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SpaceX moves Starhopper back to launch pad, puts 200m hop test on the calendar

Starhopper is pictured here on July 27th, one day before SpaceX transported the prototype rocket back to its pad. (NASASpaceflight - bocachicagal)

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On July 28th, SpaceX wrapped up modifications to a rented robotic lift vehicle and carefully moved Starhopper back to its launch facilities three days after its inaugural flight. Another two days after that, SpaceX filed road closure requests confirming the date for the Starship prototype’s next launch.

According to those road closures, SpaceX is preparing Starhopper for a second flight just 17 days after its first hop and has cordoned off August 12th through the 14th to provide a backup window or two and a possible pre-flight static fire opportunity. In recent days, SpaceX has begun the process of refurbishing Starhopper and its pad facilities, although – by all appearances – very little work is needed to return the vehicle to flight readiness.

In fact, just yesterday (July 30th), SpaceX began reattaching the pad’s quick-disconnect (QD) umbilical ports to Starhopper in an important post-flight test and a first step towards verifying that all ground support equipment (GSE) is healthy. Thankfully for the pad, Starhopper is powered by just one Raptor engine, producing a maximum of 200 tons (450,000 lbf) of thrust at sea level.

That still made for a visibly violent environment at and around the pad during Starhopper’s first liftoff and landing and ultimately caused a significant brush fire that may have damaged the pad’s liquid oxygen systems, but everything – including Starhopper – was still standing at the end.

Although the road closure schedule does not discriminate between closures for propellant loading, test fires, or flights, or other miscellaneous needs, NASASpaceflight.com confirmed that August 12th is, in fact, the current target for Starhopper’s second flight, a 200m (650 ft) ‘hop’ that will likely keep the rocket aloft for 30-60 seconds.

In the interim, it’s possible that SpaceX will request additional road closures for preflight tests and there’s even a chance that the actual date of flight will be earlier (or later) than August 12th, depending on how Starhopper and pad refurbishment and checkouts proceed over the next week or so.

Thanks to SpaceX’s spartan Boca Chica facilities and its bare-dirt surroundings, Starhopper’s first successful flight – a brief 20m (65 ft) hop and translation – saw the vehicle almost entire obscure itself as its powerful Raptor engine kicked up a huge cloud of dust and steam. The 200m hop should permit a comparatively uninterrupted view of Starhopper and Raptor, hopefully combining with daylight to make for some truly spectacular views of the prototype rocket in action.

Repeating a test conducted in June with Raptor SN04, SpaceX tested Starhopper and Raptor SN06’s thrust vectoring capabilities on July 12th. (NASASpaceflight – bocachicagal)
Once Starhopper rises out of the fray… Mach diamonds! ? (SpaceX)

With any luck, once Starhopper rises out of its own cloud of dust and steam, onlookers will be treated to half a minute or more of uninterrupted Raptor Mach diamonds and should get a taste what exactly a Starship and Super Heavy launch might look like in the daytime.

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Eric Ralph is Teslarati's senior spaceflight reporter and has been covering the industry in some capacity for almost half a decade, largely spurred in 2016 by a trip to Mexico to watch Elon Musk reveal SpaceX's plans for Mars in person. Aside from spreading interest and excitement about spaceflight far and wide, his primary goal is to cover humanity's ongoing efforts to expand beyond Earth to the Moon, Mars, and elsewhere.

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Tesla reveals it is using AI to make factories more sustainable: here’s how

Tesla is using AI in its Gigafactory Nevada factory to improve HVAC efficiency.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has revealed in its Extended Impact Report for 2024 that it is using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to enable its factories to be more sustainable. One example it used was its achievement of managing “the majority of the HVAC infrastructure at Gigafactory Nevada is now AI-controlled” last year.

In a commitment to becoming more efficient and making its production as eco-friendly as possible, Tesla has been working for years to find solutions to reduce energy consumption in its factories.

For example, in 2023, Tesla implemented optimization controls in the plastics and paint shops located at Gigafactory Texas, which increased the efficiency of natural gas consumption. Tesla plans to phase out natural gas use across its factories eventually, but for now, it prioritizes work to reduce emissions from that energy source specifically.

It also uses Hygrometric Control Logic for Air Handling Units at Giafactory Berlin, resulting in 17,000 MWh in energy savings each year. At Gigafactory Nevada, Tesla saves 9.5 GWh of energy through the use of N-Methylpyrrolidone refineries when extracting critical raw material.

