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SpaceX rocket test-fired for first Starlink launch since in-flight engine failure
Just a month after an automatic launch abort sequence and subsequent in-flight engine failure, the SpaceX Falcon 9 is ready to return to flight. SpaceX’s sixth Starlink V1.0 and seventh overall launch of 60 Starlink satellites – initially expected on April 16th later delayed to April 23rd – will mark the triumphant return of a flight-proven booster.
Early on Thursday, April 16th – a week ahead of the scheduled launch attempt – the flight-proven B1051 Falcon 9 booster fully stacked with the integrated payload of 60 flat-stacked Starlink satellites, rolled out to Launch Complex 39-A at Kennedy Space Center. Just over twenty-four hours later on Friday, April 17th, the rocket and payload were raised into the vertical launching position. At noon on Friday, SpaceX teams conducted a wet dress rehearsal fully fueling the first stage booster with propellant – rocket grade kerosene (RP-1) and liquid oxygen (LOX) – before successfully conducting a full-duration, pre-launch ignition of all nine Merlin 1D engines while holding the rocket in place – called a static fire.
Shortly after the test completion, SpaceX confirmed the targeted Thursday, April 23rd launch attempt scheduled for 3:16 pm EDT from LC-39A via the company’s Twitter account. Along with the launch date, SpaceX confirmed that the upcoming Starlink-6 mission (seventh overall) will be the fourth attempted launch and recovery of booster B1051. This booster previously supported launches from three different launchpads in Florida and California. Perhaps most notably, it supported the successful first uncrewed demonstration mission of the Crew Dragon capsule in March of 2019.
SpaceX also confirmed that the protective nosecone encapsulating the satellite payload, called the payload fairing, is also recovered and reused flight-proven hardware. To date, SpaceX has reused fairing halves twice. Both instances have been conducted on internal Starlink missions, one in November 2019 and the most recent on March 18th’s Starlink-5 mission. Both featured fairing halves that were recovered after landing softly in the water of the Atlantic ocean. Ultimately, only the fairing halves of the most recent March 18th Starlink-5 mission were successfully recovered. The recovery attempt during November’s mission was called off due to rough seas.
According to SpaceX, April 23rd’s upcoming Starlink-6 mission will feature fairing halves recovered from the AMOS-17 mission launched in August of 2019. As previously covered by Teslarati, the mission resulted in a fairing half caught in a large net mounted atop one of the company’s fairing recovery vessels, GO Ms. Tree. The other half was scooped up after a gentle water landing. Starlink-6 will be the first time that a fairing half caught in a net is re-used in conjunction with a half recovered from the water. If the fairing halves perform nominally, as expected, it will help SpaceX to push the envelope of flight-proven hardware reuse even further.
Closely mirroring the Starlink-5 mission, SpaceX will once again launch from LC-39A and utilize a slightly altered mission profile. This will allow the Falcon 9’s second stage to deliver the 60 flat-stack satellites to an elliptical, rather than circular, orbit intended to reduce stress during booster re-entry and landing. Although used with previous missions, this particular mission profile has yet to result in a successful booster recovery.
If successful, Starlink-6 will be the first time a booster lands on the autonomous spaceport drone ship “Of Course I Still Love You” since this boosters last landing in January 2020 following the successful Starlink-4 mission. As of Sunday morning, April 19th, “Of Course I Still Love You” departed Port Canaveral to travel to the recovery zone some 629km downrange ahead of Thursday’s launch attempt. The crew recovery vessel, GO Quest, followed shortly thereafter. The two fairing recovery vessels GO Ms. Tree and GO Ms. Chief are expected to leave port early in the week as the ships are built for speed and will reach the destination much quicker.
Check out Teslarati’s newsletters for prompt updates, on-the-ground perspectives, and unique glimpses of SpaceX’s rocket launch and recovery processes.
News
Tesla is ramping up its hiring for the Cybercab production team
As can be seen on Tesla’s Careers website, three new Cybercab-related positions are currently available at Giga Texas.

