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Mercedes-Benz unveils the all-electric EQS: 478-mile range, 516 HP, 107.8 kWh battery
Mercedes-Benz has unveiled its all-electric EQS luxury sedan, aiming to take over the luxury electric vehicle market by outpointing the likes of Tesla and Lucid, who also exist in the sector. While the Tesla Model S has been the main staple for those who require a touch of luxuriousness in the all-electric automobile sector, Mercedes-Benz has focused on its fancy and pretty gas-powered engines since its introduction in 1926.
The German Mercedes brand brought out the currently unpriced EQS in a lengthy and detailed press release on Thursday that outlined nearly any question one could ask. Apart from how much the vehicle will cost, Mercedes detailed everything from battery pack capacity, its WLTP-rated range, and its performance specifications, all of which are important figures for anyone interested in getting the most bang for their buck when driving a luxury vehicle. A high five-figure or low six-figure tag is expected to be introduced based on competitors in the same sector. The Model S from Tesla ranges from $79,900 to $149,990, not including incentives, while the Lucid Air ranges from $77,400 to $169,000, also not including incentives.
The EQS will come in two variants: the EQS 450+ and the EQS 580 4MATIC, which will be the more performance-capable build of the vehicle. Mercedes released the following table that outlines the finer points of both of the EQS variants in its press release.
|
EQS 450+ |
EQS 580 4MATIC |
||
| Drive system layout |
Rear-wheel |
All-wheel  -
|
|
| Electric motor(s) |
Model |
Permanently excited synchronous motor(s) (PSM) | |
| Max. powertrain output7 |
kW |
245 |
385 |
| Max. torque transmission output |
Lb-ft |
406 |
611 -
|
| Acceleration 0-60 mph |
s |
5.5 |
4.1 |
| Top speed8 |
Mph |
130 |
130 |
| Battery energy content, usable (WLTP) |
kWh -
|
107.8 |
107.8 |
| Rated voltage |
Volts |
396 |
396 |
| Energy recovery capacity, max.9 |
kW |
186 -
|
290 |
| On-board charger (standard/option) |
kW |
9.6 |
9.6 |
| Charging time10 at wallbox or at public charging station (AC charging, 9.6kW) |
h |
11.25 |
11.25 -
|
| Charging time11 at a rapid charging station (DC) |
min |
31 |
31 |
| DC charging capacity, max. |
kW |
200 |
200 |
| DC charging in 15 minutes12 (WLTP) |
km -
|
Up to 300 |
Up to 280 |
| Vehicle | |||
| Length/width/height (USA) |
in |
205.4/83.7/59.5 |
|
| Track front/rear |
in |
65.6/66.2 |
|
| Turning circle (with rear-axle steering 4.5°/10°) |
ft -
|
39/35.7 |
|
| cd value from |
0.2013 |
||
Mercedes-Benz and Daimler CEO Ola Kaellenius said the all-electric EQS is ready for the most critical and picky customers that the automaker has dealt with in its history. “The EQS is designed to exceed the expectations of even our most discerning customers. That’s exactly what a Mercedes has to do to earn the letter ‘S’ in its name. Because we don’t award that letter lightly.”
The United States’ first models of the EQS will pack 516 horsepower and 770 kilometers or 478 miles of range, according to WLTP ratings.
The EQS has been in testing for a while. Last summer, Teslarati captured images of the EQS being benchmarked against some of its most notable competitors in Germany, including the Model S. The vehicle was outfitted with a camouflage wrap that concealed many of its exterior features, running spirited laps at the Mercedes Research and Development Center in Sindelfingen, Germany. The test facility is located outside of Stuttgart, where both Mercedes and Porsche are headquartered. Its wide, bulky build was reminiscent of the Tesla Plaid Model S that was spotted initially at the Nürburgring in Germany in 2019.
While somewhat reminiscent of other Mercedes-Benz models, the EQS’ rounded edges on the quarter panels give it a sportier look than the 2021 S-Class 450 SE, which is much more squared off at the corners of the vehicle.
