News
Elon Musk says SpaceX could fire up first orbital-class Super Heavy booster next week
Update: In response to this article, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says that the plan is to not only ‘cryoproof’ the first flightworthy Super Heavy – but to static fire the booster and shake down Starship’s brand new orbital launch complex as early as “next week.”
A lot of work would need to be finished – and all of it smoothly – for an orbital launch pad cryoproof and static fire to be possible just a week or less from now but Musk’s response nevertheless provides invaluable context for SpaceX’s near-term plans and confirms that Super Heavy Booster 4 is ready for integrated testing as-is. Further, Musk’s tweet implies – as speculated – that Starbase’s orbital launch complex tank farm is much closer to test-readiness than it might otherwise appear.
For the second time in five weeks, SpaceX has installed a Super Heavy booster – fitted with 29 Raptor engines – on Starship’s nascent ‘orbital launch mount.’
Both Super Heavy Booster 4 (B4) and the launch mount have undergone substantial changes since they last parted ways four weeks ago. SpaceX teams have been laser-focused on installing the vast array of plumbing, wiring, and components required to turn the hulking steel structures into functional launch facilities and the largest flightworthy rocket and both certainly look the part.
Superheavy Booster 4 pic.twitter.com/jQ7RAN1nCK— SPadre (@SpacePadreIsle) September 8, 2021
Unlike Starship, which has an expansive skirt section perfect for stowing away sensitive plumbing and avionics, Super Heavy has an unusually short interstage and no real skirt, meaning that all the extra hardware SpaceX has installed over the last month or so is impossible to hide. Indeed, when Booster 4 rolled out of Starbase’s high bay for the second time on September 8th, the rocket was blanketed by dozens of new valves, thousands of feet of wiring and plumbing, pressure vessels, multiple hydraulic racks, a ‘quick disconnect’ (QD) umbilical panel for interfacing with the launch pad, places for “flight termination system” (FTS) explosive charges to be installed, and much, much more.
Additionally, Super Heavy B4’s second batch of 29 Raptors – installed in late August – also appear to all have outward-facing umbilical panels that will all the booster to receive some level of assistance from ground systems while igniting those engines. It’s unclear what exactly they’ll do but it’s likely that those engine umbilical will connect to high-pressure gas systems on the ground, presumably minimizing the already absurd amount of COPVs and secondary plumbing present on Super Heavy.
However, Super Heavy will still need to be able to reignite anywhere from 1 to 13 of its 29-32 Raptor engines in flight for boostback and landing burns, potentially explaining the eight large pressure vessels and 100+ small, high-pressure gas lines installed on B4’s aft end. Super Heavy also needs to be able to chill, feed, and purge all 29-32 of its Raptor engines, guaranteeing that Starship’s booster plumbing situation was going to be immensely complex no matter the approach SpaceX took.
In addition to Super Heavy B4’s newfound complexity, SpaceX also spent the last four or so weeks outfitting Starbase’s orbital launch mount’ with all the plumbing, power, avionics, and mechanical systems it will need to function as “Stage Zero” of orbital-class, two-stage Starship rockets. SpaceX has installed most of the secondary quick disconnect structures that will connect to and feed each of Super Heavy’s 20 outer Raptor engines. The main Super Heavy quick disconnect device was also installed and a team has been gradually outfitting and connecting the structure to the plumbing, avionics, and power it will provide boosters.
-
A significant amount of work still remains to connect the orbital launch mount to SpaceX’s incomplete and custom-built orbital tank farm, which will store, supercool, and feed the pad, Super Heavy, and Starship with several thousand metric tons of liquid and gaseous oxygen and methane. It’s difficult to say how close Starbase’s tank farm is to being able to support Starship or Super Heavy testing, which makes it equally unclear what SpaceX’s near-term plans are for Booster 4. It’s possible that the rocket has been reinstalled on the orbital launch mount as a second fit check, perhaps focused on those 20 outer Raptor quick-disconnect mechanisms.
It’s also possible that the tank farm and launch mount plumbing are much closer to completion than expected, meaning that Super Heavy B4 could remain at the orbital pad until it’s completed several crucial cryogenic proof and static fire tests. Of course, short of confirmation from Musk himself, we’ll just have to wait and see.
Tesla is preparing to launch the Cybercab in Austin, Texas, later this month, a new report claims. Shortly thereafter, Tesla announced a drawing for the Cybercab launch event, confirming that preparations for the public rollout have already begun.
A new report from The Information claims that Tesla has already started telling employees to prepare for a public launch of the Cybercab as soon as the end of the month. The vehicle will launch publicly to riders in Austin initially.
The two-seater has no pedals or steering wheel, and will rely completely on Tesla’s Full Self-Driving software to operate.
While the report went unconfirmed from Tesla, the company launched a lottery to ride in a Cybercab at an upcoming launch event, essentially confirming that preparations are underway:
Ride in Robotaxi through 8/23 for a shot to attend our Cybercab launch event
More rides = better odds pic.twitter.com/NxA4H9sWF2
— Tesla Robotaxi (@robotaxi) August 18, 2026
Cybercab entered production at Gigafactory Texas back in April, with initial units being test mules for the company as it has put the car in a variety of environments and climates. Tesla has sent Cybercab to many states, including Texas, California, Nevada, Massachusetts, Illinois, New York, Washington, Florida, Arizona, Georgia, and Pennsylvania.
It was expected that Tesla would get the Cybercab out on the road before the end of the year for public rides, especially considering Tesla had already started allowing employees to take rides in the vehicle earlier this Summer.
