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Battery expert Jeff Dahn inside the frunk of a red Model S Battery expert Jeff Dahn inside the frunk of a red Model S

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Tesla renews contract with Jeff Dahn’s battery team at Dalhousie University

Battery expert Jeff Dahn inside the frunk of a red Model S [Source: dal.ca]

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Tesla has renewed its contract with Jeff Dahn and Dalhousie University. The partnership between Tesla and the Canadian University, which started on June 8th, 2016, held the intention of developing longer-lasting, lower-cost EV batteries.

For years, Tesla has been working with Dahn’s research team to develop new strategies for EV battery development and longevity. One of the most notable was an electrolyte solvent, which Dahn’s team submitted a patent for on behalf of Tesla in the company’s search for a 1 million mile-capable battery cell.

It appears that the partnership has been extended, based on a new announcement from the school.

On Monday, January 18th, Dalhousie University published a press release that announced the addition of two new scientists who will act as the school’s newest research chairs in the development of electric vehicle batteries and technology. Dr. Chongyin Yang and Dr. Michael Metzger, two established scientsts in the battery industry, will join Dalhousie’s exclusive partnership with Tesla to develop world-class electric vehicle batteries.

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Dalhousie University detailed the addition of Dr. Yang and Dr. Metzger:

“Dr. Chongyin Yang is the Tesla Canada Research Chair and has been working on materials and devices for energy conversion and storage for 12 years. Prior to coming to Dalhousie University, Dr. Yang was an assistant research scientist in the Department of Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Maryland, where he led research projects on material and device development for high energy aqueous lithium-ion batteries.

Dr. Michael Metzger is the Herzberg-Dahn Chair and received a diploma from the Technical University of Munich (TUM), the top-ranked university in Germany and the European Union. While completing his graduate studies, Dr. Metzger developed innovative methods to study the lifetime and aging of lithium-ion batteries in close collaboration with BASF and BMW. He has also worked in the Silicon Valley tech industry as a research engineer for Robert Bosch, the largest supplier for the automotive industry.”

Dahn commented on the addition of both of the new Doctors, stating that he was extremely pleased with the announcement and looks forward to the contributions they will make. “Our goal is to continue to help Tesla develop better advanced batteries for its products. Dr. Yang and Dr. Metzger bring new ideas, new methods, and new expertise as well as a full commitment to electric transportation and renewable energy to the partnership,” Dahn said.

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Tesla battery researcher Jeff Dahn’s tests hint at li-ion cells breaking the 2M-mile barrier

Additionally, Dalhousie announced that their partnership with Tesla has been extended until at least 2026.

“The initial research agreement between Dalhousie University and Tesla was signed in June 2015. This collaboration is a first between the leading American electric vehicle company and a Canadian university. Work officially began with Tesla in 2016, and the partnership has been renewed until at least 2026.”

Tesla also commented on Yang and Metzger’s new roles, which will help the company in their pursuit of longer lasting and more powerful EV battery cells. ”

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We are thrilled to be extending and expanding our work with Dalhousie and Jeff Dahn with the addition of Chongyin and Michael. We look forward to their important contributions in battery technology to help achieve our mission,” the automaker said.

H/t: Electrek

Joey has been a journalist covering electric mobility at TESLARATI since August 2019. In his spare time, Joey is playing golf, watching MMA, or cheering on any of his favorite sports teams, including the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles, Miami Heat, Washington Capitals, and Penn State Nittany Lions. You can get in touch with joey at joey@teslarati.com. He is also on X @KlenderJoey. If you're looking for great Tesla accessories, check out shop.teslarati.com

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Tesla wins FCC approval for wireless Cybercab charging system

The decision grants Tesla a waiver that allows the Cybercab’s wireless charging system to be installed on fixed outdoor equipment.

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Credit: Tesla AI/X

Tesla has received approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to use Ultra-Wideband (UWB) radio technology in its wireless EV charging system. 

The decision grants Tesla a waiver that allows the Cybercab’s wireless charging system to be installed on fixed outdoor equipment. This effectively clears a regulatory hurdle for the company’s planned wireless charging pad for the autonomous two-seater.

Tesla’s wireless charging system is described as follows in the document: “The Tesla positioning system is an impulse UWB radio system that enables peer-to-peer communications between a UWB transceiver installed on an electric vehicle (EV) and a second UWB transceiver installed on a ground-level pad, which could be located outdoors, to achieve optimal positioning for the EV to charge wirelessly.”

The company explained that Bluetooth is first used to locate the charging pad. “Prior to the UWB operation, the vehicular system uses Bluetooth technology for the vehicle to discover the location of the ground pad and engage in data exchange activities (which is not subject to the waiver).”

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Once the vehicle approaches the pad, the UWB system briefly activates. “When the vehicle approaches the ground pad, the UWB transceivers will operate to track the position of the vehicle to determine when the optimal position has been achieved over the pad before enabling wireless power charging.”

