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Tesla’s ‘Early Access Program’ will reportedly be extended to Full Self-Driving buyers

[Credit: LivingTesla/YouTube]

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It appears that Tesla’s Early Access Program will be automatically extended to buyers who purchased Full Self-Driving (FSD) prior to the end of February 2019, at least according to an email from the all-electric car maker to a Model 3 owner shared via Twitter.

Early purchase of FSD had previously been understood as a qualifier for the Early Access Program, but confusion over access to the program has been widespread thanks to seemingly sporadic rollouts of beta features combined with very little communication from Tesla. A March 1, 2019 announcement posted by Tesla previously confirmed this arrangement; however, that post has since been removed from Tesla’s official news/blog page.

It read as follows:“Customers who previously purchased Full Self-Driving will receive an invitation to Tesla’s Early Access Program (EAP). EAP members are invited to experience and provide feedback on new features and functionality before they are rolled out to other customers.”A Tesla owner and enthusiast well known in the community under the handle Earl of Frunkpuppy (@28delayslater/Twitter) recently received an email from Tesla which appears to clarify the matter:

“In regards to the Early Access program, we are super excited to offer the Early Access Program to our customers who had purchased FSD prior to the end of February! At this time, we are currently working on the process and timeline for this exciting feature. Once we have the appropriate information, we will communicate to our customer base! Invitations will be sent out automatically to all qualifying owners. The good news is that there are no extra steps needed on your part to receive the invitation. Thank you again for your email.”

https://twitter.com/28delayslater/status/1115993910977925120

Tesla’s Early Access Program provides beta software features for testing by an exclusive pool of owners. Invitations to join the program have been received and accepted by many in the owner community, but details are sparse on how the program is carried out. Given the secrecy mandated by Tesla for its Early Access users, this is not surprising.

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What’s known generally about the program, as shared online by a few owners actively involved, is that participants receive an email prior to a beta release requiring acceptance of the software before being the update is sent over the air. At that time, the owner is also reminded of the Early Access Program’s strict rules for participation: No sharing information online and no 3rd party software reporting apps (TeslaFi, notably). Whether or not invitees are even supposed to acknowledge receiving an invite is even debated, with references being made to the first rule of “Fight Club”.

One additional thing worth noting about Tesla’s Early Access Program is that it’s not a priority system, meaning enrollment isn’t tied to receiving mass software updates before other non-participants. The program is strictly for software testing, and some features included in beta releases may never be released in the final system-wide update. The role of the participant is to provide helpful feedback to Tesla so that improvements can be made, not simply to be first in line for new features, although that is a huge benefit to weigh with the risks of using imperfect software that controls your vehicle. As the all-electric car maker moves closer towards launching its Full Self-Driving program, feedback from participants of the Early Access Program will become more essential.

Tesla has begun rolling out the final FSD computer (Hardware 3/HW3) in new production vehicles, and CEO Elon Musk recently confirmed that the company’s mobile service teams would be able to install the upgrade instead of the company’s service centers. Musk detailed the performance difference between HW2.5 and HW3 via Twitter: “The Tesla Full Self-Driving Computer now in production is at about 5% compute load for these [Navigate on Autopilot] tasks or 10% with full fail-over redundancy,” he wrote, later mentioning that the HW2.5 load was 80% with the system’s current features.

The company will be hosting an Autonomy Investor Day on April 22nd where the roadmap for Tesla’s Full Self-Driving features will be discussed and key updates will be provided. Investors will also be given test rides demonstrating FSD and Autopilot improvements, including never-before-seen features. The event will be webcast, though additional details are yet to be announced.

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Accidental computer geek, fascinated by most history and the multiplanetary future on its way. Quite keen on the democratization of space. | It's pronounced day-sha, but I answer to almost any variation thereof.

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SpaceX produces its 10 millionth Starlink kit

The first 5 million Starlink kits took nearly four years to build.

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Credit: Starlink/X

SpaceX has achieved a major milestone, producing its 10 millionth Starlink kit. The accomplishment was celebrated across the company’s Hawthorne, California, and Bastrop, Texas, facilities. 

The milestone was shared in social media by Sujay Soman, Senior Facilities Engineer, in a LinkedIn post, which has since been deleted. 

Starlink Production Ramp

Soman noted in his LinkedIn post that the first 5 million Starlink kits took nearly four years to build, but the next 5 million kits were completed in just 11 months. This underscores SpaceX’s intense efforts to ramp up the satellite internet system’s production, and it reflects the private space company’s manufacturing prowess.

The SpaceX Senior Facilities Engineer shared a couple of photos of the Machine Maintenance and Facilities team in Bastrop to commemorate the event.

