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Ultra-fast charging networks to challenge Tesla Superchargers
European automakers are about to make a major commitment to developing an ultra-fast charging network that can rival that of Tesla’s Supercharger network. Reuters reports that Daimler, BMW, Volkswagen and American automaker, Ford, plan to build 400 ultra-fast charging stations in Europe that will be capable of power levels triple that of Tesla’s existing fast-charging Supercharger stations.
Fast chargers in Europe
At the moment, there are more than 72,000 public chargers in Europe but only 5,800 of those are what the International Energy Agency calls “fast” chargers, which means they have 43 kW of power or more. By contrast, a Tesla Supercharger operates at between 120 and 135 kW.
While Tesla has been busy investing in the global expansion of its charging infrastructure, other major car companies have been waiting on the sidelines for private companies or governments to build the infrastructure needed to power their electric car models. Some allege this foot dragging is proof that mainstream car companies are really not all that interested in building electric cars in the first place.
Diesel cheating changes everything
The Volkswagen diesel cheating scandal that broke in September of 2015 changed that calculus, however. In the aftermath, it emerged that the only difference between Volkswagen and most other manufacturers was that it got caught. Cheating was rampant throughout the industry. Suddenly, the car companies had to face the fact that “clean diesel” technology was a false hope and that they needed another strategy to meet the looming European Union emissions standards.
Automakers respond
Volkswagen is seeking to dig itself out of the hole it dug for itself by repositioning itself as a maker of primarily electric cars. Now it is partnering with BMW, Mercedes Benz, and Ford to devise and construct a network of ultra-fast charging stations.
The goal is to install 350 kW charging stations throughout Europe, using the CCS charging standard. Each station is said to approximately €200,000 each. Interestingly, Tesla is also a member of the CCS consortium.
The car makers are partnering with experts from the European power and engineering industry. Germany companies Innogy, E.ON and Siemens are involved as well as Portugal’s Efacec. “This is a structured and concerted effort across sectors to tackle the infrastructure issue in a real way,” a source tells Reuters.
ChargePoint weighs in
At the recent CES 2017 show, ChargePoint unveiled its own vision of the future — Express Plus, a modular and scalable system of chargers with up to 400 kW of power. The ChargePoint system is built around one common component — a charging blade with 31 kW of power. Each charging station can have one or two blades installed. The chargers can network together to boost power to any unit in use or they can be linked to a Power Cube, a separate component containing 16 blades with a total of 496 kW of power.
Because it is scalable, the ChargePoint system can expand to provide more power for charging electric vehicles as demand increases. This could one day supply the needs of heavy duty electric buses and tractor trailers.
Elon hints of big things to come
As the market for electric cars grows, traditional car makers are going to find it easier to catch up with Tesla, said Graham Evans, automotive analyst at IHS Markit. “Tesla doesn’t really have anyone to answer to, they are independent,” he said. “(But) I think that further out the big (automakers) are in a better position to capitalize because of their more extensive resources.”
Navigant Research analyst Lisa Jerram said the number of players in the emerging EV fast charging market to build ultra-fast charging stations makes it difficult to call out a winner yet. “Development is underway on these chargers so there isn’t a leader at this point,” she notes.
Recently, Elon Musk scoffed at the suggestion that the charging network the European companies are working on will be a big deal. He tweeted that 350 kW of power was merely a “children’s toy,” hinting that Tesla has much bolder goals.
As usual, Tesla will likely remain 3 moves ahead of the industry.
Tesla is advancing a fully automated pipeline for the 4680 battery cells used in its all-electric Semi, spanning production from Giga Texas through shipment and direct consumption on the line at the new dedicated Semi Factory in Sparks, Nevada.
The approach was outlined by Tesla at its September 24 Semi Handover event, which launched high-volume production at its new 1.8-million-square-foot plant in Nevada, which sits adjacent to Gigafactory Nevada and is designed for an annual production rate of 50,000 trucks per year.
After years of pilot builds and what was a four-year-long redesign of the truck, Tesla moved the Semi from 2170 batteries to its in-house 4680 cells, which are made in Austin. The change cuts battery mass and total energy while holding range, a key step in making volume production a realistic possibility.
Cells will leave Giga Texas in trailers, and at the Nevada Semi plant, Tesla intends for a dedicated line to unload those trailers automatically, station the cells, and feed them straight into pack and vehicle assembly.
🚨 Tesla plans to use a completely automated unloading process for cells coming from Giga Texas arriving at the Semi factory in Nevada
A line will “consume” cells from the trailer
The goal is to have zero human touch point throughout the entire process. Insane! pic.twitter.com/wdBFM8LC3F
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) September 25, 2026
Both Lars Moravy, Tesla’s VP of Vehicle Engineering, and Dan Priestley, the Head of Tesla’s Semi program, described the goal as a “zero human touch point” from the moment the trailer arrives in Texas until a finished Semi drives off the production line in Nevada.
The unloading system that Moravy and Priestley described is just one piece of a much broader automation push. The plant uses what Tesla calls the highest-capacity electric monorail conveyance in vehicle manufacturing, carrying frames-in-white simultaneously. Powder-coating replaces conventional paint, and many processes that would normally require operators have been designed out.
