Tesla has had quite a phenomenal year in 2022. As the year comes to a close and we move into 2023, it’s great to step back and take a look at Tesla’s progress. Tesla shared a thread on Twitter thanking its supporters, employees, and customers for helping to make 2022 a good year for EVs.
Although Tesla shared its long list, we are highlighting a few of those key moments for Tesla.
2022 was a huge year for EVs.
Thank you to Tesla owners, supporters & employees for helping us accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy! ⚡️🚘🔋☀️❤️
— Tesla (@Tesla) December 29, 2022
Tesla started the new year by moving full speed ahead after delivering almost one million vehicles in 2021. In total last year, Tesla delivered 936,172 electric vehicles.
In March, Elon Musk danced as he and Tesla handed over the first made-in-Germany vehicles produced at the newly opened Giga Berlin, which opened in the fall of 2021. At this event, Elon Musk gave a passionate speech about how Giga Berlin would be the gemstone for Europe and the world. He said:
“I’m incredibly excited to hand over the first production cars from our incredible team here at Giga Berlin Brandenburg. This is a great day for the factory, and I just like to thank everyone who helped. Thank you, thank you very much. It really made a big difference.”
“And to the community, Tesla will make sure that this is a gem — a gemstone for the area, for Germany, for Europe, and for the world.”
“Every vehicle that we make will be another step in the direction of a sustainable energy future. We will also make battery storage. So this is going to be very important for storing renewable energy — so, for solar and wind. Because it’s intermittent, it needs to be stored, but we’re extremely confident that the world will transition to a sustainable energy future with the combination of solar, plus battery storage, and electric vehicles.”
“If you have those three legs of the stool, then you can create a sustainable energy future for as long as the sun shines and the wind blows.”
“I want to be clear that sometimes people are sad about the future or they think, well, ‘will we solve sustainable energy?’ and ‘maybe the climate issue is too late’ or something like that. I really want to assure everyone that you can have hope in the future.”
“You should have hope in the future. This problem will be solved. And this factory is a major step in that direction. And so, believe in the future.”
In the following month, Tesla held its grand opening Cyber Rodeo event at Giga Texas. Event goers were invited to tour the factory and see how Tesla manufactured its made-in-Texas Model Y vehicles. I attended and spot-interviewed one of Tesla’s employees, Kyle Wozniak. Tesla displayed its Tesla Semi, Cybertruck, and the next-gen Roadster.
Kyle Wozniak say hi pic.twitter.com/0nHKl0IdMw
— Johnna (@JohnnaCrider1) April 7, 2022
In June, Tesla’s US Energy Markets Policy Lead, Arushi Sharma Frank, gave public comments to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which paved the way for Tesla owners to participate in virtual power plants (VPPs) later this year. On December 15, Tesla officially launched its Tesla Electric for Tesla as a result of the tireless efforts of Frank and her team.
Tesla opened its Megafactory in Lathrop, California, this year also. It broke ground in August, and provided a sneak peek into the Megafactory in October as it ramped up hiring. Tesla held its second AI Day in September and unveiled a working prototype of the Optimus Bot and shared a video of the bot doing work around the office. “Our goal is to make a useful humanoid robot as soon as possible,” Elon Musk said.
In December, Tesla delivered its first Semi to PepsiCo and FritoLay, and following the deliveries, FritoLay showcased one of the trucks in the Modesto Christmas parade. Pepsi announced plans to deploy 100 of the Tesla Semis it purchased in 2023, and the vehicles will deliver products to customers such as Walmart and Kroger.
Although these are not all of Tesla’s achievements for 2022, the highlights show just how much progress it’s made toward accelerating the world’s transition to sustainable energy.
Disclosure: Johnna is a $TSLA shareholder and believes in Tesla’s mission.
Your feedback is welcome. If you have any comments or concerns or see a typo, you can email me at johnna@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter at @JohnnaCrider1.