Tesla also emphasized that “the UWB signals occur only briefly when the vehicle approaches the ground pad; and mostly at ground level between the vehicle and the pad,” and that the signals are “significantly attenuated by the body of the vehicle positioned over the pad.”

As noted by Tesla watcher Sawyer Merritt, the FCC ultimately granted Tesla’s proposal since the Cybercab’s wireless charging system’s signal is very low power, it only turns on briefly while parking, it works only at very short range, and it won’t interfere with other systems.

While the approval clears the way for Tesla’s wireless charging plans, the Cybercab does not appear to depend solely on the new system.

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Cybercab prototypes have frequently been spotted charging at standard Tesla Superchargers across the United States. This suggests the vehicle can easily operate within Tesla’s existing charging network even as the wireless system is developed and deployed. With this in mind, it would not be surprising if the first batches of the Cybercab that are deployed and delivered to consumers end up being charged by regular Superchargers.

DA-26-168A1 by Simon Alvarez

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Tesla posts updated FSD safety stats as owners surpass 8 billion miles

Tesla shared the milestone as adoption of the system accelerates across several markets.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has posted updated safety stats for Full Self-Driving Supervised. The results were shared by the electric vehicle maker as FSD Supervised users passed more than 8 billion cumulative miles. 

Tesla shared the milestone in a post on its official X account.

“Tesla owners have now driven >8 billion miles on FSD Supervised,” the company wrote in its post on X. Tesla also included a graphic showing FSD Supervised’s miles driven before a collision, which far exceeds that of the United States average. 

The growth curve of FSD Supervised’s cumulative miles over the past five years has been notable. As noted in data shared by Tesla watcher Sawyer Merritt, annual FSD (Supervised) miles have increased from roughly 6 million in 2021 to 80 million in 2022, 670 million in 2023, 2.25 billion in 2024, and 4.25 billion in 2025. In just the first 50 days of 2026, Tesla owners logged another 1 billion miles.

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At the current pace, the fleet is trending towards hitting about 10 billion FSD Supervised miles this year. The increase has been driven by Tesla’s growing vehicle fleet, periodic free trials, and expanding Robotaxi operations, among others.

Tesla also recently updated the safety data for FSD Supervised on its website, covering North America across all road types over the latest 12-month period.

As per Tesla’s figures, vehicles operating with FSD Supervised engaged recorded one major collision every 5,300,676 miles. In comparison, Teslas driven manually with Active Safety systems recorded one major collision every 2,175,763 miles, while Teslas driven manually without Active Safety recorded one major collision every 855,132 miles. The U.S. average during the same period was one major collision every 660,164 miles.

During the measured period, Tesla reported 830 total major collisions with FSD (Supervised) engaged, compared to 16,131 collisions for Teslas driven manually with Active Safety and 250 collisions for Teslas driven manually without Active Safety. Total miles logged exceeded 4.39 billion miles for FSD (Supervised) during the same timeframe.

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The Boring Company’s Music City Loop gains unanimous approval

After eight months of negotiations, MNAA board members voted unanimously on Feb. 18 to move forward with the project.

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(Credit: The Boring Company)

The Metro Nashville Airport Authority (MNAA) has approved a 40-year agreement with Elon Musk’s The Boring Company to build the Music City Loop, a tunnel system linking Nashville International Airport to downtown. 

After eight months of negotiations, MNAA board members voted unanimously on Feb. 18 to move forward with the project. Under the terms, The Boring Company will pay the airport authority an annual $300,000 licensing fee for the use of roughly 933,000 square feet of airport property, with a 3% annual increase.

Over 40 years, that totals to approximately $34 million, with two optional five-year extensions that could extend the term to 50 years, as per a report from The Tennesean.

The Boring Company celebrated the Music City Loop’s approval in a post on its official X account. “The Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority has unanimously (7-0) approved a Music City Loop connection/station. Thanks so much to @Fly_Nashville for the great partnership,” the tunneling startup wrote in its post. 

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Once operational, the Music City Loop is expected to generate a $5 fee per airport pickup and drop-off, similar to rideshare charges. Airport officials estimate more than $300 million in operational revenue over the agreement’s duration, though this projection is deemed conservative.

“This is a significant benefit to the airport authority because we’re receiving a new way for our passengers to arrive downtown at zero capital investment from us. We don’t have to fund the operations and maintenance of that. TBC, The Boring Co., will do that for us,” MNAA President and CEO Doug Kreulen said. 

The project has drawn both backing and criticism. Business leaders cited economic benefits and improved mobility between downtown and the airport. “Hospitality isn’t just an amenity. It’s an economic engine,” Strategic Hospitality’s Max Goldberg said.

Opponents, including state lawmakers, raised questions about environmental impacts, worker safety, and long-term risks. Sen. Heidi Campbell said, “Safety depends on rules applied evenly without exception… You’re not just evaluating a tunnel. You’re evaluating a risk, structural risk, legal risk, reputational risk and financial risk.”

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