

News
SpaceX rolls out first new Starship prototype in nine months
For the first time in more than nine months, SpaceX has rolled a new Starship prototype to its Starbase, Texas launch facilities in the hopes of kicking off qualification testing in the near future.
The new activity exemplifies just how different – and more subdued – Starbase’s last year has been compared to the year prior. However, it also signals new hope for a significantly more eventful 2022 as SpaceX once again finds itself preparing for Starship’s first orbital launch attempt – albeit with an entirely different rocket.
The last time SpaceX rolled a new and functional Starship prototype from the factory to the test stand was on August 13th, 2021, when Starship S20 was transported back to the pad for the second time that month. On August 5th, the same unfinished Starship was stacked on top of Super Heavy booster B4, briefly assembling the largest rocket ever built. With the luxury of hindsight, it’s now clear that that particular milestone was more of a photo-op than a technical achievement. Nonetheless, Ship 20’s path was far more productive than Booster 4’s. The Starship returned to the Starbase factory for a few days of finishing touches before arriving back at the pad on August 13th. Only in the last week of September did Ship 20 finally begin its first significant tests, followed by its first Raptor static fire in mid-October. In mid-November, Ship 20 completed the first of several successful six-Raptor static fires.
Ultimately, by the time Ship 20 was retired in May 2022, the Starship was arguably fully ready to attempt to reach orbit or at least perform some kind of ambitious hypersonic test flight. However, Super Heavy Booster 4 never made it even a fraction of the way to a similar level of flight readiness and SpaceX never received the FAA environmental approval or launch license needed for an orbital launch attempt.
Only now, in May 2022, does it finally look likely that SpaceX will finally receive the necessary permissions for a limited orbital test flight campaign in the near future. While it’s hard to say if Booster 4 and Ship 20 could have supported some kind of launch campaign if permission had been granted months ago, what’s clear is that all aspects – flight hardware, pad hardware, and bureaucracy – have been chronically delayed to the point that Booster 4 and Ship 20 are now heavily outdated.
In their place, now, stand Super Heavy B7 and Starship S24 – the new ‘chosen ones’ assigned to Starship’s orbital launch debut. Both feature extensive design changes and account for an upgraded version of the Raptor engine and countless lessons learned over the better part of a year spent troubleshooting and testing their predecessors. While it did get off to a rocky start, Booster 7 has already completed several cryogenic proof tests and is in the middle of being outfitted with 33 new Raptor engines.
On the other hand, perhaps indicating SpaceX’s satisfaction with Ship 20’s performance, Starship S24 has been on the back burner in comparison. Only on May 26th, 2022 did SpaceX finally finish the prototype to the point that it was ready to begin qualification testing. Missing hundreds of TPS tiles and an aerocover cap, Ship 24 was quickly moved into position at a sort of drive-by test stand where it appears the prototype will first need to pass basic pressure and cryogenic proof tests.
If it passes those tests, SpaceX will then install Ship 24 on a suborbital launch and test stand (Suborbital Pad A) that has been significantly modified for qualification testing. Rather than leaping straight into static fires, SpaceX will minimize the risk of catastrophic failure by first using hydraulic rams to simulate the thrust of six Raptor V2 engines while Starship’s steel tanks and plumbing are chilled to cryogenic temperatures. Only after Ship 24 completes stress testing will SpaceX install new Raptor engines and prepare to replicate Ship 20’s success with several static fires.
Thanks to Raptor V2’s improvements, Ship 24 will likely need to withstand around 1400 tons (~3.1M lbf) of thrust at liftoff – almost 25% more than Ship 20 ever experienced. Beyond a sturdier thrust section, Ship 24 is also the first Starship SpaceX has outfitted with a next-generation nose; the first with a significant landing propellant (‘header’) tank redesign; and the first with a potentially functional payload bay and door.
Assuming Ship 24 passes all planned cryoproof and thrust simulation tests, it remains to be seen if SpaceX will return the Starship to Starbase factory facilities or – like with Ship 20 – install Raptors and finish its heat shield and thermal protection while sitting on the test stand. SpaceX has two test windows currently scheduled: one from 6am to 12pm CDT on Friday, May 27th and the other from 10am to 10pm CDT on Tuesday, May 31st.
Elon Musk
Tesla called ‘biggest meme stock we’ve ever seen’ by Yale associate dean

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) is being called “the biggest meme stock we’ve ever seen” by Yale School of Management Senior Associate Dean Jeff Sonnenfeld, who made the comments in a recent interview with CNBC.
Sonnenfeld’s comments echo those of many of the company’s skeptics, who argue that its price-to-earnings ratio is far too high when compared to other companies also in the tech industry. Tesla is often compared to companies like Apple, Nvidia, and Microsoft when these types of discussions come up.
Fundamentally, yes, Tesla does trade at a P/E level that is significantly above that of any comparable company.
However, it is worth mentioning that Tesla is not traded like a typical company, either.
Here’s what Sonnenfeld said regarding Tesla:
“This is the biggest meme stock we’ve ever seen. Even at its peak, Amazon was nowhere near this level. The PE on this, well above 200, is just crazy. When you’ve got stocks like Nvidia, the price-earnings ratio is around 25 or 30, and Apple is maybe 35 or 36, Microsoft around the same. I mean, this is way out of line to be at a 220 PE. It’s crazy, and they’ve, I think, put a little too much emphasis on the magic wand of Musk.”
Many analysts have admitted in the past that they believe Tesla is an untraditional stock in the sense that many analysts trade it based on narrative and not fundamentals. Ryan Brinkman of J.P. Morgan once said:
“Tesla shares continue to strike us as having become completely divorced from the fundamentals.”
Dan Nathan, another notorious skeptic of Tesla shares, recently turned bullish on the stock because of “technicals and sentiment.” He said just last week:
“I think from a trading perspective, it looks very interesting.”
Nathan said Tesla shares show signs of strength moving forward, including holding its 200-day moving average and holding against current resistance levels.
Sonnenfeld’s synopsis of Tesla shares points out that there might be “a little too much emphasis on the magic wand of Musk.”
Elon Musk just bought $1 billion in Tesla stock, his biggest purchase ever
This could refer to different things: perhaps his recent $1 billion stock buy, which sent the stock skyrocketing, or the fact that many Tesla investors are fans and owners who do not buy and sell on numbers, but rather on news that Musk might report himself.
Tesla is trading around $423.76 at the time of publication, as of 3:25 p.m. on the East Coast.
News
Tesla makes big change to Full Self-Driving doghouse that drivers will like
Now, it is changing the timeframe of which strikes will be removed, cutting it in half. The strikes will be removed every 3.5 days, as long as no strikes are received during the time period.

