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Porsche Taycan charging times to be 2X faster than Tesla’s Superchargers
When the Porsche Taycan starts production next year, the electric car market will be even more saturated than it is today. Tesla’s Model 3 would likely be at a production rate of 10,000 units per week. Electric cars from veteran carmakers, such as Jaguar’s I-PACE, Mercedes-Benz’s EQC and Audi’s e-tron, would be in the market as well.
For Porsche, this is not a problem. During the recently held Rennsport Reunion, a gathering of Porsche enthusiasts in Monterey, CA, the German legacy automaker noted that the Taycan would make a mark in the electric car market not because it was the first to enter production. Rather, it would establish itself as a competitor with its driving dynamics and rapid charging times. Detlev von Platen, Porsche’s executive board member for sales and marketing, described the company’s stance on the Taycan in a statement to Fortune.
“We don’t need and don’t want to be the first. It doesn’t make any sense to drive fast and then wait two hours to charge batteries. Achieving an 80% charge in a quarter of an hour is an argument for us.” he said.
Quite unlike the strategy employed by other legacy automakers like Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz, whose vehicles largely rely on established charging infrastructure, Porsche is looking to develop its own charging network. Just like Tesla’s ever-growing Supercharger Network, Porsche’s 350 kW Electric Pit Stops are designed to serve as an ultra-fast charging system for its electric vehicles. Porsche is even taking the idea of fast chargers a step further, stating that it is aiming to design a system that could recharge 80% of the Taycan’s batteries in just 15 minutes.
If Porsche successfully rolls out its Electric Pit Stops, it would create a network of rapid chargers that are twice as quick as Tesla’s Supercharger Network, which have an output of ~120 kW and are capable of recharging the company’s electric vehicles up to 80% in 30 minutes. That said, Tesla is also preparing the rollout of its Supercharger V3, which is expected to have an output of 200-250 kW. During Tesla’s Q1 earnings call, Elon Musk shared a critique of 350 kW systems, stating that such an output could compromise the battery.
“The thing about a 350 kW charger is that it doesn’t actually make a ton of sense, unless you got a monster battery pack or have like a crazy high C rating. We think 350 kW for a single car; you’re gonna frag the battery pack if you do that. You cannot charge a high-energy battery pack at that rate, unless it’s a very high kW battery pack. So, (for us), something along the couple of hundred, 200-250 kW,” Musk said.
Ultimately, Porsche is counting on the strength of its pedigree and the car’s driving performance to push the Taycan forward. The Taycan is Porsche’s first all-electric car, and it would be the flagship of the company as it transitions to an electrified fleet in the coming years. Considering that Porsche has already abandoned diesel and committed to electrifying 50% of its fleet by 2025, the Taycan is a vehicle that must resonate with the company’s loyal consumer base. Michael Steiner, Porsche research and development executive board member, believes that the Taycan will be up to the task.
“Even if you’re not looking for an EV, I’m convinced there will be a lot of customers driving it for performance,” he said.
Porsche is already seeing encouraging signs from its customers. Executives of the legacy automaker note that the demand for its green vehicles is increasing. In Europe, for example, plug-in hybrid variants of the Porsche Panamera already comprise 60% of the vehicle’s sales. Porsche is aiming to produce 20,000 units of the Taycan every year, and so far, the reception of the vehicle has been better than expected. In Norway alone, 2,000 reservations have been filed for the car. Pre-orders for the Taycan have started in the United States as well.
Elon Musk
Musk bankers looking to trim xAI debt after SpaceX merger: report
xAI has built up $18 billion in debt over the past few years, with some of this being attributed to the purchase of social media platform Twitter (now X) and the creation of the AI development company. A new financing deal would help trim some of the financial burden that is currently present ahead of the plan to take SpaceX public sometime this year.
Elon Musk’s bankers are looking to trim the debt that xAI has taken on over the past few years, following the company’s merger with SpaceX, a new report from Bloomberg says.
xAI has built up $18 billion in debt over the past few years, with some of this being attributed to the purchase of social media platform Twitter (now X) and the creation of the AI development company. Bankers are trying to create some kind of financing plan that would trim “some of the heavy interest costs” that come with the debt.
The financing deal would help trim some of the financial burden that is currently present ahead of the plan to take SpaceX public sometime this year. Musk has essentially confirmed that SpaceX would be heading toward an IPO last month.
The report indicates that Morgan Stanley is expected to take the leading role in any financing plan, citing people familiar with the matter. Morgan Stanley, along with Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, and JPMorgan Chase & Co., are all expected to be in the lineup of banks leading SpaceX’s potential IPO.
Since Musk acquired X, he has also had what Bloomberg says is a “mixed track record with debt markets.” Since purchasing X a few years ago with a $12.5 billion financing package, X pays “tens of millions in interest payments every month.”
