News
Tesla’s Elon Musk tests the waters for a potential Gigafactory in Texas
Elon Musk is pondering on building a Gigafactory in Texas and the CEO wants to find out what the electric car community on Twitter thinks of the possible next big move for the electric carmaker. Musk started a poll late Tuesday night and gave the Twitterverse two options: “Hell yeah” and “Nope.” As of writing, the poll has garnered almost 231,000 votes with around 80% of respondents being in favor of building the new Gigafactory in the Lone Star state.
Giga Texas would be Tesla’s fifth Gigafactory, and while many believe the nomenclature is perfect for the state where everything is bigger, many are wondering why Musk would consider building a factory in a state where the direct sale of its vehicles is not allowed. A bill was even pushed once to prohibit the electric car manufacturer from servicing its vehicles in the state.
Giga Texas?
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 5, 2020
Tesla has Giga Nevada and Giga New York in the United States. The former is focused on producing batteries for the car manufacturer while the latter produces the Solarglass Roof Tiles and Powerwall. There’s also Giga Shanghai in China that already produces the Model 3 for the biggest automotive market in the world. The Silicon Valley-based carmaker is also hoping to lay the first brick by mid-March of its planned EV factory in Europe, Giga Berlin.
-->During the Q4 2019 earnings call, Musk explained that Tesla needs to make sure it has the batteries to make cars that are already on its lineup. “We got to scale battery production to crazy levels that people cannot even fathom today. That’s the real problem,” the chief executive of Tesla said.
Giga Texas might be the solution to this problem. It can also be the perfect place to ramp the production of the Cybertruck, whose Tri-Motor version is set to hit production by 2021. With Giga Texas, the Fremont factory will not have to handle additional pressure as it already produces the Model S, Model X, Model 3, and the much-awaited Model Y crossover. Ultimately, penetrating Texas is setting foot in the heart of the country’s biggest oil producers and refineries, and that’s quite a statement for Tesla.
We are (obviously) also looking for world-class chip designers to join our team, based in both Palo Alto & Austin
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 2, 2020
It should be noted that Texas has a lively tech scene, particularly in Austin. Tech talents from Silicon Valley have been flocking to this region. The blossoming tech scene in the metro is blossoming enough that people call Austin as “Silicon Hills.”
-->Earlier this week, Elon Musk announced via Twitter that he will be hosting an AI hackathon party at his house. This time-boxed event is most likely to further accelerate the development of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving capabilities and improvements to its Autopilot feature. It is also a perfect setup to fish for new talents that will join Tesla’s workforce. Interestingly enough, Musk mentioned in his hackathon announcement that the electric car maker was looking for chip designers who can join the team in Palo Alto and Austin.
Even without waiting for the Giga Texas poll to end, the Twitterverse and Elon Musk’s 31 million followers may have already an obvious decision. For sure, everyone is eager to hear additional details about the new Gigafactory Musk is planning to build, as well as the role Giga Texas will play Tesla’s efforts to transition the transportation towards sustainability.
News
Tesla FSD V14.2.1 is earning rave reviews from users in diverse conditions
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) software continues its rapid evolution, with the latest V14.2.1 update drawing widespread praise.
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) software continues its rapid evolution, with the latest V14.2.1 update drawing widespread praise for its smoother performance and smarter decision-making.
Videos and firsthand accounts from Tesla owners highlight V14.2.1 as an update that improves navigation responsiveness, sign recognition, and overall fluidity, among other things. Some drivers have even described it as “more alive than ever,” hinting at the system eventually feeling “sentient,” as Elon Musk has predicted.
FSD V14.2.1 first impressions
Early adopters are buzzing about how V14.2.1 feels less intrusive while staying vigilant. In a post shared on X, Tesla owner @LactoseLunatic described the update as a “huge leap forward,” adding that the system remains “incredibly assertive but still safe.”
Another Tesla driver, Devin Olsenn, who logged ~600 km on V14.2.1, reported no safety disengagements, with the car feeling “more alive than ever.” The Tesla owner noted that his wife now defaults to using FSD V14, as the system is already very smooth and refined.
Adverse weather and regulatory zones are testing grounds where V14.2.1 shines, at least according to testers in snow areas. Tesla watcher Sawyer Merritt shared a video of his first snowy drive on unplowed rural roads in New Hampshire, where FSD did great and erred on the side of caution. As per Merritt, FSD V14.2.1 was “extra cautious” but it performed well overall.
-->Sign recognition and freeway prowess
Sign recognition also seemed to show improvements with FSD V14.2.1. Longtime FSD tester Chuck Cook highlighted a clip from his upcoming first-impressions video, showcasing improved school zone behavior. “I think it read the signs better,” he observed, though in standard mode, it didn’t fully drop to 15 mph within the short timeframe. This nuance points to V14.2.1’s growing awareness of temporal rules, a step toward fewer false positives in dynamic environments.