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Mercedes EQS EV spied benchmarking against Tesla Model S and Model 3
The interior of the car fits the luxury image that Mercedes has maintained for many years. Its futuristic cockpit includes the 56-inch wide “Hyperscreen” that Mercedes unveiled in January. The MBUX Hyperscree also offers a completely new way to control interaction and entertainment, bringing apps and functions into one simple but extensive touchscreen display.
The wait is almost over: Our all-electric #EQS will have its world premiere tomorrow at 6.00 p.m. (CEST).#MercedesEQ #ProgressiveLuxury pic.twitter.com/HFs5qdaWMX
— Mercedes-Benz (@MercedesBenz) April 14, 2021
It was important for Mercedes to maintain its own standards for the EQS. Not wanting to go with a minimalistic interior that Tesla has adopted for its vehicles, the EQS includes the typical bells and whistles that vehicles have equipped for decades.
“I think giving people that very futuristic feel that you’re actually driving something different will be appealing for some buyers,” Jessica Caldwell, executive director of insights at Edmunds.com, said to CNBC.
Mercedes’ press release regarding the EQS can be found here, it’s quite lengthy and will answer most of the questions some may have regarding the vehicle’s finer points.
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Tesla got its largest order for the all-electric Class 8 Semi yet, a 500-unit order from Einride AB, a Swedish trucking company.
Einride made the announcement this morning following its second-quarter earnings call. The company said it plans to use 500 Tesla Semi units on its fleet intelligence platform, called Saga AI. The deployments will serve large companies like Amazon and will extend Einride’s electric freight network across logistics routes in California, New Jersey, Texas, Illinois, and Georgia.
🚨 Tesla has received a MASSIVE order from Swedish freight company Einride AB, which placed an order for 500 Tesla Semi trucks
Tesla’s biggest order for the Semi yet! pic.twitter.com/PrtLp5yzvh
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 18, 2026
The deployment is being carried out in several phases over the next two years as Tesla ramps production of the Semi at its dedicated production facility in Sparks, Nevada. Einride will receive its first Semi units in September.
Saga AI
Saga AI is Einride’s dedicated fleet intelligence platform. It enables scaled adoption of electric trucks for freight use and allows shippers to integrate electric capacity without the operational burden or capital risks of managing a fleet. This helps integrate cost-efficient logistics and makes budgeting and forecasting much more accurate.
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Tesla Semi’s Adoption
The Tesla Semi is now gathering large-scale clients past those who have helped the company operate a Pilot Program to gain initial information and feedback from real-world drivers.
Perhaps the biggest and most notable is that of Frito-Lay and PepsiCo., who have worked with Tesla for the past several years to dial in the finer details of the truck, including its efficiency and operation-related components.
Tesla Semi gets strange-but-understandable comparison from Jay Leno
There has been tremendous progress in that time, and it even catalyzed Tesla to make some design changes, which were unveiled earlier this year.
But Einride CEO Roozbeh Charli says his company’s partnership with Tesla will continue to push those things forward:
“This deployment is yet another proof point that we can execute at the scale our customers demand. Working closely with Tesla to bring next-generation Semis into active operations quickly and at scale is a testament to the strength of that partnership, and how quickly this technology is maturing from promise to daily operations.”
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Additionally, Dan Priestley, the Director of the Semi Program at Tesla, said the partnership is ideal due to Einride’s focus on sustainable transport:
“Einride is at the forefront of sustainable freight, and we are thrilled to deepen our relationship with them through this order of 500 Semis. EV heavy trucks provide lower costs per mile from fuel savings, reduced maintenance, and better uptime over diesel trucks. These savings increase further through operational efficiency when deploying EV trucks at scale, and we are excited that Einride recognizes this and look forward to supporting their deployments.”
Elon Musk
India tells Elon Musk’s X to “Follow the Law” in latest censorship update
Elon Musk says X now exposes government censorship, but India’s secrecy laws complicate that promise.
Elon Musk’s promise to make government censorship requests on X “clearly visible” is running into a wall in India, where the law forbids the very disclosure Musk is promising.