“Today, Starlink Product teams across our Hawthorne and Bastrop sites produced the 10th Million Starlink Kit! It took almost 4 years to build our first 5 million kits, and we doubled that in about 11 months. Monumental accomplishment!” Soman wrote in his post.

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Credit: Sujay Soman/LinkedIn

World-Changing Technology 

The Starlink kits, featuring dish hardware and supporting equipment, enable users to connect to the company’s growing constellation of low Earth orbit satellites. With over 6,000 satellites launched to date, Starlink now provides fast and reliable internet connectivity to over 6 million customers worldwide. This was a significant increase from the 5 million customers that the company reported in February 2025.

SpaceX has not detailed its next production targets, but the production of Starlink’s 10 millionth kit milestone signals the company’s readiness to scale further. Being an Elon Musk-led company, SpaceX is arguably the best in the business when it comes to efficient and cost-effective manufacturing. It would then be unsurprising if SpaceX announces another Starlink production milestone soon.

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Tesla retires yoke steering wheel in base Model S and X

Tesla’s controversial steering yoke is now exclusive to the Model S and Model X Plaid.

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Credit: @dkrasniy/X

Tesla has closed a chapter in the saga of the Model S and Model X’s controversial steering yoke. Following the announcement of the new iterations of the flagship vehicles, Tesla promptly removed the steering option for the vehicles’ base variants.

This means that if drivers wish to experience the Model S or Model X with a yoke, they would have to go Plaid.

The new Model S and Model X

The refresh of the Model S and Model X were quite minor, with the two vehicles featuring a new front camera, a new color, and a handful of other small changes like new exterior styling for the Model S Plaid. Tesla also noted on its website that the two vehicles now have a much smoother and quieter ride.

The changes were quite polarizing, with some appreciating the subtle improvements made to the two flagship cars and others arguing that Tesla should have done more. Others, however, noted that the level of improvements implemented on the Model S and Model X would already be considered major refresh for a tech company like Apple.

No More Yoke Unless Plaid

When Tesla refreshed the Model S and Model X in 2021, the vehicles were released with a steering yoke as standard. The yoke was controversial, with critics stating that it was unsafe and fans stating that it made driving the Model S and Model X fun. Tesla later introduced a round steering wheel option for the Model S and Model X, which later became standard on the two flagship vehicles.

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This remains true today, with the most recent versions of the Model S and Model X still being released with a round steering wheel as standard. Those who wish to experience the Model S and Model X Plaid as envisioned by the company and its CEO, Elon Musk, however, might find it a good idea to spend the extra $1,000 for the vehicles’ yoke steering wheel.

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Tesla blacklisted by Swedish pension fund AP7 as it sells entire stake

A Swedish pension fund is offloading its Tesla holdings for good.

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tesla
(Credit: Tesla)

Tesla shares have been blacklisted by the Swedish pension fund AP7, who said earlier today that it has “verified violations of labor rights in the United States” by the automaker.

The fund ended up selling its entire stake, which was worth around $1.36 billion when it liquidated its holdings in late May. Reuters first reported on AP7’s move.

Other pension and retirement funds have relinquished some of their Tesla holdings due to CEO Elon Musk’s involvement in politics, among other reasons, and although the company’s stock has been a great contributor to growth for many funds over the past decade, these managers are not willing to see past the CEO’s right to free speech.

However, AP7 says the move is related not to Musk’s involvement in government nor his political stances. Instead, the fund said it verified several labor rights violations in the U.S.:

“AP7 has decided to blacklist Tesla due to verified violations of labor rights in the United States. Despite several years of dialogue with Tesla, including shareholder proposals in collaboration with other investors, the company has not taken sufficient measures to address the issues.”

Tesla made up about 1 percent of the AP7 Equity Fund, according to a spokesperson. This equated to roughly 13 billion crowns, but the fund’s total assets were about 1,181 billion crowns at the end of May when the Tesla stake was sold off.

Tesla has had its share of labor lawsuits over the past few years, just as any large company deals with at some point or another. There have been claims of restrictions against labor union supporters, including one that Tesla was favored by judges, as they did not want pro-union clothing in the factory. Tesla argued that loose-fitting clothing presented a safety hazard, and the courts agreed.

tesla employee

(Photo: Tesla)

There have also been claims of racism at the Fremont Factory by a former elevator contractor named Owen Diaz. He was awarded a substantial sum of $137m. However, U.S. District Judge William Orrick ruled the $137 million award was excessive, reducing it to $15 million. Diaz rejected this sum.

Another jury awarded Diaz $3.2 million. Diaz’s legal team said this payout was inadequate. He and Tesla ultimately settled for an undisclosed amount.

AP7 did not list any of the current labor violations that it cited as its reason for

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