The crew for SpaceX and Shift4’s all-civilian Inspiration4 mission is now complete. The final two members of the groundbreaking mission were announced on Tuesday at the Kennedy Space Center in Floria, where the Falcon 9 rocket carrying Inspiration4’s Crew Dragon capsule will be launching later this year.
Joining 38-year-old Shift4Payments CEO Jared Isaacman and 29-year-old physician assistant Hayley Arceneaux will be 41-year-old Chris Sembroski, an Air Force veteran and educator working for Lockheed Martin, and 51-year-old Dr. Sian Proctor, an entrepreneur, educator, and trained pilot who has a passion for space.
The final two crew members representing the #Inspiration4 mission pillars of Generosity and Prosperity have been named! Stay tuned to meet the full crew today at 10AM ET live on the Inspiration4 YouTube channel! https://t.co/K6Owk59wK9 pic.twitter.com/hSQbsuU6as
— Inspiration4 (@inspiration4x) March 30, 2021
As per Inspiration4’s website, Sembroski will represent the virtue of Generosity, and Dr. Proctor will represent Prosperity. Isaacman represents the virtue of Leadership, while Arceneaux represents the virtue of Hope.
In an interview with TODAY‘s Tom Costello, Dr. Proctor remarked that being selected for the Inspiration4 mission felt like “opening up the chocolate bar and seeing the golden ticket to Willy Wonka and the chocolate factory.” She remarked that she had no worries about the mission at all, and that her reservations were actually more rooted in the prospect of the opportunity to go to space slipping by.
“I was more worried that this opportunity had slipped me by and I would never get the chance to go to space, but now here I am and that just shows you never give up because that moment for me is here… I’m ready. Just strap me in, let’s go!” she said.
As for Sembroski, launching from the Kennedy Space Center would be a rather symbolic experience. Twenty years ago, Sembroski showcased his passion for education and supporting passions by serving as a Space Camp counselor, an experience that he highlighted during his interview with TODAY.
And the last two crew members of Inspiration 4 are…
– Sian Proctor, scientist and science/space communicator. She was a finalist for NASA’s 2009 astronaut class.
– Chris Sembroski, an aerospace worker at Lockheed Martin who used to work on Minuteman missiles in the Air Force. pic.twitter.com/NIKIVwEEAw
— Emre Kelly (@EmreKelly) March 30, 2021
“I’ve taken that experience with me to really drive the passion for getting kids to seek their passion in science and technology and really spark the interest in those fields by using space as that medium, and then ever since it’s stuck with me,” he said.
Isaacson, for his part, remarked that he is extremely excited for the Inspiration4 launch. “This is a very real moment, but I can’t help but be overwhelmed just thinking about all of the history that came before us here. That’s what’s going through my mind, like the astronauts climbing into the Apollo missions and Skylab and the space shuttle. It’s just so incredible to be here,” he said.
The Inspiration4 crew would now be undergoing intensive training for their upcoming mission, which is expected to launch sometime this fall. Previously, Isaacson has noted that Inspiration4 could launch around October, but in his recent interview with the US media outlet, he noted that the mission could launch before the end of September instead. Such a timetable would give the crew just about six months to get fully trained and ready for a multi-day trip to space about 335 miles above Earth.
Watch TODAY’s segment on Inspiration4’s completed crew in the video below.
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Tesla Cybercab is using a unique strategy for picking up the correct rider, which is a crucial part of ride-hailing to ensure people end up in the right place and are charged the correct price.
Cybercab will utilize an RGB strip in its front light bar that will illuminate in a variety of different colors to mark itself.
This identifying mark will also appear in the Robotaxi app, giving riders in the same location a notable distinction in an effort to avoid any confusion regarding who should get in each vehicle.
🚨 Tesla is using different light bar colors to help riders understand which vehicle is theirs
Pretty cool strategy pic.twitter.com/eGMpEMeRpc
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 27, 2026
Other ride-hailing services use similar strategies: Lyft and Uber rides are recognizable through driver identity, vehicle type and color, as well as license plate. Waymo will display the rider’s initials on top of the vehicle, letting them know that the specific vehicle for them has arrived.
Tesla’s strategy is unique and interesting, but there are some flaws. Cybercab’s main purpose is aimed toward being an autonomous ride for all, including those who have disabilities like being blind or even color blind.
Tesla will likely have something in the pipeline for those who cannot see colors or have limited vision. There will definitely be multiple ways to identify which vehicle is the one that “you” specifically ordered.
Cybercab is set to start giving public rides next Thursday, September 3, in Austin, as it announced a dedicated event last week and invited many members of the Tesla community.
Additionally, members of the public will be invited as well. Tesla has been offering employee rides in Cybercab for nearly two months.
Tesla has said goodbye to one customization option for its vehicles: the wrap service it launched several years ago.
