News
SpaceX’s next launch could still break rocket reuse record despite more delays
After multiple delays, SpaceX’s next launch is once again ~24 hours out and the Falcon 9 booster assigned to still has a shot at breaking a world record for rocket reuse.
Originally expected to launch as early as early July, SpaceX’s South Korean ANASIS II military communications satellite slipped to July 11th, followed by several more delays to July 19th. After one (hopefully) final slip, ANASIS II is now scheduled to launch no earlier than (NET) 5 pm EDT (21:00 UTC) on Monday, July 20th.
In a sign that SpaceX’s rocket reuse program continues to make progress, the company assigned Falcon 9 booster B1058 to the launch – initially just 45 days after it debuted in support of Crew Dragon’s own May 30th astronaut launch debut.

As previously discussed on Teslarati, a 45-day turnaround would have crushed a 54-day world record held by NASA’s Space Shuttle that was set more than three decades ago. While the Space Shuttle was an orbital vehicle and likely 10-100 times more complex than SpaceX’s Falcon 9 booster, the workforce it needed to set that turnaround record was closer to 500-1000 times larger than the teams needed to reuse Falcon 9.
To “reuse” Space Shuttles and the Main Engines (SSMEs; now RS-25s) that powered them, NASA and its contractors had to extensively disassemble and reassemble the vehicles, removing and refurbishing the engines and several thruster pods before reinstalling them. Up to 4000 parts would have to be replaced each launch, while 7000 of the main engines’ 50,000 parts would also have to be replaced periodically. According to NASA, each Shuttle required at least 750,000 work hours of refurbishment and rework between flights. Per comments recently made by CEO Elon Musk, SpaceX may require just a few dozen employees and 4-6 weeks to turn a Falcon 9 booster around. That could mean that as few as 5000-10,000 work hours are required per Falcon 9 reuse, 75-150 times fewer than the Shuttle’s average.

As of now, Falcon 9 booster B1058 could still beat Space Shuttle Atlantis’ 54-day record if it launches before July 23rd. A July 20th launch would still break the Shuttle’s record by three days despite roughly three weeks of ANASIS II mission delays. Notably, most – if not all – of those delays appear to have been caused by issues found on the second stage, new hardware that is expended after every launch. Falcon 9 B1058 completed a successful static fire test on July 11th, just 42 days after it launched astronauts into orbit and just 38 days after the booster returned to dry land after its first flight.
With a little luck, B1058’s proven potential for smashing reuse records will mean that SpaceX is able to rapidly turn the rocket around for future launches, assuming successful landings. For now, SpaceX’s next launch is on track to lift off NET 5 pm EDT (21:00 UTC) on July 20th. In a rarity, SpaceX has a nearly four-hour window to launch, leaving plenty of flexibility if weather or minor technical bugs require some additional time. The company’s official webcast will begin roughly 15 minutes prior to liftoff.
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Elon Musk
Tesla Roadster owners to get “Flying Stunt Mode” and looping track access
Musk says Roadster owners can command the unveiling stunts autonomously, with a Texas looping track.
Elon Musk says owners of the new Tesla Roadster will be able to ask the car to perform the stunts Tesla showed at its unveiling, with the car doing the driving itself. Musk made the comment Saturday in a reply on X to tech blogger Robert Scoble, and he added a promise of a looping track at Tesla’s Texas headquarters.
Scoble had argued that the person in the Roadster is not really driving it. In his description, the driver operates a computer that tells another computer what to do, with steering, braking and acceleration all handled by wire. Musk answered, “True. You will be able to ask the Roadster to perform any of the tricks shown autonomously, as it will be sentient. Also, we will have a wild looping track (crazier even than Hot Wheels) at our Texas HQ where you can test out your Roadster.”
@Scobleizer True.
You will be able to ask the Roadster to perform any of the tricks shown autonomously, as it will be sentient.
Also, we will have a wild looping track (crazier even than Hot Wheels) at our Texas HQ where you can test out your Roadster.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 17, 2026
At the October 15 event outside Waco, the car drove up a curved ramp until it was upside down, flew off on cold gas thrusters, flipped and landed. It also hovered over a Cybercab, Cybertruck, Semi, Model Y and Model 3 while moving. As we noted in our breakdown of the three Roadster configurations, Musk said at the event that the car “literally is just going to puff itself up” to perform the maneuvers whenever an owner wants. Saturday’s reply adds that the car would run them on its own.
Tesla has described some of the hardware that would make that possible. The Roadster uses steer by wire with a yoke, and its cold gas thrusters rely on electric actuators for small adjustments in flight. A fan system under the car creates suction, which Tesla says is strong enough to hold it upside down, a setup we covered in our look at the Roadster’s fan system and thrusters.
