News
SpaceX to replicate Starbase, build multiple Starship launch pads in Florida
Less than two weeks after CEO Elon Musk revealed that SpaceX has restarted construction of a Starship launch site at Kennedy Space Center’s existing LC-39A pad, NASA has revealed the company’s plans for an entirely different Starship launch site just a few miles to the north.
Known as Launch Complex 49 (LC-49) and located where NASA once considered building LC-39C, a third Saturn-class pad to match 39A and 39B, NASA now says that SpaceX aims to develop the site into a dedicated Starship launch pad. The plot of land NASA deemed LC-49 as recently as 2017 sits about 1 mile (1.6 km) northwest of NASA’s LC-39B Space Launch System (SLS) pad and 3 miles (5 km) northwest of LC-39A, which SpaceX has leased since 2014 and launched out of since 2017. Unlike 39A, though, SpaceX has a huge amount of work – and major environmental reviews – ahead of it to turn LC-49 into a site capable of launching a rocket more than twice as powerful as Saturn V.
As of today, “LC-49” amounts to a mostly arbitrary dotted line on a map. Situated a few thousand feet south of the lovingly named Mosquito Lagoon Aquatic Preserve and Canaveral Seashore National Park, the site encompasses a variety of wild wetlands and is fully undeveloped. While substantially wetter, the land SpaceX hopes to develop is actually quite similar to the site that now hosts Starbase’s Starship launch facilities in Boca Chica, Texas. Prior to SpaceX’s arrival, the area was empty coastal mudflats.
To turn such a fragile and unstable area into an orbital launch site, SpaceX trucked in thousands of tons of soil, which then sat in a pile for three years ‘surcharging’ or compressing the ground beneath it. Ironically, while SpaceX did build a relatively small suborbital launch site where it surcharged, the company has built the site’s first orbital Starship launch pad a bit to the east, where no such preparations were made. That bodes well for the speed with which SpaceX could potentially build LC-49 from nothing, though it will likely be significantly more of a challenge.
Because NASA’s proposed LC-49 site is effectively swamp and marshland, SpaceX will have to create the ground any planned Starship launch site will stand on. It’s possible that soil surcharging will be required – and potentially on an even larger scale than what SpaceX did in Boca Chica. However, given that SpaceX ultimately didn’t even use that surcharged land to construct the orbital half of the pad, it’s possible that SpaceX will again be able to make do with less time-consuming construction methods. If SpaceX does more or less replicate an orbital launch site similar to Starbase’s, the pad could be ready to launch just 12-18 months later. NASA and SpaceX will have to complete environmental reviews along the way but given planning work that NASA’s already done over the decades, it’s possible that SpaceX will be able to start building LC-49 well before that process – which could take one or several years – is complete.
No less intriguing is NASA’s implication that SpaceX is simultaneously preparing to expand a facility it leases elsewhere at Kennedy Space Center. Currently used to process and store Falcon boosters, fairings, and upper stages, SpaceX has been clearing a lot beside that hangar that’s about the same size as the entirety of Starbase’s South Texas Starship factory. The obvious implication: SpaceX intends to both build and launch Starships out of multiple Florida launch pads.
Just a few miles south, CEO Elon Musk says that SpaceX has restarted work on a separate Starship launch pad situated on Pad 39A grounds after halting construction last year to focus on South Texas. SpaceX chose to entirely scrap the unfinished launch mount it had built, clearing the site for the construction of a new and improved version of Starbase’s orbital launch site. Altogether, SpaceX is now simultaneously constructing two orbital Starship launch pads (one at Starbase and one at 39A) and planning for the construction of two or three more (a second at Starbase and at least one or two at LC-49).
News
Tesla offers interesting promo to future ride-hailing rival’s drivers
Lyft drivers will get $1,000 in vehicle credits if they complete 100 rides by the cutoff date for the promo.
Tesla has offered an interesting promotion for its vehicles to the drivers of one of its future ride-hailing rivals as it continues to work toward the launch of its autonomous Robotaxi platform.
This morning, Tesla launched a $1,000 off promotion to Lyft drivers who plan to utilize one of the company’s EVs for ride-hailing purposes. The promo applies to all five Tesla models: the Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, and Cybertruck.
It is not offered at the point of sale. Instead, to ensure the vehicle is properly utilized for ride-hailing purposes and to prove the discount, Tesla will offer $1,000 in vehicle credits to the Lyft driver after they complete 100 trips on or before July 13, 2025. Delivery must be taken by June 30.
🚨 Tesla is offering $1,000 off for those who purchase a vehicle for Lyft purposes! https://t.co/ND9sKiykMW pic.twitter.com/AP8tSP1cbN
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) May 16, 2025
It is an interesting move by Tesla because Lyft, along with Uber, will become a rival in the coming years as the companies continue to develop driverless ride-hailing platforms of their own. Lyft has partnered with May Mobility and Mobileye to develop driverless, fully autonomous vehicles purpose-built for ride-hailing.