FSD V14.2.1 also seems to excel in high-stress highway scenarios. Fellow FSD tester @BLKMDL3 posted a video of FSD V14.2.1 managing a multi-lane freeway closure due to a police chase-related accident. “Perfectly handles all lanes of the freeway merging into one,” the Tesla owner noted in his post on X.
FSD V14.2.1 was released on Thanksgiving, much to the pleasant surprise of Tesla owners. The update’s release notes are almost identical to the system’s previous iteration, save for one line item read, “Camera visibility can lead to increased attention monitoring sensitivity.”
News
Tesla FSD Supervised ride-alongs in Europe begin in Italy, France, and Germany
The program allows the public to hop in as a non-driving observer to witness FSD navigate urban streets firsthand.
Tesla has kicked off passenger ride-alongs for Full Self-Driving (Supervised) in Italy, France and Germany. The program allows the public to hop in as a non-driving observer to witness FSD navigate urban streets firsthand.
The program, detailed on Tesla’s event pages, arrives ahead of a potential early 2026 Dutch regulatory approval that could unlock a potential EU-wide rollout for FSD.
Hands-Off Demos
Tesla’s ride-along invites participants to “ride along in the passenger seat to experience how it handles real-world traffic & the most stressful parts of daily driving, making the roads safer for all,” as per the company’s announcement on X through its official Tesla Europe & Middle East account.
Sign-ups via localized pages offer free slots through December, with Tesla teams piloting vehicles through city streets, roundabouts and highways.
“Be one of the first to experience Full Self-Driving (Supervised) from the passenger seat. Our team will take you along as a passenger and show you how Full Self-Driving (Supervised) works under real-world road conditions,” Tesla wrote. “Discover how it reacts to live traffic and masters the most stressful parts of driving to make the roads safer for you and others. Come join us to learn how we are moving closer to a fully autonomous future.”
-->Building trust towards an FSD Unsupervised rollout
Tesla’s FSD (Supervised) ride-alongs could be an effective tool to build trust and get regular car buyers and commuters used to the idea of vehicles driving themselves. By seating riders shotgun, Tesla could provide participants with a front row seat to the bleeding edge of consumer-grade driverless systems.
FSD (Supervised) has already been rolled out to several countries, such as the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and partially in China. So far, FSD (Supervised) has been received positively by drivers, as it really makes driving tasks and long trips significantly easier and more pleasant.
FSD is a key safety feature as well, which became all too evident when a Tesla driving on FSD was hit by what seemed to be a meteorite in Australia. The vehicle moved safely despite the impact, though the same would likely not be true had the car been driven manually.
News
Swedish union rep pissed that Tesla is working around a postal blockade they started
Tesla Sweden is now using dozens of private residences as a way to obtain license plates for its vehicles.
Two years into their postal blockade, Swedish unions are outraged that Tesla is still able to provide its customers’ vehicles with valid plates through various clever workarounds.
Seko chairman Gabriella Lavecchia called it “embarrassing” that the world’s largest EV maker, owned by CEO Elon Musk, refuses to simply roll over and accept the unions’ demands.
Unions shocked Tesla won’t just roll over and surrender
The postal unions’ blockade began in November 2023 when Seko and IF Metall-linked unions stopped all mail to Tesla sites to force a collective agreement. License plates for Tesla vehicles instantly became the perfect pressure point, as noted in a Dagens Arbete report.
Tesla responded by implementing initiatives to work around the blockades. A recent investigation from Arbetet revealed that Tesla Sweden is now using dozens of private residences, including one employee’s parents’ house in Trångsund and a customer-relations staffer’s home in Vårby, as a way to obtain license plates for its vehicles.
Seko chairman Gabriella Lavecchia is not pleased that Tesla Sweden is working around the unions’ efforts yet again. “It is embarrassing that one of the world’s largest car companies, owned by one of the world’s richest people, has sunk this low,” she told the outlet. “Unfortunately, it is completely frivolous that such a large company conducts business in this way.”
-->Two years on and plates are still being received
The Swedish Transport Agency has confirmed Tesla is still using several different workarounds to overcome the unions’ blockades.
As noted by DA, Tesla Sweden previously used different addresses to receive its license plates. At one point, the electric vehicle maker used addresses for car care shops. Tesla Sweden reportedly used this strategy in Östermalm in Stockholm, as well as in Norrköping and Gothenburg.
Another strategy that Tesla Sweden reportedly implemented involved replacement plates being ordered by private individuals when vehicles change hands from Tesla to car buyers. There have also been cases where the police have reportedly issued temporary plates to Tesla vehicles.
Tesla FSD V14.2.1 is earning rave reviews from users in diverse conditions
Tesla FSD Supervised ride-alongs in Europe begin in Italy, France, and Germany