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Tesla rolled out Full Self-Driving (Supervised) v14.3.5 yesterday, and about fifty miles of driving on the new version has given me enough time to highlight what seems to be strong about the release and what is not.
Additionally, Tesla has added a few new features with this specific update, which we’ll highlight as well.
Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.3.5 Performance
The new update is business as usual. Things seem to be running completely normal and necessary, but there are a few things that we’ve seemed to pick up on based on our own experience with v14.3.5, as well as what other users are seeing.
Initially, it seems to be more aware of its surroundings, making moves that are incredibly courteous to other drives and operating just a tad more reserved than what the suite might have done previously.
We had two instances where it showed this, the first being FSD needing to pass a Flagger Force vehicle that was placing down signage for the day. Their work truck was right at the front corner of a right-hand turn; typically where most cars travel when they take that turn.
FSD v14.3.5 recognized this, slowed down, and took the turn wide with no issues:
🚨 Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.3.5 takes a wide turn as flagger crews set up signage for the day https://t.co/3v0PL9qhlI pic.twitter.com/i4CKqxE16c
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 13, 2026
Additionally, v14.3.5 backed up for a semi truck that was making a wide turn onto a road my car was on. This is not new, but it seemed to be backing up for courtesy; it didn’t seem completely necessary, but it might have put some peace of mind in the truck driver’s head:
🚨 Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.3.5 backs up for an oncoming tractor trailer taking a wide turn https://t.co/0WuAqNMpRR pic.twitter.com/s6yZGVm5Te
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 13, 2026
X user Mike P, also a Pennsylvania native like myself, shared three clips of his Tesla running v14.3.5 performing similar maneuvers. He said:
“FSD turns right into a small alley that only fits one car at a time, sees oncoming car, reverses out of alley to make space, realizes oncoming car is actually parking, re-enters alley.”
Check it out here:
Rapidfire epic moments on FSD V14.3.5
1) FSD turns right into a small alley that only fits one car at a time, sees oncoming car, reverses out of alley to make space, realizes oncoming car is actually parking, re-enters alley.
2) Insane speed to vehicle cues. As FSD approaches… pic.twitter.com/bSnySSlFHR
— Mike P (@mikepat711) July 13, 2026
It seems like Speed Profiles are still in need of some tweaking; I am adjusting what Speed Profile I’m in frequently, constantly changing it to get it to travel at the correct speed. This was an issue for me on v14.3.4. It seems like they’re just a little inconsistent.
Terrible Parking
Parking attempts on v14.3.5 were not good. There are quite a few people who have said this:
Yeah it seems like FSD v14.3.5 is having some issues with parking early on https://t.co/Bw5ULfVmDq pic.twitter.com/RHdpjOEpIo
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 13, 2026
David Moss, the Tesla owner who has taken multiple coast-to-coast drives without any interventions, also has had some issues with parking early on with v14.3.5:
Horrible first impression v14.3.5 on my 2025 Tesla Model 3 LR RWD Premium 😭
3 terrible parking jobs in 23 min including parking on a ramp in a business park & parking perpendicular out in the road on street only parking situation.
Wish I had a better drive but I still believe… pic.twitter.com/TtyhRHAFG7
— David Moss (@DavidMoss) July 13, 2026
New Features
Tesla has added the ability to open Camera Preview at any time. Previously, it was only available in Park. Here’s what that feature looks like in action:
🚨 Here’s the new Camera Preview feature on FSD v14.3.5 pic.twitter.com/OodfZgDppy
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 13, 2026
Check back later this week for a longer review of what we’ve noticed on Full Self-Driving v14.3.5.
Lifestyle
Tesla makes the cut on California’s newest EV Rebate program
California just signed a $270 million EV rebate into law and it starts this summer.
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 168 into law on Monday, July 13, 2026, creating a $270 million EV rebate program that delivers money directly at the dealership rather than as a tax credit applied months later. The program, called MyFirstEV, is funded equally by California’s state budget and participating automakers, with each contributing $135.5 million to make the math work.