Tesla is making a big change to its Full Self-Driving doghouse that drivers will like.
The doghouse is a hypothetical term used to describe the penalty period that Tesla applies to drivers who receive too many infractions related to distracted driving.
Previously, Tesla implemented a seven-day ban on the use of Full Self-Driving for those who received five strikes in a vehicle equipped with a cabin camera and three strikes for those without a cabin camera.
It also forgave one strike per week of Full Self-Driving use, provided the driver did not receive any additional strikes during the seven-day period.
Now, it is changing the timeframe of which strikes will be removed, cutting it in half. The strikes will be removed every 3.5 days, as long as no strikes are received during the time period.
The change was found by Not a Tesla App, which noticed the adjustment in the Owner’s Manual for the 2025.32 Software Update.
The system undoubtedly helps improve safety as it helps keep drivers honest. However, there are definitely workarounds, which people are using and promoting for monetary gain, and you can find them on basically any online marketplace, including TikTok shop and Amazon:
🚨 Seeing more and more devices like this land on various online marketplaces including TikTok shop and Amazon
These devices are NOT to be used when operating Tesla Full Self-Driving and I’d love to see Tesla take action here.
These “creators” looking to make a quick buck are… pic.twitter.com/VnY25k2mPL
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) September 17, 2025
People are marketing the product as an FSD cheat device, which the cabin-facing camera will not be able to detect, allowing you to watch something on a phone or look through the windshield at the road.
The safeguards implemented by Tesla are designed to protect drivers from distractions and also protect the company itself from liability. People are still using Full Self-Driving as if it were a fully autonomous product, and it is not.
Tesla even says that the driver must pay attention and be ready to take over in any scenario:
“Yes. Autopilot is a driver assistance system that is intended to be used only with a fully attentive driver. It does not turn a Tesla into a fully autonomous vehicle.
Before enabling Autopilot, you must agree to “keep your hands on the steering wheel at all times” and to always “maintain control and responsibility for your vehicle.” Once engaged, Autopilot will also deliver an escalating series of visual and audio warnings, reminding you to place your hands on the wheel if insufficient torque is applied or your vehicle otherwise detects you may not be attentive enough to the road ahead. If you repeatedly ignore these warnings, you will be locked out from using Autopilot during that trip.
You can override any of Autopilot’s features at any time by steering or applying the accelerator at any time.”
It is good that Tesla is rewarding those who learn from their mistakes with this shorter timeframe to lose the strikes. It won’t be needed forever, though, as eventually, the company will solve autonomy. The question is: when?
Elon Musk
Elon Musk teases the capabilities of the Tesla Roadster once again

Elon Musk has once again teased the capabilities of the Tesla Roadster, fueling the anticipation that many have for the vehicle, despite it still having no public production or delivery date.
The Roadster is among the most anticipated vehicles in the automotive sector currently, and as Tesla has teased its capabilities, from a lightning-fast 1.1-second 0-60 MPH acceleration to potential hovering with cold-gas thrusters, people are eager to see it.
Although the design seemed to be finalized, there was still more work to be done. Earlier this year, as Tesla was showcasing some of the Roadster’s capabilities to Musk, he stated that it was capable of even more.
This pushed back its production date even further, much to the chagrin of those who have been waiting years for it.
Musk continues to tease us all, and as we sit here waiting hopelessly for it to be revealed, he said today that it is “something special beyond a car.”
The new Roadster is something special beyond a car
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 17, 2025
Musk’s words were in response to a video posted by Tesla China, showing the Roadster in a new promotional video created by a fan.
The Roadster was planned to be released in 2020, but here we are in 2025, and there is still no sign of the vehicle entering production. However, Tesla did say earlier this year that it would host a demo event for the Roadster, where the company would showcase its capabilities.
Lars Moravy said earlier this year:
“Roadster is definitely in development. We did talk about it last Sunday night. We are gearing up for a super cool demo. It’s going to be mind-blowing; We showed Elon some cool demos last week of the tech we’ve been working on, and he got a little excited.”
Tesla exec gives big update on Roadster, confirming recent rumor
The delays have been attributed to “radically increased design goals” for the vehicle, which have, without a doubt, improved its capabilities, but at the same time, we just want to know if it’s ever going to come.
Tesla can always make it “better,” but at what point do you say, “Okay, it’s time to show this thing off.” They could always build another, even more capable supercar in the next ten years.
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