Lucid Motors’ introductory all-electric vehicle, the Air, is primed for imminent release that is set to occur later this year. Until then, Lucid is refining the details that set the Air apart from its competitors, and its CEO Peter Rawlinson is also getting his hands dirty. Recently, he took the Air to Manhattan in New York City to test the vehicle’s performance in sleek, slender, and challenging urban settings. One thing is for sure, this luxury sedan from Lucid is set to be a disruptive force in the electric sector as it packs performance with comfortability in all the right ways. Rawlinson was sure to complement his company’s first production EV, but he also was vocal about some minor changes he’d like to see ahead of its initial deliveries.
Rawlinson started his trip through Manhattan on a stroll that took him down the Hudson River to the Financial District. After getting perfect views of One World Trade Center and lower Manhattan, Rawlinson continued his trek through the City that Never Sleeps, highlighting several changes that the Lucid team made to the Air’s design. Everything from pillars that created blind spots to the quality of the instrument panel buttons was broken down by Rawlinson, who has held a high standard for his company’s vehicles ever since they have been introduced prior to their production.
An all-too-common narrative that has been projected among the EV community is that of what company will change the game once again. While Tesla technically introduced the electric vehicle sector to the average car buyer, other companies are coming in to create competition and innovation. Lucid is just one of many, but their approach to the electric car is completely different from its competitors. While many are looking years into the future and how the “big picture” of the automotive industry is inevitably set for a massive change in the coming years, Lucid is focused on the short-term.
Rawlinson’s goal is to begin putting cars on the road as soon as possible, and it begins with ending the narrative that Lucid has accomplished something when it hasn’t yet delivered a car. “We are nothing until we’ve got anything into production,” Rawlinson once said, highlighting his inkling for a vehicle delivery by the end of 2021.
The hands-on approach that Rawlinson has taken is eerily similar to that of his former boss Elon Musk. The two worked together in the early 2010s while the development of the Model S was underway. Small, contested, and stressful car startups are becoming more frequent, and Rawlinson has already done this once before. It takes attention to detail from a crafty automotive veteran to ensure that things go smoothly, and Rawlinson may be the perfect man for the job. While he could be sitting in his ritzy office in California, he is instead taking his company’s first car and navigating it through some of the world’s busiest streets, working on perfecting the Lucid Air months before it begins arriving to customers.
Lucid’s premier Air Dream Edition will begin deliveries later this year. While the company will build 500 Air Dream Edition variants, it has three other configurations that will be available in the coming months. Ultimately, Lucid’s big plan is relatable to Tesla’s Master Plan: build an expensive luxury vehicle, and use the funds from that to develop new, affordable, all-electric powertrains in the coming years.
Watch Lucid CEO and CTO Peter Rawlinson take the Lucid Air through the streets of Manhattan below.
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Tesla gamifies Supercharging with new ‘Charging Passport’
It will also include things like badges for special charging spots, among other metrics that will show all of the different places people have traveled to plug in for range.
Tesla is gamifying its Supercharging experience by offering a new “Charging Passport,” hoping to add a new layer to the ownership experience.
While it is not part of the Holiday Update, it is rolling out around the same time and offers a handful of cool new features.
Tesla’s Charging Passport will be available within the smartphone app and will give a yearly summary of your charging experience, helping encapsulate your travel for that year.
It will also include things like badges for special charging spots, among other metrics that will show all of the different places people have traveled to plug in for range.
Tesla has just introduced “Charging Passport,” a new yearly summary of your charging.
• Charging badges: Iconic Charging badge (for visiting places like the Tesla Diner, Oasis Supercharger, etc), Explorer badge, green saver badge, etc.
• Total unique Superchargers visited
•… pic.twitter.com/c1DHTWXpj7— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) December 8, 2025
Tesla will include the following metrics within the new Charging Passport option within the Tesla app:
- Charging badges: Iconic charging badges for visiting places like the Tesla Diner, Oasis Supercharger, etc., Explorer Badge, and more
- Total Unique Superchargers Visited
- Total Charging Sessions
- Total Miles Added during Charging Sessions
- Top Charging Day
- Longest Trip
- Favorite Charging Locations
This will give people a unique way to see their travels throughout the year, and although it is not necessarily something that is needed or adds any genuine value, it is something that many owners will like to look back on. After all, things like Spotify Wrapped and Apple Music Replay have been a great way for people to see what music they listened to throughout the year.
This is essentially Tesla’s version of that.
