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SpaceX begins stacking Florida Starship launch tower
SpaceX has begun stacking Starship’s first Florida launch tower.
Less than half a year after the company restarted work on a Starship launch pad located just a few hundred feet away from existing Falcon launch facilities at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) LC-39A pad, a massive new launch tower has begun to take shape. Once it reaches its final height, that tower will become the second tallest rocket-related structure (excluding lightning towers) on the East Coast, only beaten by NASA’s iconic Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB).
It could reach that height far sooner than later.
For Starship’s Pad 39A facilities, SpaceX faces the unique challenge of organizing a major construction operation at one of the busiest and most important active launch sites in the US. In just the first half of 2022, LC-39A is on track to support 10 Falcon 9 launches, imposing unique constraints on adjacent Starship pad construction. In a partial response to those challenges, as previously discussed on Teslarati, SpaceX has taken lessons learned from Starbase, Texas and optimized the assembly process of a number of pad components to limit the amount of work that will need to be done at the pad itself.
For the first launch tower, SpaceX and its contractors moved exceptionally quickly and took just over three months after work on the first prefabricated section began to stack the structure to its full height of ~146 meters (~480 ft). Each of the nine sections was essentially bare, however, reducing the amount of pre-stack work but drastically complicating and increasing the amount of post-stack work required to turn the tower into something useful. For Florida’s first Starship launch tower, SpaceX has spent more than three months assembling and meticulously outfitting the first six of nine prefabricated tower sections before the first stack.
The sections SpaceX began stacking on June 21st already have a variety of railings, elevator shafts, doorways, walkways, hardpoints, plumbing, and more preinstalled. While each section and all abbreviated plumbing and hardware will need to be connected after each stack, that process should be far easier and faster than the methods SpaceX used in South Texas. Offsite, SpaceX is also making excellent progress assembing the pad’s donut-like orbital launch mount and parts of the three giant arms that will eventually attach to Starship’s first Florida launch tower – two for lifting and catching rockets and a third for stabilizing and fueling Starship.
Much like the tower segments, there’s a good chance that those other Floridan components will be closer to completion than their Texas siblings were when they eventually head to the launch pad for installation. Additionally, if SpaceX’s experience in Texas is representative, Starship’s first Florida launch tower could reach its full height just a few months from now.
For the tower to be truly complete, SpaceX will need to finish and install three arms, and connect one of those arms to ground supplies of Starship gases and propellant located at Pad 39A. Because 39A has never needed methane, Starship’s fuel of choice, that step will also require the installation and activation of a new tank farm and plumbing capable of storing, rapidly ‘subcooling,’ and distributing at least a thousand tons (~2.2M lb) of liquid methane (LCH4). Starbase Florida is making great progress but a large amount of work still stands between SpaceX and launch readiness.
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Elon Musk says he’s open to powering Apple’s Siri with xAI’s Grok
Siri, one of the first intelligent AI assistants in the market, has become widely outdated and outperformed by rivals over the years.
Elon Musk says he’s willing to help Apple overhaul Siri by integrating xAI’s Grok 4.1, igniting widespread excitement and speculations about a potential collaboration between the two tech giants.
Siri, one of the first intelligent AI assistants in the market, has become widely outdated and outperformed by rivals over the years.
Musk open to an Apple collaboration
Musk’s willingness to team up with Apple surfaced after an X user suggested replacing Siri with Grok 4.1 to modernize the AI assistant. The original post criticized Siri’s limitations and urged Apple to adopt a more advanced AI system. “It’s time for Apple to team up with xAI and actually fix Siri. Replace that outdated, painfully dumb assistant with Grok 4.1. Siri deserves to be Superintelligent,” the X user wrote.
Musk quoted the post, responding with, “I’m down.” Musk’s comment quickly attracted a lot of attention among X’s users, many of whom noted that a Grok update to Siri would be appreciated because Apple’s AI assistant has legitimately become terrible in recent years. Others also noted that Grok, together with Apple’s potential integration of Starlink connectivity, would make iPhones even more compelling.
Grok promises major Siri upgrades
The enthusiasm stems largely from Grok 4.1’s technical strengths, which include stronger reasoning and improved creative output. xAI also designed the model to reduce hallucinations, as noted in a Reality Tea report. Supporters believe these improvements could address Apple’s reported challenges developing its own advanced AI systems, giving Siri the upgrade many users have waited years for.