Tesla has repeatedly said that “the best part is no part,” and the cell-handling plan extends that philosophy from the cell factory floor in Texas all the way to final assembly in Nevada.
If executed as described, the closed-loop flow would reduce labor, handling damage, and inventory buffers while tightening quality control on a component that represents a large share of the truck’s cost and weight. It also shortens the physical and organizational distance between two factories separated by more than 1,200 miles. The Semi itself now shares a bar-wound stator and other components with the Cybertruck, further linking Tesla’s passenger and commercial production systems.
High-volume output is expected to ramp gradually after the first trucks left the new line in April 2026. Early customers include PepsiCo, DHL, and U.S. Foods. Whether the automated trailer-to-line process reaches the promised zero-touch standard will be visible in the coming months as production scales. For Tesla, the Semi factory is another test of how far it can push “the machine that builds the machine” across sites.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk’s AI Grok Bot can now handle banking while your Tesla FSD handles the road
Elon Musk says Grok Bot can manage your finances through linked bank and investment accounts.
Grok Bot now wants access to your wallet, with SpaceXAI rolling out a new Finance integration for its agent platform that lets users link bank, credit card and investment accounts thereby letting their Bots help manage spending, investments and more. Elon Musk amplified the announcement on X with a short endorsement, “Grok Bot can manage your finances.”
The feature builds on two earlier steps. In early September, Grok gained the ability to answer questions about spending, savings, investments and cash flow using accounts connected through Plaid, starting with users in the U.S. Before that, on August 28, SpaceXAI let Grok Bot buy things online through Link, with users approving every spend request and the Bot receiving a single use card for each payment.
Musk has already shown how far he wants users to push it. In late August, when Tesla investor account Teslaconomics said he was weighing whether to give Grok Bot access to his bank accounts, Musk replied, “Try it out. If Grok Bot messes up, we will make you whole.” That promise goes beyond SpaceXAI’s consumer terms, which make users responsible for what their agents do and generally cap the company’s liability at the greater of fees paid or $100. SpaceXAI’s own documentation recommends requiring approval for purchases and financial transfers.
For Tesla owners, the update lands five days after Tesla brought Grok Bot into its vehicles, letting drivers hand off errands by voice while FSD (Supervised) handles the road. Bot access inside the car is currently limited to SuperGrok Heavy subscribers, though Connectors are open to anyone signed into Grok. With Finance linked, a driver could ask for a spending summary or a check on upcoming bills during the commute.
Grok’s role in the car has grown quickly since Tesla’s Summer Update let it control cabin features by voice. We have been using Grok Bot in our own Tesla for several weeks, and here’s how our latest test went.
Elon Musk
SpaceX just got the green light Starship has waited years for
The FAA has cleared Starship Flight 14, setting up SpaceX’s first orbital attempt on Monday.
SpaceX has cleared the last regulatory hurdle standing between Starship and its first trip to orbit. The Federal Aviation Administration issued the launch license for Starship Flight 14 late Saturday, keeping the mission on track for liftoff Monday, September 28, from Pad 2 at Starbase, Texas.
The 75 minute launch window opens at 7:15 a.m. Central, and Boca Chica Beach closures are also scheduled for September 29 and 30 as backup dates. This will be Starship’s first revenue generating mission.
The license was the missing piece after SpaceX completed a full wet dress rehearsal with Booster 21 and Ship 41 on September 24. At the time, the company said the flight remained on track pending regulatory approval. Because Flight 14 flies an orbital profile, the FAA had to sign off on a modified license that met its safety, payload and financial responsibility requirements.
Observers combing through the new FAA paperwork also noticed that lightning no longer appears among Starship’s listed launch hazards. If that holds, it matters more for where Starship is headed than for Monday’s attempt. Florida and Louisiana, home to LC-39A and the planned Starbase Louisiana site, see some of the most frequent lightning in the United States.
SpaceX tells the FCC that Starship Flight 14 is going to orbit
Flight 14 is the mission SpaceX has been building toward for months. Ship 41 will carry 26 Starlink V3 satellites, the first operational V3 units to be deployed, and attempt roughly six orbits at about 275 kilometers over a flight lasting just under 10 hours. SpaceX says the ship will only perform its orbital insertion burn after flight controllers confirm enough hardware redundancy remains for the deorbit burn at the end of the mission. Ship 41 is targeting a splashdown in the Pacific west of Chile, while Super Heavy will return to the Gulf of Mexico.
The date carries some symbolism as well. A Monday launch would come 10 years and one day after Elon Musk first presented the Interplanetary Transport System, the design that became Starship, at the International Astronautical Congress in Guadalajara, Mexico.
SpaceX has not announced what comes next, but air traffic planning slides reported this week, list Flight 15 no earlier than October 19 and a first Starship launch from LC-39A in Florida no earlier than October 30. Both dates depend on how Monday goes.
Tesla has a ‘no human contact’ approach for Semi production
Elon Musk’s AI Grok Bot can now handle banking while your Tesla FSD handles the road
