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Tesla Removes 85 kWh Battery Option in Canada, Is it a Sign?
Tesla will no longer offer the 85 kWh battery to Model S customers in Canada. It also has deleted the single motor rear wheel drive version of the car for people who live north of the border. The company has given no explanation for the changes.
The Model S can no longer be ordered with the 85 kWh battery according to the recent spot in the CanadianTesla Design Studio.
Updated Feb. 8, 2016: Tesla officially discontinues Model S 85 kWh battery option worldwide
The move has left many across the Tesla social groups wondering why the change only applies in Canada? Is this a signal that similar changes are about to happen in other countries as well? Elon has always maintained that an increase in battery capacity by 5% a year should be expected. Perhaps a 95kWh or even a 100 kWh battery may be in the offing for later this year.
The 85 kWh battery has been the largest size battery offering since Tesla first opened up Model S for orders in 2012. In 2013, Tesla discontinued a 40 kWh version of the battery due to lack of demand, leaving both a 60 kWh version and the 85 kWh pack as available options.
More recently, Tesla has discontinued the 60 kWh battery and replaced it with a 70 kWh version capable of 230 miles (385 km) of range, as well as introduced the 90 kWh battery capable of over 270+ miles, during the time when the company announced its Ludicrous mode option.
Tesla made the 70D variant of the Model S the entry level model, but then backtracked and reinstated a rear wheel drive version for $5,000 less. The company seems to be experimenting with different equipment combinations, trying to find the perfect alignment of affordability, performance, supply, and profits. By having the 70 kWh and 90 kWh as the only available battery options, Tesla is leaving a significant step in price between the battery configurations perhaps as a strategic move to cater to two different types of audiences – those that want a lower cost barrier of entry while having 200+ miles of range, and those that seek longer range with higher performance in mind.
It’s also possible that having a larger battery at the top of the range will allow Tesla to increase the size of the entry level battery as well. Perhaps a Model S 75D is lurking around the corner? A slightly larger battery would benefit the current entry level 70D Model X by giving it some extra range, something the super heavyweight electric crossover could leverage especially when put to use.
The configuration change in Canada may also presage a move to make dual motors standard across the range. Doing so would help streamline production and improve the number of cars Tesla can build each week.
Elon has said the company makes up to 20 running changes to its cars every month. Most of them are not publicized. Perhaps Tesla wants to avoid a situation like Chevrolet and Nissan found themselves in last year when they each announced significantly improved versions of the Volt and LEAF were coming soon. Sales of existing cars plummeted as a result. By simply implementing changes it deems necessary without fanfare, Tesla avoids falling into the same trap.
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Samsung nears Tesla AI chip ramp with early approval at TX factory
This marks a key step towards the tech giant’s production of Tesla’s next-generation AI5 chips in the United States.
Samsung has received temporary approval to begin limited operations at its semiconductor plant in Taylor, Texas.
This marks a key step towards the tech giant’s production of Tesla’s next-generation AI5 chips in the United States.
Samsung clears early operations hurdle
As noted in a report from Korea JoongAng Daily, Samsung Electronics has secured temporary certificates of occupancy (TCOs) for a portion of its semiconductor facility in Taylor. This should allow the facility to start operations ahead of full completion later this year.
City officials confirmed that approximately 88,000 square feet of Samsung’s Fab 1 building has received temporary approval, with additional areas expected to follow. The overall timeline for permitting the remaining sections has not yet been finalized.
Samsung’s Taylor facility is expected to manufacture Tesla’s AI5 chips once mass production begins in the second half of the year. The facility is also expected to produce Tesla’s upcoming AI6 chips.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently stated that the design for AI5 is nearly complete, and the development of AI6 is already underway. Musk has previously outlined an aggressive roadmap targeting nine-month design cycles for successive generations of its AI chips.
Samsung’s U.S. expansion
Construction at the Taylor site remains on schedule. Reports indicate Samsung plans to begin testing extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography equipment next month, a critical step for producing advanced 2-nanometer semiconductors.
Samsung is expected to complete 6 million square feet of floor space at the site by the end of this year, with an additional 1 million square feet planned by 2028. The full campus spans more than 1,200 acres.