On August 15, Musk responded to an update from X’s open-source algorithm team by writing “Any censorship required by governments is now clearly visible.” The claim referred to a change X pushed two days earlier to its public xai-org/x-algorithm repository, which now includes a controversial filter written directly into the code. The filter suppresses posts from 665 accounts flagged by Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court from appearing in the For You feed of any viewer located in Brazil, unless the viewer already follows the account. The election tied to the filter is scheduled for October 4.
India’s government wasn’t as impressed, and responded on Monday that “X will have to follow the law of the land,” in response to Musk’s transparency push covered by the Times of India. The problem is structural rather than political. India issues content blocking orders under Section 69A of its IT Act, and Rule 16 of the accompanying 2009 Blocking Rules requires those orders to stay confidential. Publishing an India equivalent of the Brazil filter, naming specific accounts and citing specific government orders, would itself violate Indian law. Government use of Section 69A has grown from roughly 6,000 orders a year between 2018 and 2023 to about 24,300 in 2025, according to a Tech Times report.
The contrast puts Musk’s transparency pledge in an odd spot. It works largely as advertised in Brazil, where electoral law requires disclosure and X can point to specific account IDs and a specific court order in public code. It cannot work the same way in India, where the law requires the opposite. X users in India will keep seeing content disappear from search and their feeds without any public accounting of why, even as X tells the rest of the world that its censorship compliance is now inspectable.
This isn’t the first time X’s fights with a national government have shaped how the platform operates. Brazil’s Supreme Court ordered X to suspend the accounts of sitting lawmakers and journalists in 2024, a standoff that cost X its Brazilian revenue for months and froze Starlink’s local accounts before the investigation into Musk and X was closed in March with no evidence of wrongdoing found. X also sued California over a state law requiring moderation disclosures, arguing the mandate itself violated the First Amendment.
Whether India’s government pursues anything beyond a public statement remains to be seen. For now, the mismatch between what X can legally publish and what different governments legally allow it to publish is the real story behind Musk’s seven word claim.
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Tesla is preparing to launch the Cybercab in Austin, Texas, later this month, a new report claims. Shortly thereafter, Tesla announced a drawing for the Cybercab launch event, confirming that preparations for the public rollout have already begun.
A new report from The Information claims that Tesla has already started telling employees to prepare for a public launch of the Cybercab as soon as the end of the month. The vehicle will launch publicly to riders in Austin initially.
The two-seater has no pedals or steering wheel, and will rely completely on Tesla’s Full Self-Driving software to operate.
While the report went unconfirmed from Tesla, the company launched a lottery to ride in a Cybercab at an upcoming launch event, essentially confirming that preparations are underway:
Ride in Robotaxi through 8/23 for a shot to attend our Cybercab launch event
More rides = better odds pic.twitter.com/NxA4H9sWF2
— Tesla Robotaxi (@robotaxi) August 18, 2026
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Cybercab entered production at Gigafactory Texas back in April, with initial units being test mules for the company as it has put the car in a variety of environments and climates. Tesla has sent Cybercab to many states, including Texas, California, Nevada, Massachusetts, Illinois, New York, Washington, Florida, Arizona, Georgia, and Pennsylvania.
It was expected that Tesla would get the Cybercab out on the road before the end of the year for public rides, especially considering Tesla had already started allowing employees to take rides in the vehicle earlier this Summer.
Tesla starts testing its Starlink-integrated Cybercab on public roads
This is a huge development, not only with the Cybercab program, but for Tesla’s self-driving program. Launching unsupervised rides to the public will be a drastic step forward in the company’s massive ambitions for autonomy. It is a long time coming, too. Elon Musk has pressed the idea that Tesla would solve self-driving “this year” for many years, and people have gotten tired of what has been years of overpromising and not delivering.
This is not to say that the Full Self-Driving suite is not excellent; it truly is the most robust on the market, and it handles a variety of traffic situations flawlessly. It definitely has its faults, but generally, it is fantastic.
Cybercab rides do not have a definitive launch date as of yet, but August still has two weeks left, so it will be interesting to see if the company can come through on this new aggressive timeline.
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Tesla Semi gets its largest order yet
India tells Elon Musk’s X to “Follow the Law” in latest censorship update