After launching an in-house wrap service in August 2020 for the first time in China. In the U.S., it launched in October 2023. Tesla continued to expand the program and adjust it with better pricing and fewer options for the Cybertruck.
By December 2023, it was giving owners of the Model 3, Model Y, and the Cybertruck the opportunity to give their vehicle a fresh look with a vinyl wrap.
Tesla revamps in-house vinyl wrap service with better pricing
It was only available in five locations: Costa Mesa, Oceanside, Santa Clara, West Covina, all in California, and Seattle, Washington.
However, Tesla made some big adjustments to its shop, and the wrap service is officially gone:
Tesla has made a LOT of changes to its online shop recently — price increases, price cuts, new options, and several products being removed entirely.
Some of the biggest increases are wheel covers. 👀
📈 PRICE INCREASES
• 2017-2023 | Model 3 Aero Wheel Cover — Style: Refresh…— Phoenix Self-Driving 🐦🔥 (@PhoenixFSD) August 25, 2026
Wraps are very popular across the Tesla lineup, especially since the company offers relatively few colors. Many choose to wrap their Teslas with interesting colors, patterns, or even finishes, turning their cars from glossy to satin or matte.
However, Tesla’s wrap service was so limited geographically that it never really had a chance to get off the ground or compete with local shops. Every area in the United States is now overflowing with detailing shops, mobile detailers, and other automotive specialists, many of whom perform wrap services.
Tesla’s service was confined to the Pacific time zone and only spanned across two states. It was never going to be something Tesla was a major competitor in, nor was it going to disrupt the wrapping industry. Now that the program has ended, it seems pretty ideal to believe it was always going to be a short-term thing.
Along with the wrap service, Tesla removed several other products, but nothing too crazy. The Model 3 Door Pocket and Cupholder Liners, the Model S 19″ Magnetite Wheel and Winter Tire Package, Model X/Y Ski/Snowboard Carrier for Hitch Rack, Tesla’s Electric Summer Party Tee, and the Electric Summer Tee were the other items the company totally eliminated from its online shop.
News
Tesla Robotaxi fleet gets a brain upgrade ahead of Cybercab launch event
Tesla’s Robotaxi service now runs longer hours nationwide as its unsupervised fleet quietly grows larger.
Tesla’s Robotaxi service just got easier to catch, with the company’s official Robotaxi account noting that rides are now available from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week, across its operating footprint. The account also said its unsupervised fleet is “a lot bigger” than before, though without specifics. The bigger change is what Tesla says upgraded intelligence in vehicle distribution and routing is what’s actually cutting wait times, not a new Full Self-Driving version.
While Tesla did not name the team behind the upgrade, the language points to its AI and fleet software group rather than the driving stack itself. Vehicle distribution and routing in Robotaxi has functioned mostly as a dispatch problem with the software deciding which idle car goes to which rider, and how far it has to travel to get there. “Upgraded intelligence” suggests a smarter version of that dispatch logic, likely using demand forecasting to position idle cars near where riders are about to request them rather than reacting once a request comes in. Tesla’s AI division has built similar prediction systems for other parts of the business, including the neural networks that power FSD itself, so applying that same approach to fleet logistics would be a natural extension rather than a new discipline for the team.
Robotaxi now runs 6am to 10pm, 7 days/week
Unsupervised fleet is a lot bigger
Also, upgraded intelligence in vehicle distribution & routing means you wait less pic.twitter.com/UFZ4bqg2dZ
— Tesla Robotaxi (@robotaxi) August 26, 2026
Tesla is also about a week away from a separate robotaxi milestone. The company plans to launch Cybercab, its purpose built two seat robotaxi with no steering wheel or pedals, in Austin on September 3. Cybercab has been giving employees rides on public and private roads for weeks, and the September event is expected to fold those vehicles into the existing Robotaxi fleet within days of the launch.
Thank you so much @Tesla for inviting us to the Cybercab launch in Austin! 🤠 pic.twitter.com/F1rAR8zd5O
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 22, 2026
Austin previously ran Robotaxi from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. as of last September, a schedule set before the service expanded into Dallas, Houston, Miami, Tampa, Orlando and the Bay Area. Wednesday’s post did not specify whether that extended overnight window still applies in Austin specifically or whether 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. is now the standard across every market. Tesla’s post, visible on its official Robotaxi account, framed the change simply as fewer riders waiting around for a car.
Whether the wider hours hold once Cybercab enters the fleet next week is the next thing worth watching. Tesla has tended to expand Robotaxi in increments, first geofence, then hours, then fleet size, and each step so far has arrived without much advance notice.
Tesla Cybercab uses a unique strategy for picking up the right rider
Tesla ends in-house wrap service that always seemed like a short-term program