Reactions ranged from humorous to hopeful, with some users joking that Siri would finally “wake up with a personality” if paired with Grok. Siri, after all, was a trailblazer in voice assistants, but it is currently dominated by rivals in terms of features and capabilities. Grok could change that, provided that Apple is willing to collaborate with Elon Musk’s xAI.
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Tesla’s top-rated Supercharger Network becomes Stellantis’ new key EV asset
The rollout begins in North America early next year before expanding to Japan and South Korea in 2027.
Stellantis will adopt Tesla’s North American Charging System (NACS) across select battery-electric vehicles starting in 2026, giving customers access to more than 28,000 Tesla Superchargers across five countries.
The rollout begins in North America early next year before expanding to Japan and South Korea in 2027, significantly boosting public fast-charging access for Jeep, Dodge, and other Stellantis brands. The move marks one of Stellantis’ largest infrastructure expansions to date.
Stellantis unlocks NACS access
Beginning in early 2026, Stellantis BEVs, including models like the Jeep Wagoneer S and Dodge Charger Daytona, will gain access to Tesla’s Supercharger network across North America. The integration will extend to Japan and South Korea in 2027, with the 2026 Jeep Recon and additional next-generation BEVs joining the list as compatibility expands. Stellantis stated that details on adapters and network onboarding for current models will be released closer to launch, as noted in a press release.
The company emphasizes that adopting NACS aligns with a broader strategy to give customers greater freedom of choice when charging, especially as infrastructure availability becomes a deciding factor for EV buyers. With access to thousands of high-speed stations, Stellantis aims to reduce range anxiety and improve long-distance travel convenience across its global portfolio.
Tesla Supercharger network proves its value
Stellantis’ move also comes as Tesla’s Supercharger system continues to earn top rankings for reliability and user experience. In the 2025 Zapmap survey, drawn from nearly 4,000 BEV drivers across the UK, Tesla Superchargers were named the Best Large EV Charging Network for the second year in a row. The study measured reliability, ease of use, and payment experience across the country’s public charging landscape.
Tesla’s UK network now includes 1,115 open Supercharger devices at 97 public locations, representing roughly 54% of its total footprint and marking a 40% increase in public availability since late 2024. Zapmap highlighted the Supercharger network’s consistently lower pricing compared to other rapid and ultra-rapid providers, alongside its strong uptime and streamlined user experience. These performance metrics further reinforce the value of Stellantis’ decision to integrate NACS across major markets.
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Tesla FSD and Robotaxis are making people aware how bad human drivers are
These observations really show that Tesla’s focus on autonomy would result in safer roads for everyone.
Tesla FSD and the Robotaxi network are becoming so good in their self-driving performance, they are starting to highlight just how bad humans really are at driving.
This could be seen in several observations from the electric vehicle community.
Robotaxis are better than Uber, actually
Tesla’s Robotaxi service is only available in Austin and the Bay Area for now, but those who have used the service have generally been appreciative of its capabilities and performance. Some Robotaxi customers have observed that the service is simply so much more affordable than Uber, and its driving is actually really good.
One veteran Tesla owner, @BLKMDL3, recently noted that the Robotaxi service has become better than Uber simply because FSD now drives better than some human drivers. Apart from the fact that Robotaxis allow riders to easily sync their phones to the rear display, the vehicles generally provide a significantly more comfortable ride than their manually-driven counterparts from Uber.
FSD is changing the narrative, one ride at a time
It appears that FSD V14 really is something special. The update has received wide acclaim from users since it was released, and the positive reactions are still coming. This was highlighted in a recent post from Tesla owner Travis Nicolette, who shared a recent experience with FSD. As per the Tesla owner, he was quite surprised as his car was able to accomplish a U-turn in a way that exceeded human drivers.
Yet another example of FSD’s smooth and safe driving was showcased in a recent video, which showed a safety monitor of a Bay Area Robotaxi falling asleep in the driver’s seat. In any other car, a driver falling asleep at the wheel could easily result in a grave accident, but thanks to FSD, both the safety monitor and the passengers remained safe.
These observations, if any, really show that Tesla’s focus on autonomy would result in safer roads for everyone. As per the IIHS, there were 40,901 deaths from motor vehicle crashes in the United States in 2023. The NHTSA also estimated that in 2017, 91,000 police-reported crashes involved drowsy drivers. These crashes led to an estimated 50,000 people injured and 800 deaths. FSD could lower all these tragic statistics by a notable margin.
Elon Musk says he’s open to powering Apple’s Siri with xAI’s Grok
Tesla’s top-rated Supercharger Network becomes Stellantis’ new key EV asset
