News
HBO’s VICE Interviews Elon Musk on “The Future of Energy”
Elon Musk will be featured April 15 on HBO’s weekly program VICE. The topic this week is “The Future of Energy”.

Elon Musk (left) with Shane Smith (right) discussing “The Future of Energy”. Property of HBO. Used with permission.
VICE founder Shane Smith sits down with Tesla CEO Elon Musk to discuss the future of energy in HBO’s compelling documentary-TV series, VICE. The interview — set to air tomorrow night on HBO at 11 pm eastern time — was filmed in November of last year at Tesla’s Design Center in Hawthorne, CA, recent home to the Model 3 unveiling.
Musk takes Smith for a ride in the Model S before discussing Tesla’s journey to changing the world’s perception on electric vehicles. He tells Smith, “If you had a car that was long range but it didn’t look good and it wasn’t fun and it didn’t handle properly and it didn’t have great electronics and all these important attributes that people value…..we had to change the perception of an electric car. We wanted an electric car to be something that was fun and sexy, not something that was dull and boring like a golf cart.”
Renaissance man that he is, Musk is involved with more than just automobiles. Tesla is also building batteries to store electrical power. Some will be used to balance the electrical grid while others will be used to replace the grid all together. The basic storage unit in the Tesla Powerpack is 100 kWh — slightly larger than the size of the current 90 kWh battery found in the top-of-the-line Model S and Model X. Each Powerpack cabinet contains 5 storage units making for a total capacity of 500 kWh.
“The Future of Energy” airs April 15 at 11pm ET on HBO
Musk tells Smith that it will take about one billion Powerpacks to store all the power the world needs. While that may seem like a staggering number to most people, Elon says it is only equivalent to how many vehicles there are in the world today. Given 15 or 20 years, he thinks Tesla could build enough Powerpacks to meet that need.
Along with his cousins Lyndon and Peter Rive, Musk also found SolarCity in 1993. Today, the company is the largest installer of residential and commercial rooftop solar systems. Just last week, Elon tweeted that the combined output of all SolarCity installations is enough to recharge every Tesla automobile made to date.
Musk summed up his dedication to zero emissions cars and renewable energy by telling Smith the future is his future as well. He has no interest in being the captain of a sinking ship.
Tune in Friday at 11 pm eastern to see the entire “The Future of Energy” episode with Elon Musk on VICE on HBO.
News
Tesla hired over 1,000 factory workers for its Semi program in NV: report
The update was initially reported by Insider, which cited three people reportedly familiar with the matter.

Tesla seems to be putting a lot of effort into growing its Semi team. As per recent reports, the company has hired over 1,000 factory workers in Nevada for its Semi program.
The update was initially reported by Insider, which cited three people reportedly familiar with the matter.
Bigger Semi Team
As per the publication’s sources, Tesla has reportedly hired over a thousand new factory workers for the Semi program in Nevada. The hiring ramp is reportedly part of the company’s efforts to fulfill the orders for the Semi, which have been accumulating for years.
To help the new members of the Semi team, Tesla has reportedly brought in the new workers to Giga Nevada for training and tours over the past months. These efforts are quite a notable update for the Semi program, the publication’s sources claimed, since less than 100 factory workers were reportedly assigned to the Class 8 all-electric truck until recently.
Tesla has not issued a comment about the matter as of writing.
Tesla Semi Jobs and Updates
Insider’s report came amidst a hiring ramp in Tesla’s Careers website. As per previous reports, Tesla’s Careers website has uploaded over 80 positions related to the Semi program. The positions are varied, with listings being posted for engineering-related roles in Palo Alto, California, to manufacturing-related roles in Sparks, Nevada, and vehicle service-related roles in Sacramento, California.
Tesla also shared a recent video of the ongoing progress of the Semi factory’s construction near Giga Nevada. As per Tesla Semi program lead Dan Priestley, the company has spent the last few months building the facility’s shell, so efforts are now underway to equip the factory with production equipment. The Tesla executive also reiterated the company’s target of producing 50,000 units of the Semi annually from its Nevada factory.
Lifestyle
Elon Musk jokes he will join Mr Beast’s “100 Men vs 1 Gorilla” challenge
It’s a good sign, if any, that the overworked Musk is becoming a bit more lighthearted again.