Musk did not say when an autonomous stunt feature might arrive, how it would work, or what he means by sentient. He also gave no size, location or opening date for the Texas track. Production is planned for Giga Texas in 2027 or 2028, and Tesla says the car is not approved for public road use. The Rocket version, the one built to fly, is invite only.
The comment follows a week of Musk teasing the event, including his claim that the demo would be a banger, which we covered before the stream. Tesla reports third quarter earnings on October 21, and shareholders can submit and vote on questions through the Say portal until 4 p.m. EDT on October 20, according to our earnings Q&A preview. A question about autonomous Roadster stunts and the Texas track would be a quick way to get specifics from management.
Elon Musk
How to use Grok Bot to block spam calls and texts
Musk told users to ask Grok Bot to scrub their phone numbers from spam lists.
Elon Musk has a new use case for Grok Bot, and it is the spam call. On Thursday he replied to an X user named Arash with a short instruction: “Ask your @Grok @Bot to remove your phone number from spam call & text lists!” Arash had said he got tired of the calls, had an AI bot find his number on listing sites and file removal requests, and packaged the process as a free skill for others.
The skill is called Spam-Call Scrubber, which is described to find a phone number on people search sites and data brokers, submits the opt outs, completes the confirmation emails those sites send back, and rechecks on a schedule the user picks. Using it requires the Grok Bot app. The pitch is time saved, since most broker opt outs sit behind separate forms on separate sites.
Ask your @Grok @Bot to remove your phone number from spam call & text lists!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 15, 2026
Musk said Grok Bot now gives each bot its own email address, and that it can detect scam emails. On Thursday he also said SpaceX would make users whole if the bot botches a purchase or leaks a card, then told users to shop away from Amazon after the retailer blocked the agent, as Teslarati reported. The terms of service we reviewed at the time put responsibility for what an agent does on the user.
For Tesla owners, Grok Bot is not just a phone app. Tesla brought Grok Bot into its vehicles on September 22, and we argued earlier this week that the Cybercab’s real advantage may be the errands it runs during a ride. Every Cybercab and the rest of the Model Y Robotaxi fleet has it enabled. The more routine tasks like this one become, the more a rider has reason to hand over something personal in the back seat.
The new Spam-Call Scrubber skill can be downloaded for free and works on sites that honor removal requests, while noting that listings can reappear, and illegal robocallers do not check any registry. Whether Spam-Call Scrubber cuts anyone’s call volume is something the first wave of users will find out, and Musk’s endorsement guarantees that wave is coming.
Investor's Corner
Tesla’s flying Roadster just revealed something bigger than the car
Analysts say the Roadster demo puts a Tesla and SpaceX merger back on the table.
The Roadster unveiling near Waco ended Thursday night, and by Friday morning much of the investor reaction had less to do with the car than with who owns the rocket technology inside it.
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said the event “puts the Tesla/SpaceX relationship on the table in a tangible way,” pointing to the propulsion, pressure vessel and control hardware sitting on a Tesla product. Gene Munster of Deepwater Asset Management called the demo “a ridiculous display of engineering” with “no commercial value” beyond embarrassing traditional automakers, though he said it showed Musk wants the two companies together.
The more specific forecast came a day earlier from Barclays. Analyst Dan Levy told clients a deal could be announced before Tesla’s annual meeting, which must happen by December 6, and that an announcement in late October or early November could make shareholder approval harder. Barclays expects SpaceX to be the buyer in an all stock deal, with Tesla holders receiving SpaceX shares at a premium, based on market values of roughly $2.1 trillion for SpaceX and $1.5 trillion for Tesla. If nothing lands around the meeting, the bank still sees an announcement within 6 to 12 months.
The Roadster demo just added more weight to merger speculations. Tesla’s demo used cold gas thrusters and pressure tanks of the kind SpaceX uses on Falcon 9, and Musk described the car as a collaboration between Tesla and SpaceX engineers, as we mentioned in our breakdown of the three Roadster configurations.
Musk has not publicly addressed a deal since the event, as far as we have seen. His most direct answer remains the one he gave at the All In Summit, when he said that with so much collaboration, “who can imagine what action one might take” without ruling anything out. Ives has held to a 2027 timeline since his March note, and Musk pushed back on the China piece of the speculation when ARK floated a year end announcement in August.
The next test is Tesla’s third quarter earnings call on October 21. However, we recall in July that Musk told analysts, “we can’t talk about combining companies and that kind of thing on an earnings call,” so a clear answer wouldn’t be expected.