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SpaceX reveals Starship hot stage ring

The hot stage ring installed atop Booster 9 (Credit SpaceX)

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SpaceX recently installed the new hot staging ring atop Booster 9 that will attempt this new stage separation method.

The hot staging ring has gone through its own test campaign, including being connected to the “can crusher,” which simulates stresses on the rocket during liftoff and, having passed that test, was then installed.

Hot staging is when the 2nd stage, in this case, Starship, ignites its engines while still connected to then pull away from Booster 9, which will also still be firing some of its own engines but with those throttled down. The hot staging method isn’t a new idea, as it has been used by Russian rockets for years now and also by older American rockets such as the Titan II.

The ring features mostly vents on the sides and a stainless steel dome, but underneath is heavily reinforced in order to withstand the forces from the Raptor engines firing above it during hot staging.

A look at the reinforcement underneath the hot staging ring for Starship (Credit SpaceX)

SpaceX has yet to confirm which of the Starship Raptor engines will ignite first, but with the sea level (3 center) Raptor engines sitting extremely close to the top of the dome, it wouldn’t be surprising if the outer three vacuum Raptors ignited first followed by the three center engines shortly after.

Back at the launch site, the Starship quick disconnect arm that’s used to fuel Starship has already been adjusted and raised higher to account for the addition of the hot stage ring.

No matter which way they ignite engines, it’ll certainly be an insane view if the rocket makes it to the staging phase of flight, which will be expected.

SpaceX also recently shared a video from their McGregor Test Facility showing a Raptor engine firing while gimbaling 15 degrees. Elon Musk said that it was to simulate the landing burn at “max gimbal deflection.”

At the production site, the company recently demolished one of the production tents and started taking down the mid-bay to make room for a new improved production facility after recently demolishing the windbreak that had been standing since the early days of Starbase.

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Booster 9 is expected to head back to the Orbital Launch Mount sometime this week. However, the tropics are picking up, which may force SpaceX to keep it safe in the high bay until the path of the storms is clearer.

Questions or comments? Shoot me an email at rangle@teslarati.com, or Tweet me @RDAnglePhoto.

Launch journalist, specializing in launch photography. Based on the Space Coast, a short drive from Cape Canaveral and the SpaceX launch pads.

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Investor's Corner

LIVE BLOG: Tesla (TSLA) Q4 and FY 2025 earnings call

Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) earnings call follows the release of the company’s Q4 and full-year 2025 update letter.

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Credit: Tesla Europe & Middle East/X

Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) earnings call follows the release of the company’s Q4 and full-year 2025 update letter, which was published on Tesla’s Investor Relations website after markets closed on January 28, 2025.

The results cap a quarter in which Tesla produced more than 434,000 vehicles, delivered over 418,000 vehicles, and deployed 14.2 GWh of energy storage products. For the full year, Tesla produced 1.65 million vehicles and delivered 1.63 million, while total energy storage deployments reached 46.7 GWh.

Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 Results

According to Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 Update Letter, the company posted GAAP earnings per share of $0.24 and non-GAAP EPS of $0.50 in the fourth quarter. Total revenue for Q4 came in at $24.901 billion, while GAAP net income was reported at $840 million.

For full-year 2025, Tesla reported GAAP EPS of $1.08 and non-GAAP EPS of $1.66 per share. Total revenue reached $94.83 billion, including $69.53 billion from automotive operations and $12.78 billion from the company’s energy generation and storage business. GAAP net income for the year totaled $3.79 billion.

Earnings call updates

The following are live updates from Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 earnings call. I will be updating this article in real time, so please keep refreshing the page to view the latest updates on this story.

16:25 CT – Good day to everyone, and welcome to another Tesla earnings call live blog. There’s a lot to unpack from Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 update letter, so I’m pretty sure this earnings call will be quite interesting.

16:30 CT – The Q4 and FY 2025 earnings call officially starts. IR exec Travis Axelrod opens the call. Elon and other executives are present.

16:30 CT – Elon makes his opening statement and explains why Tesla changed its mission to “Amazing Abundance.” “With the continued growth of AI and robotics, I think we’re headed towards a future of universal high income,” Musk said, adding that along the way, Tesla will still be improving its products while keeping the environment safe and healthy.

16:34 CT – Elon noted that the first steps for this future are happening this year, thanks to Tesla’s autonomy and robotics programs, which will be launching and ramping this year. He also highlighted that Tesla will be making major investments this year, though the company will be very strategic when it comes to its funding. “I think it makes a ton of strategic sense,” Musk said. 

16:36 CT – Elon also announces the end of the Model S and Model X programs “with an honorable discharge.” If you’re interested in buying a Model S or X, it’s best to do it now, Musk said. The Model S and Model X factory in Fremont will be replaced by an Optimus line. “It’s slightly sad, but it is time to bring the S and X program to an end. It’s part of our overall shift to an autonomous future,” Musk said.

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16:38 CT – Elon discusses how Unsupervised FSD is now starting for the Robotaxi service. He noted that these Unsupervised Robotaxis don’t have any chase cars as of yesterday. He reiterated Tesla’s plans for owners to be able to add their own vehicles to the Robotaxi fleet. Autonomy target for the end of the year is about a quarter and a half of the United States, Musk said. 

