but enough room for several passengers, if needed.
However, the testing has seemingly expanded to one of Tesla’s premium flagship offerings, as the Model S was spotted with the validation equipment that is seen entirely with Model Y vehicles. We have written several articles on Robotaxi testing mules being spotted across the United States, but this is a first:
🚨 Tesla is using Model S vehicles fitted with LiDAR rigs to validate FSD and Robotaxi, differing from the Model Ys that it uses typically
Those Model Y vehicles have been on the East Coast for some time. These Model S cars were spotted in California https://t.co/CN9Bw5Wma8 pic.twitter.com/UE55hx5mdd
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) December 11, 2025
Why Tesla has chosen to use a couple of Model S units must have a reason; the company is calculated in its engineering and data collection efforts, so this is definitely more than “we just felt like giving our drivers a change of scenery.”
It seems to hint that Tesla could add a premium, more luxury offering to its Robotaxi platform eventually. Think about it: Uber has Uber Black, Lyft has Lyft Black. These vehicles and services are associated with a more premium cost as they combine luxury models with more catered transportation options.
Tesla could be testing the waters here, and it could be thinking of adding the Model S to its fleet of ride-hailing vehicles.
Reluctant to remove the Model S from its production plans completely despite its low volume contributions to the overall mission of transitioning the world to sustainable energy, the flagship sedan has always meant something. CEO Elon Musk referred to it, along with its sibling Model X, as continuing on production lines due to “sentimental reasons.”
However, its purpose might have been expanded to justify keeping it around, and why not? It is a cozy, premium offering, and it would be great for those who want a little more luxury and are willing to pay a few extra dollars.
Of course, none of this is even close to confirmed. However, it is reasonable to speculate that the Model S could be a potential addition to the Robotaxi fleet. It’s capable of all the same things the Model Y is, but with more luxuriousness, and it could be the perfect addition to the futuristic fleet.
Tesla updates Cybertruck owners on timeline of massive feature yet to ship
Tesla’s northernmost Supercharger in North America opens
