News
Ex-Tesla employee accused of sabotage is crowdfunding $500k to support legal battle
Former Tesla employee and alleged saboteur Martin Tripp is taking the next step in his fight against the Elon Musk-led company. Just recently, Tripp started a crowdfunding campaign to raise half a million dollars for his legal fees and possible travel expenses as he prepares to face the electric car maker in court.
The GoFundMe page, which could be accessed here, went live earlier today, with the crowdfunding initiative gaining $5,180 worth of contributions as of writing. According to the former Tesla employee’s description of his campaign, he is asking the public for financial help as he battles the “machine” that is Tesla. Tripp states that the funds donated to him would be used to cover his legal fees and travel expenses if necessary. He also mentioned a countersuit against Tesla.
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- Former Tesla employee Martin Tripp’s GoFundMe campaign against the electric car maker.
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- Former Tesla employee Martin Tripp’s GoFundMe campaign against the electric car maker.
“Tesla and Elon are much more powerful than I could ever be. They have already intimidated me, belittled, and lied about me. They have defamed me, and continue to tell complete fabricated lies about me. They have gone so far as to lie about me threatening the Gigafactory as well. For all of this, I want Tesla, and even more specifically Elon to pay; not only for what they have done to me, but for what they are doing to the world,” Tripp wrote.
Martin Tripp’s legal battle against Tesla started earlier this month, after the Elon Musk-led company filed a lawsuit against the former employee for allegedly hacking into Tesla’s Manufacturing Operating System, sending confidential data to external sources, as well as misreporting to the media. Prior to filing the lawsuit, Elon Musk posted a company-wide email stating that a saboteur was within Tesla’s ranks. Musk’s email, as well as the lawsuit Tesla filed in a Nevada court, both noted that Tripp had admitted to his offenses after being questioned.
Tripp, for his part, later claimed that he was being targeted by the company for being a whistleblower. Tripp also claimed that he only leaked information to the media because he was alarmed at the company’s unsafe practices. Things later got more dramatic when Tesla noted that it had received a tip from one of Tripp’s friends warning that the former employee could be planning an attack at the Gigafactory. Later during the day, the Storey County Sheriff’s department issued a statement saying that there was no threat to Tesla’s NV facility.
Tesla’s lawsuit outlines five claims for relief against the former employee. These include violations described in the Defend Trade Secrets Act, the Nevada Uniform Trade Secrets Act, and the Nevada Computer Crimes Law. Tesla is also suing Tripp for Breach of Contract and Breach of Fiduciary Duty of Loyalty.
In the midst of the drama surrounding Tripp’s alleged sabotage, Tesla has posted a job listing for an Intrusion Detection Security Engineer, who will be tasked to ensure the safety of the company’s information. Tesla’s ideal candidate for the post is someone with experience in dealing with multiple security domains, intrusion detection, incident response, and malware analysis.
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.
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 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.
Below is Tesla’s Q4 and FY 2025 update letter.
TSLA-Q4-2025-Update by Simon Alvarez
Tesla has rolled out a new Supercharging safety feature in the United States, one that will answer concerns that some owners may have if they need to leave in a pinch.
It is also a suitable alternative for non-Tesla chargers, like third-party options that feature J1772 or CCS to NACS adapters.
The feature has been available in Europe for some time, but it is now rolling out to Model 3 and Model Y owners in the U.S.
With Software Update 2026.2.3, Tesla is launching the Unlatching Charge Cable function, which will now utilize the left rear door handle to release the charging cable from the port. The release notes state:
“Charging can now be stopped and the charge cable released by pulling and holding the rear left door handle for three seconds, provided the vehicle is unlocked, and a recognized key is nearby. This is especially useful when the charge cable doesn’t have an unlatch button. You can still release the cable using the vehicle touchscreen or the Tesla app.”
The feature was first spotted by Not a Tesla App.
This is an especially nice feature for those who commonly charge at third-party locations that utilize plugs that are not NACS, which is the Tesla standard.
For example, after plugging into a J1772 charger, you will still be required to unlock the port through the touchscreen, which is a minor inconvenience, but an inconvenience nonetheless.
Additionally, it could be viewed as a safety feature, especially if you’re in need of unlocking the charger from your car in a pinch. Simply holding open the handle on the rear driver’s door will now unhatch the port from the car, allowing you to pull it out and place it back in its housing.
This feature is currently only available on the Model 3 and Model Y, so Model S, Model X, and Cybertruck owners will have to wait for a different solution to this particular feature.
News
LG Energy Solution pursuing battery deal for Tesla Optimus, other humanoid robots: report
Optimus is expected to be one of Tesla’s most ambitious projects, with Elon Musk estimating that the humanoid robot could be the company’s most important product.
A recent report has suggested that LG Energy Solution is in discussions to supply batteries for Tesla’s Optimus humanoid robot.
Optimus is expected to be one of Tesla’s most ambitious projects, with Elon Musk estimating that the humanoid robot could be the company’s most important product.
Humanoid robot battery deals
LG Energy Solution shares jumped more than 11% on the 28th after a report from the Korea Economic Daily claimed that the company is pursuing battery supply and joint development agreements with several humanoid robot makers. These reportedly include Tesla, which is developing Optimus, as well as multiple Chinese robotics companies.
China is already home to several leading battery manufacturers, such as CATL and BYD, making the robot makers’ reported interest in LG Energy Solution quite interesting. Market participants interpreted the reported outreach as a signal that performance requirements for humanoid robots may favor battery chemistries developed by companies like LG.
LF Energy Solution vs rivals
According to the report, energy density is believed to be the primary reason humanoid robot developers are evaluating LG Energy Solution’s batteries. Unlike electric vehicles, humanoid robots have significantly less space available for battery packs while requiring substantial power to operate dozens of joint motors and onboard artificial intelligence processors.
LG Energy Solution’s ternary lithium batteries offer higher energy density compared with rivals’ lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, which are widely used by Chinese EV manufacturers. That advantage could prove critical for humanoid robots, where runtime, weight, and compact packaging are key design constraints.
Tesla (TSLA) Q4 and FY 2025 earnings results
Tesla rolls out new Supercharging safety feature in the U.S.