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Tesla announces massive investment into xAI

“On January 16, 2026, Tesla entered into an agreement to invest approximately $2 billion to acquire shares of Series E Preferred Stock of xAI as part of their recent publicly-disclosed financing round,” it said.

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Tesla has announced a major development in its ventures outside of electric vehicles, as it confirmed today that it invested $2 billion into xAI on January 16.

The move is significant, as it marks the acquisition of shares of Series E Preferred Stock, executed on market terms alongside other investors. The company officially announced it in its Q4 2025 Shareholder Deck, which was released at market close on Wednesday.

The investment follows shareholder approval in 2025 for potential equity stakes in xAI and echoes SpaceX’s earlier $2 billion contribution to xAI’s $10 billion fundraising round.

CEO Elon Musk, who is behind both companies, is now weaving what appears to be an even tighter ecosystem among his ventures, blending Tesla’s hardware prowess with xAI’s cutting-edge AI models, like Grok.

Tesla confirmed the investment in a statement in its Shareholder Deck:

“On January 16, 2026, Tesla entered into an agreement to invest approximately $2 billion to acquire shares of Series E Preferred Stock of xAI as part of their recent publicly-disclosed financing round. Tesla’s investment was made on market terms consistent with those previously agreed to by other investors in the financing round. As set forth in Master Plan Part IV, Tesla is building products and services that bring AI into the physical world. Meanwhile, xAI is developing leading digital AI products and services, such as its large language model (Grok).”

It continued:

“In that context, and as part of Tesla’s broader strategy under Master Plan Part IV, Tesla and xAI also entered into a framework agreement in connection with the investment. Among other things, the framework agreement builds upon the existing relationship between Tesla and xAI by providing a framework for evaluating potential AI collaborations between the companies. Together, the investment and the related framework agreement are intended to enhance Tesla’s ability to develop and deploy AI products and services into the physical world at scale. This investment is subject to customary regulatory conditions with the expectation to close in Q1’2026.”

The history of the partnership traces back to xAI’s founding in July 2023, as Musk launched the company as a counterweight to dominant AI players like OpenAI and Google.

xAI aimed to “understand the true nature of the universe” through unbiased, truth-seeking AI. Tesla, meanwhile, has long invested in AI for its Full Self-Driving (FSD) software and Optimus robots, training models on vast datasets from its vehicle fleet.

The investment holds profound significance for both companies.

For Tesla, it accelerates its Master Plan Part IV, which envisions AI-driven autonomy in vehicles and humanoid robots. xAI’s Grok could enhance Tesla’s real-world AI applications, from optimizing battery management to predictive maintenance, potentially giving Tesla an edge over its biggest rivals, like Waymo.

Investors, on the other hand, stand to gain from this symbiosis. Tesla Shareholders may see boosted stock value through AI innovations, with analysts projecting enhanced margins and significant future growth in robotics. xAI’s valuation could soar, attracting more capital.

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Investor's Corner

Tesla (TSLA) Q4 and FY 2025 earnings results

Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 earnings come on the heels of a quarter where the company produced over 434,000 vehicles, delivered over 418,000 vehicles, and deployed 14.2 GWh of energy storage products.

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Credit: Tesla China

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) has released its Q4 and FY 2025 earnings results in an update letter. The document was posted on the electric vehicle maker’s official Investor Relations website after markets closed today, January 28, 2025.

Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 earnings come on the heels of a quarter where the company produced over 434,000 vehicles, delivered over 418,000 vehicles, and deployed 14.2 GWh of energy storage products.

For the Full Year 2025, Tesla produced 1,654,667 and delivered 1,636,129 vehicles. The company also deployed a total of 46.7 GWh worth of energy storage products.

Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 results

As could be seen in Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 Update Letter, the company posted GAAP EPS of $0.24 and non-GAAP EPS of $0.50 per share in the fourth quarter. Tesla also posted total revenues of $24.901 billion. GAAP net income is also listed at $840 million in Q4.

Analyst consensus for Q4 has Tesla earnings per share falling 38% to $0.45 with revenue declining 4% to $24.74 billion, as per estimates from FactSet. In comparison, the consensus compiled by Tesla last week forecasted $0.44 per share on sales totaling $24.49 billion.

For FY 2025, Tesla posted GAAP EPS of $1.08 and non-GAAP EPS of $1.66 per share. Tesla also posted total revenues of $94.827 billion, which include $69.526 billion from automotive and $12.771 billion from the battery storage business. GAAP net income is also listed at $3.794 billion in FY 2025.

xAI Investment

Tesla entered an agreement to invest approximately $2 billion to acquire Series E preferred shares in Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup, xAI, as part of the company’s recently disclosed financing round. Tesla said the investment was made on market terms consistent with those agreed to by other participants in the round.

The investment aligns with Tesla’s strategy under Master Plan Part IV, which centers on bringing artificial intelligence into the physical world through products and services. While Tesla focuses on real-world AI applications, xAI is developing digital AI platforms, including its Grok large language model.

Below is Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 update letter.

TSLA-Q4-2025-Update by Simon Alvarez

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