Tesla appears to be ramping up its Cybercab team at Giga Texas. As per recent observations by the Tesla community, three new job listings on the automaker’s Careers site suggest that the company is starting to add more critical personnel for the autonomous two-seater’s production.
New Cybercab jobs
As can be seen on Tesla’s Careers website, three new Cybercab-related positions are currently available. Tesla is looking for a Metrology Technician, who will work on the Cybercab’s Quality team; an Equipment Engineer who will work on the Cybercab’s Plastics team; and a Tool & Die Supervisor, who will work in the Injection Molding team.
All three positions are based in Austin, Texas, which is quite unsurprising as Giga Texas is the only facility today that has the capability to produce the vehicle. The Cybercab’s production is quite different compared to Tesla’s other vehicles, as it is the first car that would be produced using the company’s “Unboxed” process.
Unlike any car that’s produced before
Elon Musk has previously said the Cybercab will be Tesla’s highest-volume vehicle, targeting an annual rate of 2 million units. He also mentioned that the vehicle’s manufacturing line will not resemble an automotive production line at all. Instead, it would resemble a high-speed consumer electronics line, which should pave the way for one Cybercab to be produced every few seconds.
“If you’ve seen the design of the Cybercab line, it doesn’t look like a normal car manufacturing line. It looks like a really high-speed consumer electronics line. In fact, the line will move so fast that actually people can’t even get close to it. I think it’ll be able to produce a car ultimately in less than 5 seconds,” Musk stated during Tesla’s All-Hands meeting earlier this year.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk: Grok 5 now has a 10% chance of becoming world’s first AGI
If his prediction comes to pass, xAI could very well become yet another world-changing company from Elon Musk.

Elon Musk has shared his most optimistic forecast about Grok 5’s capabilities yet. In a recent post on X, Musk stated that he now believes that the upcoming update to xAI’s large language model has a 10% chance of achieving artificial general intelligence.
If his prediction comes to pass, xAI could very well become yet another world-changing company from Elon Musk.
Musk’s previous Grok 5 estimate
Just last month, Elon Musk estimated that xAI might have a chance at achieving artificial general intelligence with Grok 5. Musk’s comments at the time already made headlines, considering that no company in the world today has achieved AGI yet, though numerous AI startups today are actively pursuing artificial general intelligence.
In a recent post on X, Musk noted that his “estimate of the probability of Grok 5 achieving AGI is now at 10% and rising.” In another post, he also noted that “Grok 5 will be AGI or something indistinguishable from AGI.” Grok 5 is yet to be released, though Musk’s comments about the update are definitely setting expectations.
AGI will be world changing
Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) refers to an AI system that is capable of matching or surpassing human-level intelligence across tasks such as thinking, reasoning, and other domains by a notable margin, as noted in a previous report from Benzinga. With AGI achieved, industries from robotics to manufacturing would likely see a notable boost.
As per a report from the Center for International Relations and Sustainable Development (CIRSD), AGI could eventually pave the way for artificial super intelligence (ASI), which would be more intelligent than AGI and likely more intelligent than all of humanity combined.
News
Tesla Model Y L becomes China’s 4th best-selling mid-to-large SUV in its first month of sales
Tesla Model Y L was able to sell 8,221 units domestically in September.

The Tesla Model Y L has only started deliveries last month, but it is already making its presence known in China’s mid-to-large SUV segment. As per data aggregated by Tesla watchers in China, the Model Y L has quickly risen as one of the country’s best-selling large SUVs just weeks into its first deliveries.
The momentum of the Model Y L has been so notable that it ended up being China’s fourth best-selling mid-to-large SUV in September.
Tesla Model Y L September sales
As per data compiled by Yiche, the Tesla Model Y L was able to sell 8,221 units domestically in September. This places it in fourth place in China’s rankings for best-selling large SUVs, just below the Leapmotor C16, the Li Auto L6, and the Xiaomi YU7, which sold 8,312, 11,827, and 22,244 units in September, respectively.
A look at the prices of China’s top four mid-to-large SUVs would show that the Model Y L is one of the pricier vehicles among the four. The Xiaomi YU7’s inclusion in the list is also quite interesting as the all-electric crossover primarily competes with the five-seat Model Y, not the Model Y L. Needless to say, the price difference between the Model Y L and the Xiaomi YU7 is quite substantial.
Just getting started
The Tesla Model Y L only started deliveries sometime in September. Following its launch in August, the Model Y L received positive reviews from professional reviewers, with many praising the vehicle’s spacious cabin and its reasonable price. It did not take long before the Model Y L was sold out for October, and later, November as well. Considering that the Model Y L now has an estimated delivery date of December 2025 for new orders, it seems safe to assume that every unit built by Giga Shanghai this quarter will be sold to consumers.
The Model Y L has the makings of a best-seller. With a spacious second row that features two captain seats with retractable armrests, as well as a third row that could accommodate regular-sized adults, the Model Y L is a true family hauler. Combined with its starting price of $47,566 before options, the extended wheelbase all-electric crossover SUV does seem to have the makings of a best-seller.
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