Perhaps the most interesting way Tesla is conserving energy is through the use of AI at Gigafactory Nevada, as it describes its use of AI to reduce energy demand:

“In 2023, AI Control for HVAC was expanded from Nevada and Texas to now include our Berlin-Brandenburg and Fremont factories. AI Control policy enables HVAC systems within each factory to work together to process sensor data, model factory dynamics, and apply control actions that safely minimize the energy required to support production. In 2024, this system achieved two milestones: the majority of HVAC infrastructure at Gigafactory Nevada is now AI-controlled, reducing fan and thermal energy demand; and the AI algorithm was extended to manage entire chiller plants, creating a closed-loop control system that optimizes both chilled water consumption and the energy required for its generation, all while maintaining factory conditions.”

Tesla utilizes AI Control “primarily on systems that heat or cool critical factory production spaces and equipment.” AI Control communicates with the preexisting standard control logic of each system, and any issues can be resolved by quickly reverting back to standard control. There were none in 2024.

Tesla says that it is utilizing AI to drive impact at its factories, and it has proven to be a valuable tool in reducing energy consumption at one of its facilities.

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Tesla analysts believe Musk and Trump feud will pass

Tesla CEO Elon Musk and U.S. President Donald Trump’s feud shall pass, several bulls say.

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The White House, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
President Donald J. Trump purchases a Tesla on the South Lawn, Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (Official White House Photo by Molly Riley)

Tesla analysts are breaking down the current feud between CEO Elon Musk and U.S. President Donald Trump, as the two continue to disagree on the “Big Beautiful Bill” and its impact on the country’s national debt.

Musk, who headed the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) under the Trump Administration, left his post in May. Soon thereafter, he and President Trump entered a very public and verbal disagreement, where things turned sour. They reconciled to an extent, and things seemed to be in the past.

However, the second disagreement between the two started on Monday, as Musk continued to push back on the “Big Beautiful Bill” that the Trump administration is attempting to sign into law. It would, by Musk’s estimation, increase spending and reverse the work DOGE did to trim the deficit.

President Trump has hinted that DOGE could be “the monster” that “eats Elon,” threatening to end the subsidies that SpaceX and Tesla receive. Musk has not been opposed to ending government subsidies for companies, including his own, as long as they are all abolished.

How Tesla could benefit from the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ that axes EV subsidies

Despite this contentious back-and-forth between the two, analysts are sharing their opinions now, and a few of the more bullish Tesla observers are convinced that this feud will pass, Trump and Musk will resolve their differences as they have before, and things will return to normal.

ARK Invest’s Cathie Wood said this morning that the feud between Musk and Trump is another example of “this too shall pass:”

Additionally, Wedbush’s Dan Ives, in a note to investors this morning, said that the situation “will settle:”

“We believe this situation will settle and at the end of the day Musk needs Trump and Trump needs Musk given the AI Arms Race going on between the US and China. The jabs between Musk and Trump will continue as the Budget rolls through Congress but Tesla investors want Musk to focus on driving Tesla and stop this political angle…which has turned into a life of its own in a roller coaster ride since the November elections.”

Tesla shares are down about 5 percent at 3:10 p.m. on the East Coast.

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Tesla scrambles after Musk sidekick exit, CEO takes over sales

Tesla CEO Elon Musk is reportedly overseeing sales in North America and Europe, Bloomberg reports.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla scrambled its executives around following the exit of CEO Elon Musk’s sidekick last week, Omead Afshar. Afshar was relieved of his duties as Head of Sales for both North America and Europe.

Bloomberg is reporting that Musk is now overseeing both regions for sales, according to sources familiar with the matter. Afshar left the company last week, likely due to slow sales in both markets, ending a seven-year term with the electric automaker.

Tesla’s Omead Afshar, known as Elon Musk’s right-hand man, leaves company: reports

Afshar was promoted to the role late last year as Musk was becoming more involved in the road to the White House with President Donald Trump.

Afshar, whose LinkedIn account stated he was working within the “Office of the CEO,” was known as Musk’s right-hand man for years.

Additionally, Tom Zhu, currently the Senior Vice President of Automotive at Tesla, will oversee sales in Asia, according to the report.

It is a scramble by Tesla to get the company’s proven executives over the pain points the automaker has found halfway through the year. Sales are looking to be close to the 1.8 million vehicles the company delivered in both of the past two years.

Tesla is pivoting to pay more attention to the struggling automotive sales that it has felt over the past six months. Although it is still performing well and is the best-selling EV maker by a long way, it is struggling to find growth despite redesigning its vehicles and launching new tech and improvements within them.

The company is also looking to focus more on its deployment of autonomous tech, especially as it recently launched its Robotaxi platform in Austin just over a week ago.

Tesla officially launches Robotaxi service with no driver

However, while this is the long-term catalyst for Tesla, sales still need some work, and it appears the company’s strategy is to put its biggest guns on its biggest problems.

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