With a handful of unique Superchargers already active, Tesla is also building some new ones, like a UFO-inspired location in New Mexico, near Roswell.
Tesla is building a new UFO-inspired Supercharger in the heart of Alien country
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Tesla launches its coolest gift idea ever just a few weeks after it was announced
“Gift one month of Full Self-Driving (Supervised), which allows the vehicle to drive itself almost anywhere with minimal intervention.”
Tesla has launched its coolest gift idea ever, just a few weeks after it was announced.
Tesla is now giving owners the opportunity to gift Full Self-Driving for one month to friends or family through a new gifting program that was suggested to the company last month.
The program will enable people to send a fellow Tesla owner one month of the company’s semi-autonomous driving software, helping them to experience the Full Self-Driving suite and potentially help Tesla gain them as a subscriber of the program, or even an outright purchase.
Tesla is going to allow owners to purchase an FSD Subscription for another owner for different month options
You’ll be able to gift FSD to someone! https://t.co/V29dhf5URj
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) November 3, 2025
Tesla has officially launched the program on its Shop. Sending one month of Full Self-Driving costs $112:
“Gift one month of Full Self-Driving (Supervised), which allows the vehicle to drive itself almost anywhere with minimal intervention. All sales are final. Can only be purchased and redeemed in the U.S. This gift card is valued at $112.00 and is intended to cover the price of one month of FSD (Supervised), including up to 13% sales tax. It is not guaranteed to cover the full monthly price if pricing or tax rates change. This gift card can be stored in Tesla Wallet and redeemed toward FSD (Supervised) or any other Tesla product or service that accepts gift card payments.”
Tesla has done a great job of expanding Full Self-Driving access over the past few years, especially by offering things like the Subscription program, free trials through referrals, and now this gift card program.
Gifting Full Self-Driving is another iteration of Tesla’s “butts in seats” strategy, which is its belief that it can flip consumers to its vehicles and products by simply letting people experience them.
There is also a reason behind pushing Full Self-Driving so hard, and it has to do with CEO Elon Musk’s compensation package. One tranche requires Musk to achieve a certain number of active paid Full Self-Driving subscriptions.
More people who try the suite are likely to pay for it over the long term.
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Tesla expands Robotaxi app access once again, this time on a global scale
Tesla said recently it plans to launch Robotaxi in Miami, Houston, Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Dallas.
Tesla has expanded Robotaxi app access once again, but this time, it’s on a much broader scale as the company is offering the opportunity for those outside of North America to download the app.
Tesla Robotaxi is the company’s early-stage ride-hailing platform that is active in Texas, California, and Arizona, with more expansion within the United States planned for the near future.
Tesla said recently it plans to launch Robotaxi in Miami, Houston, Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Dallas.
The platform has massive potential, and Tesla is leaning on it to be a major contributor to even more disruption in the passenger transportation industry. So far, it has driven over 550,000 miles in total, with the vast majority of this coming from the Bay Area and Austin.
First Look at Tesla’s Robotaxi App: features, design, and more
However, Tesla is focusing primarily on rapid expansion, but most of this is reliant on the company’s ability to gain regulatory permission to operate the platform in various regions. The expansion plans go well outside of the U.S., as the company expanded the ability to download the app to more regions this past weekend.
So far, these are the areas it is available to download in:
- Japan
- Thailand
- Hong Kong
- South Korea
- Australia
- Taiwan
- Macau
- New Zealand
- Mexico
- U.S.
- Canada
Right now, while Tesla is focusing primarily on expansion, it is also working on other goals that have to do with making it more widely available to customers who want to grab a ride from a driverless vehicle.
One of the biggest goals it has is to eliminate safety monitors from its vehicles, which it currently utilizes in Austin in the passenger’s seat and in the driver’s seat in the Bay Area.
A few weeks ago, Tesla started implementing a new in-cabin data-sharing system, which will help support teams assist riders without anyone in the front of the car.
Tesla takes a step towards removal of Robotaxi service’s safety drivers
As Robotaxi expands into more regions, Tesla stands to gain tremendously through the deployment of the Full Self-Driving suite for personal cars, as well as driverless Robotaxis for those who are just hailing rides.
Things have gone well for Tesla in the early stages of the Robotaxi program, but expansion will truly be the test of how things operate going forward. Navigating local traffic laws and gaining approval from a regulatory standpoint will be the biggest hurdle to jump.
Tesla gamifies Supercharging with new ‘Charging Passport’
Tesla launches its coolest gift idea ever just a few weeks after it was announced