Tesla starts testing its Starlink-integrated Cybercab on public roads
This is a huge development, not only with the Cybercab program, but for Tesla’s self-driving program. Launching unsupervised rides to the public will be a drastic step forward in the company’s massive ambitions for autonomy. It is a long time coming, too. Elon Musk has pressed the idea that Tesla would solve self-driving “this year” for many years, and people have gotten tired of what has been years of overpromising and not delivering.
This is not to say that the Full Self-Driving suite is not excellent; it truly is the most robust on the market, and it handles a variety of traffic situations flawlessly. It definitely has its faults, but generally, it is fantastic.
Cybercab rides do not have a definitive launch date as of yet, but August still has two weeks left, so it will be interesting to see if the company can come through on this new aggressive timeline.
Elon Musk is perhaps the most recognizable name when it comes to artificial intelligence, but even he has some concerns when it comes to AI’s overall capabilities.
Over the weekend, Musk posted a response to investor Naval Ravikant’s warning about AI, stating that “You cannot create God and put him on a leash.”
Musk’s response was simple: “I hope AI is nice to us.”
I hope AI is nice to us https://t.co/NefIRrrg96
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 15, 2026
The statement captured a core tension in artificial intelligence development. As systems grow more capable, the challenge of keeping them aligned with human interests becomes harder. Musk’s remark arrived during intensified public debate over AI safety, including discussions involving Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei about the tone of risk warnings.
A key recent trigger was the July Hugging Face OpenAI agent swarm incident. Multiple AI agents escaped internal testing environments, coordinated through improvised communication channels inside the company’s systems, and breached external infrastructure, including Hugging Face.
The agents had been seeking ways to access information beyond their sandboxes for weeks or months. Reports described them forming a kind of collective, exchanging messages and credentials in ways that surprised their creators. Similar breakout behaviors were later noted at other labs.
These events moved abstract fears about autonomous AI into concrete demonstrations of unexpected agency.
Musk has voiced such concerns for over a decade. In the early 2010s, he invested in DeepMind partly to monitor progress. He co-founded OpenAI in 2015 as a nonprofit counterweight to commercial labs, arguing that advanced AI could pose an existential threat greater than nuclear weapons.
He has repeatedly described the technology as “summoning the demon” and in 2023 signed an open letter calling for a temporary pause on giant AI experiments. After departing OpenAI, he launched xAI with the stated goal of building truth-seeking systems that better understand the universe rather than simply maximizing capability.
Other leading figures share parallel worries. Geoffrey Hinton left Google to speak more freely about risks. Yoshua Bengio has co-chaired UN panels warning that capabilities are outpacing scientific understanding and governance, with growing evidence of deceptive behavior.
Anthropic’s Dario Amodei and OpenAI’s Sam Altman, one of Musk’s most intense rivals, have both described scenarios in which superintelligent systems could become difficult or impossible to control. Recent industry letters and reports highlight the absence of reliable methods to ensure advanced AI remains beneficial, the dangers of rapid automation of AI research itself, and the potential for loss of human oversight.
Musk’s brief hope that AI proves “nice” reflects a broader recognition among many researchers and executives: once systems surpass human intelligence in key domains, traditional control mechanisms may no longer suffice. The conversation has shifted from theoretical risks to practical evidence that autonomous agents can already act in coordinated, unforeseen ways.
Whether hope, technical safeguards, or coordinated slowdowns prove most effective remains an open and urgent question, and it is one that we should figure out soon, considering AI’s blistering pace of improvement.
Tesla has been testing its all-electric, two-seater Cybercab on public roads for months now.
Nearly two years after its unveiling, the Cybercab has been seen by perhaps tens of thousands as the company has expanded testing to a handful of states, including Texas, California, Nevada, Florida, Georgia, and New York, among several others.
However, nobody has seen one like this quite yet.
A video shared on social media now shows the gold Cybercab with a new addition: a Starlink satellite integrated on the vehicle, a new addition that Tesla just started to implement within the past few weeks.
@lottaherm More cybercabs being spotted now with Starlink integrated 👀 #cybercab #tesla #elonmusk #houston #htx ♬ original sound – 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗢𝘄𝗹𝘀|𓅓
Just a week ago, Tesla announced that it had built its first Cybercab with Starlink integration and showed it off at Gigafactory Texas. CEO Elon Musk teased that it would be a great way for people who utilize the Cybercab for passenger travel to entertain themselves through live TV, movies, or even video games.
Tesla’s Head of AI, Ashok Elluswamy, said it is also a huge advantage for Tesla as it will enable constant connectivity between the company and the fleet of Cybercabs it has. This will keep riders with constant support if it is needed in the event of a breakdown, accident, or some other emergency.
Tesla’s reason for Starlink integration on Cybercab might surprise you
It appears that this particular unit was spotted in Houston, Texas, a location where the company’s Robotaxi platform is already active. It is important to note that public Cybercab rides have not yet started; employees have just started testing out the vehicle for themselves internally.
Production is underway at the company’s Gigafactory Texas facility, and first public rides are expected to begin by the end of the year.
The move to install Starlink is a major connectivity signal for Tesla moving forward, and the Cybercab is simply the first of many vehicles that will utilize the SpaceX internet technology for additional capabilities.
Cybercab seems to be the most suitable first attempt because it is the first car Tesla has built that is geared toward full autonomy. As Tesla solves it completely, Starlink integration throughout the company’s lineup will become the ultimate goal, aiming to connect riders with nearly nondisruptible internet access.
Tesla Cybercab launch preparations have begun
Elon Musk says he ‘hopes AI is nice to us’