The timing is directly tied to the loss of federal support when the $7,500 federal EV tax credit ended, removing the most significant consumer incentive that had driven EV adoption in the U.S. California, which accounts for roughly one-third of all EVs sold nationally, moved to fill that gap with a state-level replacement.
The rebate structure is straightforward. First-time EV buyers can receive $3,500 off any new battery-electric vehicle with an MSRP up to $50,000. Used EVs priced at $25,000 or below qualify for a $1,750 rebate. The credit is applied at the point of sale, which removes the friction of the old federal system where buyers had to wait for tax season to see the benefit. The program goes live later this summer, with the California Air Resources Board expected to release full participation details next month.
California hits Tesla Cybercab and Robotaxi driverless cars with new law
For Tesla buyers, the implications are mixed. The Tesla Model 3 RWD at $42,490 and the Model 3 Long Range at $47,490 both fall under the $50,000 cap and would qualify for the full $3,500 rebate for first-time buyers. The Model Y, which starts at $44,990 after Tesla’s recent price adjustment, also qualifies. The Model X, Model S, and Cybertruck all exceed the cap and receive no benefit. As Teslarati has reported, the program also includes a carve-out exempting California-based automakers like Rivian and Lucid from the price cap entirely, a provision that puts Tesla at a disadvantage since it relocated its headquarters to Texas in 2021.
Other qualifying vehicles include the Chevrolet Equinox EV, Ford Mustang Mach-E, Hyundai Ioniq 5, Kia EV6, and Volkswagen ID.4.
The Tesla Semi is entering a new Pilot Program with Paper Transport, LLC (PTI), a Wisconsin-based transportation provider. The company will test the Semi’s Long Range configuration through “dedicated operations within the Chicago market.”
Chicago presents an interesting challenge for the Semi, as it will be a colder-weather climate that will test the Semi’s ability to operate in lower temperatures and in potentially large accumulations of snow. This is something Tesla has been testing with the Semi in Alaska and even in Northern California during the colder months, but Chicago will present a truly tough midwestern winter.
Tesla Semi spotted on journey home after winter performance testing
PTI says it is using the Semi to evaluate its strategy of reducing transportation emissions while maintaining performance, reliability, and cost efficiency. These are major arguments for the Semi being introduced into new fleets.
CEO of PTI Tyler Ellison said:
“PTI has been a leader in sustainable transportation solutions for over 15 years. We take a consultative approach to helping customers identify and implement the right transportation solution for their network. Our partnership with Tesla expands our portfolio alongside renewable natural gas and intermodal, giving customers more ways to reduce Scope 3 emissions without compromising service or economics.”
PTI is far from the first company to adopt the Semi within a fleet, as Tesla entered strategic agreements with PepsiCo. and its subsidiary Frito-Lay for a Pilot Program that extended throughout the California region.
Tesla has let companies like those utilize the Semi to determine whether it would be suitable for their operations. Additionally, Tesla gets valuable information regarding the Semi’s performance, knowing what to improve and what is ideal for companies that will utilize the all-electric truck for regional and nationwide logistics.
PTI plans to utilize the Long Range configuration, which is priced at $290,000 and features a range of approximately 500 miles, a three-motor powertrain, up to 800 kW of drive power, and consumption of just 1.7 kWh per mile.
Tesla Semi pricing revealed after company uncovers trim levels
VP of Maintenance at PTI, Bryan Ellen, added:
“We are excited to partner with Tesla, leveraging their ever-evolving technology. We are bullish in our estimation of the parallels available between our dedicated model and the efficiency of their fully electric Class 8 tractor. We anticipate a growing synergy between our businesses as we work to facilitate this sustainable solution for our customers.”
PTI has logged more than 87 million miles using sources like compressed and renewable gas, but now is looking to take it a step further with fully electric operations.
Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.3.5 Early Impressions: new features and early performance
Tesla makes the cut on California’s newest EV Rebate program