That debt is held by Bank of America, Barclays, Mitsubishi, UFJ Financial, BNP Paribas SA, Mizuho, and Société Générale SA.
X merged with xAI last March, which brought the valuation to $45 billion, including the debt.
SpaceX announced the merger with xAI earlier this month, a major move in Musk’s plan to alleviate Earth of necessary data centers and replace them with orbital options that will be lower cost:
“In the long term, space-based AI is obviously the only way to scale. To harness even a millionth of our Sun’s energy would require over a million times more energy than our civilization currently uses! The only logical solution, therefore, is to transport these resource-intensive efforts to a location with vast power and space. I mean, space is called “space” for a reason.”
The merger has many advantages, but one of the most crucial is that it positions the now-merged companies to fund broader goals, fueled by revenue from the Starlink expansion, potential IPO, and AI-driven applications that could accelerate the development of lunar bases.
News
Tesla pushes Full Self-Driving outright purchasing option back in one market
Tesla announced last month that it would eliminate the ability to purchase the Full Self-Driving software outright, instead opting for a subscription-only program, which will require users to pay monthly.
Tesla has pushed the opportunity to purchase the Full Self-Driving suite outright in one market: Australia.
The date remains February 14 in North America, but Tesla has pushed the date back to March 31, 2026, in Australia.
NEWS: Tesla is ending the option to buy FSD as a one-time outright purchase in Australia on March 31, 2026.
It still ends on Feb 14th in North America. https://t.co/qZBOztExVT pic.twitter.com/wmKRZPTf3r
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) February 13, 2026
Tesla announced last month that it would eliminate the ability to purchase the Full Self-Driving software outright, instead opting for a subscription-only program, which will require users to pay monthly.
If you have already purchased the suite outright, you will not be required to subscribe once again, but once the outright purchase option is gone, drivers will be required to pay the monthly fee.
The reason for the adjustment is likely due to the short period of time the Full Self-Driving suite has been available in the country. In North America, it has been available for years.
Tesla hits major milestone with Full Self-Driving subscriptions
However, Tesla just launched it just last year in Australia.
Full Self-Driving is currently available in seven countries: the United States, Canada, China, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, and South Korea.
The company has worked extensively for the past few years to launch the suite in Europe. It has not made it quite yet, but Tesla hopes to get it launched by the end of this year.
In North America, Tesla is only giving customers one more day to buy the suite outright before they will be committed to the subscription-based option for good.
The price is expected to go up as the capabilities improve, but there are no indications as to when Tesla will be doing that, nor what type of offering it plans to roll out for owners.
Elon Musk
Starlink terminals smuggled into Iran amid protest crackdown: report
Roughly 6,000 units were delivered following January’s unrest.
The United States quietly moved thousands of Starlink terminals into Iran after authorities imposed internet shutdowns as part of its crackdown on protests, as per information shared by U.S. officials to The Wall Street Journal.
Roughly 6,000 units were delivered following January’s unrest, marking the first known instance of Washington directly supplying the satellite systems inside the country.
Iran’s government significantly restricted online access as demonstrations spread across the country earlier this year. In response, the U.S. purchased nearly 7,000 Starlink terminals in recent months, with most acquisitions occurring in January. Officials stated that funding was reallocated from other internet access initiatives to support the satellite deployment.
President Donald Trump was aware of the effort, though it remains unclear whether he personally authorized it. The White House has not issued a comment about the matter publicly.
Possession of a Starlink terminal is illegal under Iranian law and can result in significant prison time. Despite this, the WSJ estimated that tens of thousands of residents still rely on the satellite service to bypass state controls. Authorities have reportedly conducted inspections of private homes and rooftops to locate unauthorized equipment.
Earlier this year, Trump and Elon Musk discussed maintaining Starlink access for Iranians during the unrest. Tehran has repeatedly accused Washington of encouraging dissent, though U.S. officials have mostly denied the allegations.
The decision to prioritize Starlink sparked internal debate within U.S. agencies. Some officials argued that shifting resources away from Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) could weaken broader internet access efforts. VPNs had previously played a major role in keeping Iranians connected during earlier protest waves, though VPNs are not effective when the actual internet gets cut.
According to State Department figures, about 30 million Iranians used U.S.-funded VPN services during demonstrations in 2022. During a near-total blackout in June 2025, roughly one-fifth of users were still able to access limited connectivity through VPN tools.
Critics have argued that satellite access without VPN protection may expose users to geolocation risks. After funds were redirected to acquire Starlink equipment, support reportedly lapsed for two of five VPN providers operating in Iran.
A State Department official has stated that the U.S. continues to back multiple technologies, including VPNs alongside Starlink, to sustain people’s internet access amidst the government’s shutdowns.
Musk bankers looking to trim xAI debt after SpaceX merger: report
SpaceX launches Crew-12 on Falcon 9, lands first booster at new LZ-40 pad