Tesla plans to launch its Robotaxi platform next month in Austin, Texas.
Meanwhile, Lyft’s plans are more down the road. Earlier this year, the company said it would launch autonomous rides sometime next year.
For now, the move seems to be just another way Tesla is incentivizing consumers to buy one of their vehicles. Earlier this week, it also launched another $1,000 off promo for teachers, students, retirees, active-duty members, their spouses, and surviving spouses.
Previously, Tesla only offered that discount to military members.
It is unclear why Tesla would be offering these discounts, but it could be more of a thank you or an act of recognition, more than anything. If it were a measure that was taken to increase demand, it would be substantially more of a discount. For example, when Tesla was trying to rid its inventory of legacy Model Y units as the new, updated vehicle was set to be released, discounts were over $5,000.
News
Tesla Giga Berlin seems to be using FSD Unsupervised to move Model Y units
Tesla may be doing something quite special in the Giga Berlin-Brandenburg complex.
Tesla may be doing something quite special in the Giga Berlin-Brandenburg complex. Based on observations from a recent drone flyover of the site, it appears that Tesla may also be using FSD Unsupervised to move freshly produced Model Y vehicles to the factory’s staging area.
New Drone Footage
Recent footage of the Giga Berlin complex from longtime Tesla watcher Tobias Lindh included several interesting updates around the Model Y factory. These include a new warehouse that is currently being built, as well as a tunnel is currently being constructed. More interestingly, the drone operator observed that some cars now seem to be moving to Giga Berlin’s distribution area without human drivers.
If the drone operator’s observations prove accurate, it would be quite an impressive accomplishment for Tesla. FSD Unsupervised, after all, has only been confirmed in vehicles that are produced at the Fremont Factory and Gigafactory Texas.
Potential Next Steps
If Giga Berlin is now using FSD Unsupervised to transport some Model Y units from the factory building to the site’s staging area, it might only be a matter of time before Tesla also implements a similar system for Gigafactory Shanghai. The Shanghai-based Tesla plant, after all, is the company’s largest factory by volume, and it also serves as a primary vehicle export hub. FSD Unsupervised could then pave the way for Giga Shanghai to operate in an even more optimal manner.
FSD Unsupervised is the cornerstone of Tesla’s robotaxi business, which is expected to start rolling out in Austin, Texas, next month. Previous reports have suggested that Tesla is pushing hard in its preparations to roll out its robotaxi service this June. Tesla has reportedly even worked and trained with Austin’s first responders from the fire and police departments as part of its robotaxi service preparations.
Check out a recent flyover of the Tesla Giga Berlin complex in the video below.
Investor's Corner
Tesla welcomes Chipotle President Jack Hartung to its Board of Directors
Tesla announced the addition of its new director in a post on social media platform X.
Tesla has welcomed Chipotle president Jack Hartung to its Board of Directors. Hartung will officially start his tenure at the electric vehicle maker on June 1, 2025.
Tesla announced the addition of its new director in a post on social media platform X.
Jack Hartung’s Role
With Hartung’s addition, the Tesla Board will now have nine members. It’s been a while since the company added a new director. Prior to Hartung, the last addition to the Tesla Board was Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia back in 2022. As noted in a Reuters report, Hartung will serve on the Tesla Board’s audit committee. He will also retire from his position as president and chief strategy officer at Chipotle, and transition into a senior advisor’s role at the restaurant chain, next month.
Hartung has had a long career in the Mexican grill, joining Chipotle in 2002. He held several positions in the company, most recently serving as Chipotle’s President and Chief Strategy Officer. Tesla highlighted Hartung’s accomplishments in a post on its official account on X.
“Over the past 20+ years under Jack’s financial leadership, Chipotle has seen significant growth with over 3,700 restaurants today across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. Jack was named ‘CFO of the Year’ by Orange County Business Journal and Best CFO in the restaurant category by Institutional Investor,” Tesla wrote in its post on X.
Tesla Board and Musk
Tesla is a controversial company with a controversial CEO, so it is no surprise that the Board of Directors tend to get flak as well. Two weeks ago, for example, Tesla Board Chair Robyn Denholm slammed The Wall Street Journal for publishing an article alleging that company directors had considered a search for a potential successor to Elon Musk. Denholm herself has also been criticized for offloading her TSLA shares.
More recently, news emerged suggesting that the Tesla Board of Directors had formed a special committee aimed at exploring a new pay package for CEO Elon Musk. The committee is reportedly comprised of Tesla board Chair Robyn Denholm and independent director Kathleen Wilson-Thompson, and they would be exploring alternative compensation methods for Musk’s contributions to the company.
Tesla offers interesting promo to future ride-hailing rival’s drivers
Tesla Giga Berlin seems to be using FSD Unsupervised to move Model Y units
Tesla welcomes Chipotle President Jack Hartung to its Board of Directors
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