Beyond Tesla, Samsung Foundry is also pursuing additional U.S. customers as demand for AI and high-performance computing chips accelerates. Company executives have stated that Samsung is looking to achieve more than 130% growth in 2-nanometer chip orders this year.
One of Samsung’s biggest rivals, TSMC, is also looking to expand its footprint in the United States, with reports suggesting that the company is considering expanding its Arizona facility to as many as 11 total plants. TSMC is also expected to produce Tesla’s AI5 chips.
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Anti-Tesla union leader ditches X, urges use of Threads instead
Tesla Sweden and IF Metall have been engaged in a bitter dispute for over two years now.
Marie Nilsson, chair of Sweden’s IF Metall union and a prominent critic of Tesla, has left X and is urging audiences to follow the union on Meta’s Threads instead.
Tesla Sweden and IF Metall have been engaged in a bitter dispute for over two years now.
Anti-Tesla union leader exits X
In a comment to Dagens Arbete (DA), Nilsson noted that her exit from X is not formally tied to IF Metall’s long-running labor dispute with Tesla Sweden. Still, she stated that her departure is affected by changes to the platform under Elon Musk’s leadership.
“We have stayed because many journalists pick up news there. But as more and more people have left X, we have felt that the standard has now been reached on that platform,” she said.
Jesper Pettersson, press officer at IF Metall, highlighted that the union’s departure from X is only indirectly linked to Tesla Sweden and Elon Musk. “Indirectly it does, since there is a lot of evidence that his ownership has caused the change in the platform to be so significant.
“We have nevertheless assessed that the platform had value for reaching journalists, politicians and other opinion leaders. But it is a microscopic proportion of the public and our members who are there, and now that value has decreased,” Petterson added.
IF Metall sees Threads as an X alternative
After leaving X, IF Metall has begun using Threads, Meta’s alternative to the social media platform. The union described the move as experimental, noting that it is still evaluating how effective the platform will be for outreach and visibility.
Pettersson acknowledged that Meta also does not operate under Sweden’s collective bargaining model, but said the union sees little alternative if it wants to remain visible online.
“In a perfect world, all large international companies would be supporters of the Swedish model when they come here. But unfortunately, the reality is not like that. If we are to be visible at all in this social media world, we have to play by the rules of the game. The alternative would be to become completely invisible, and that would not benefit our members,” he said.
Despite many recent rumors and various reports, Elon Musk confirmed today that SpaceX is not developing a phone based on Starlink, not once, but twice.
Today’s report from Reuters cited people familiar with the matter and stated internal discussions have seen SpaceX executives mulling the idea of building a mobile device that would connect directly to the Starlink satellite constellation.
Musk did state in late January that SpaceX developing a phone was “not out of the question at some point.” However, He also said it would have to be a major difference from current phones, and would be optimized “purely for running max performance/watt neural nets.”
Not out of the question at some point. It would be a very different device than current phones. Optimized purely for running max performance/watt neural nets.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 30, 2026
While Musk said it was not out of the question “at some point,” that does not mean it is currently a project SpaceX is working on. The CEO reaffirmed this point twice on X this afternoon.
Musk said, “Reuters lies relentlessly,” in one post. In the next, he explicitly stated, “We are not developing a phone.”
Reuters lies relentlessly
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 5, 2026
We are not developing a phone
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 5, 2026
Musk has basically always maintained that SpaceX has too many things going on, denying that a phone would be in the realm of upcoming projects. There are too many things in the works for Musk’s space exploration company, most notably the recent merger with xAI.
SpaceX officially acquires xAI, merging rockets with AI expertise
A Starlink phone would be an excellent idea, especially considering that SpaceX operates 9,500 satellites, serving over 9 million users worldwide. 650 of those satellites are dedicated to the company’s direct-to-device initiative, which provides cellular coverage on a global scale.
Nevertheless, there is the potential that the Starlink phone eventually become a project SpaceX works on. However, it is not currently in the scope of what the company needs to develop, so things are more focused on that as of right now.
Samsung nears Tesla AI chip ramp with early approval at TX factory
Anti-Tesla union leader ditches X, urges use of Threads instead