Following the first quarter Tesla earnings call, CEO Elon Musk seems to have become a bit more relaxed—relaxed enough to joke about fighting a gorilla with 99 other people, at least.
It’s a good sign, if any, that the overworked Musk is becoming a bit more lighthearted again and not too busy picking fights with politicians on social media.
The Viral 100 Men vs 1 Gorilla Challenge
Over the weekend, a post on social media platform X went viral. The post itself was quite simple, with user @DreamChasnMike stating that he thinks 100 men could beat one gorilla. “Everybody just gotta be dedicated to the sh*t,” the X user joked. The post exploded on the platform, garnering 284 million impressions as of writing.
The silly question also triggered a massive debate about whether 100 men would really stand a chance against a literal gorilla. Some users even lamented that the premise was a sign of male hubris. Nevertheless, the question proved to be a fun topic on X, with some more dedicated users even posting simulated videos of what the “100 Men vs 1 Gorilla Challenge” could look like.
Mr. Beast and Elon Musk Join In
The premise is quite similar to other viral videos from noted YouTube creator Mr. Beast, so it was no surprise that edited images of Mr. Beast YouTube thumbnails with “100 Men vs a Gorilla” also started spreading on the social media platform. Mr. Beast, who tends to be game to such silly ideas, actually reposted the edited image, joking “Need 100 men to test this, any volunteers?”
In true Elon Musk fashion, the Tesla and SpaceX CEO noted that he would join the challenge. “Sure, what’s the worst that could happen” Musk wrote in his post on X. Musk’s reply triggered quite a few laughs on X, with some stating that the world probably still needs the CEO.
While silly, Musk’s comment and his recent, more frequent posts about his companies’ products like Starlink and Grok have been received well by his supporters. Over the past months, after all, Musk has been very political and quite confrontational on social media. With Musk soon taking a step back from the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) daily operations, however, it seems like X will soon get a more tempered and lighthearted Elon Musk once more.
News
Big Tesla win? Sec Lutnick says cars with 85% domestic content will face zero tariffs
That’s a big competitive advantage for Tesla’s best-selling vehicle.

It appears that Tesla may see itself with a notable advantage in the United States.
This is, at least, as per recent comments from United States Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
Lutnick’s Comments
In recent comments to reporters, Lutnick stated that vehicles finished in the United States with 85% domestic content will have no tariff applied, as noted in a report from The Guardian. Automakers that meet this threshold stand to gain an advantage in the U.S. auto sector, especially considering the Trump administration’s aggressive tariffs.
As per Lutnick, the administration’s auto tariffs will apply to foreign carmakers that are building their vehicles in the United States. “This is ‘finish your cars in America and you win’,” Lutnick stated.
Big Tesla Advantage
Lutnick’s comments were received positively by Tesla watchers on social media, many of whom noted that the threshold would probably be met only by the electric vehicle maker’s cars. Teslas that are sold in the United States are built in the United States, and they have consistently ranked among the most American cars in the country for several years running.
Back in December, for example, American University’s Kogod School of Business released its Made in America Auto Index, which explores the total domestic content of vehicles that are available for purchase today. In its rankings, only three vehicles received a total domestic content score of 85% or higher—the Tesla Model Y, Model Y Long Range, and the Model 3 Performance.
The two Model Y variants received a total domestic content score of 85%, while the Model 3 Performance had a total domestic content of 87.5%. If Secretary Lutnick’s comments are any indication, these three vehicles would be subjected to zero tariffs. This bodes well for Tesla, as the Model Y is the company’s best-selling vehicle by a notable margin.
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