A newly published patent from Tesla aims to bring the company’s idea for a one-million mile battery to life by using numerous electrolyte additives to increase the longevity and performance of its lithium-ion cells.
Tesla submitted the patent for “Dioxazolones and Nitrile Sulfites as Electrolyte Additives for Lithium-Ion Batteries” in August 2018. The patent is focused on improving the company’s rechargeable battery systems by adjusting the cells’ chemistry.
The patent claims that the addition of electrolyte additives, like lithium salt, can drastically improve the longevity and performance of battery systems when combined with a nonaqueous solution. A nonaqueous solution does not include water as the solvent, but rather another liquid.
The patent states:
Electrolyte additives have been shown to be operative and increase the lifetime and performance of Li-ion-based batteries… To further progress the adoption of electric vehicles and grid energy storage applications, it is desirable to develop lithium-ion cell chemistries that offer longer lifetimes at high temperatures and high cell voltages, without significantly increasing cost. The introduction of sacrificial electrolyte additives on the order of a few weight percent is a practical method to form protective solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) layers that limit electrolyte decomposition during cell storage and operation. In recent years, significant efforts have yielded a large number of such additives that may be used to improve cell performance for various applications. Examples are vinylene carbonate (VC), fluoroethylene carbonate (FEC), prop-l-ene-l,3-sultone (PES), ethylene sulfate (1, 3, 2-dioxathiolane-2, 2-dioxide, DTD), and lithium difluorophosphate (LFO)
Tesla recognizes that increased temperatures are detrimental to the lifespan of a battery system. In a previous patent, Tesla outlined a cooling system that could lead to longer-lasting energy storage systems. While heat is unavoidable as it is a key player in the use of lithium-ion batteries, especially when owners of Tesla vehicles are operating in performance modes, engineers realize the solvents and solutions could be a way to improve performance and lifespan without significantly increasing cost.
In a way, a good part of Tesla’s lead in the electric car industry lies in the company’s batteries, or more specifically, its cell chemistry. It is these factors that allow Tesla to maximize its vehicles’ battery packs, and a key reason why the Model S Long Range is able to travel 373 miles on one charge with a 100 kWh battery, and why the Porsche Taycan can only go 201 miles per charge on a pack that’s nearly as large. This patent confirms that Tesla continues to work on improving its batteries, allowing the company to maintain or even increase its lead in the EV segment.
At Tesla’s Autonomy Day in April 2019, Elon Musk promised owners that the company would soon power its vehicles for upwards of one million miles over the span of the vehicle’s life. While the claim seemed enthusiastic and somewhat unrealistic, critics soon realized Tesla may be closer to this than many think. In September, a team of researchers led by Jeff Dahn at Dalhousie University published a research paper that claimed they had developed a lithium-ion battery capable of one million miles of driving, or 20 years of use in an energy-storage system.
Tesla’s battery technology continues to advance thanks to developments from its engineers. It appears Tesla is aiming to create a line of products that will last decades. In terms of automobiles, it would be groundbreaking to have a car that could run for 20 or 30 years with relatively no annual maintenance. Convenience, performance, and longevity are three things Tesla’s products are aimed toward, and the patent for an advanced and more affordable battery system thanks to an electrolyte solvent could alleviate any concerns some owners may have.
Tesla Cybercab is using a unique strategy for picking up the correct rider, which is a crucial part of ride-hailing to ensure people end up in the right place and are charged the correct price.
Cybercab will utilize an RGB strip in its front light bar that will illuminate in a variety of different colors to mark itself.
This identifying mark will also appear in the Robotaxi app, giving riders in the same location a notable distinction in an effort to avoid any confusion regarding who should get in each vehicle.
🚨 Tesla is using different light bar colors to help riders understand which vehicle is theirs
Pretty cool strategy pic.twitter.com/eGMpEMeRpc
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 27, 2026
Other ride-hailing services use similar strategies: Lyft and Uber rides are recognizable through driver identity, vehicle type and color, as well as license plate. Waymo will display the rider’s initials on top of the vehicle, letting them know that the specific vehicle for them has arrived.
Tesla’s strategy is unique and interesting, but there are some flaws. Cybercab’s main purpose is aimed toward being an autonomous ride for all, including those who have disabilities like being blind or even color blind.
Tesla will likely have something in the pipeline for those who cannot see colors or have limited vision. There will definitely be multiple ways to identify which vehicle is the one that “you” specifically ordered.
Cybercab is set to start giving public rides next Thursday, September 3, in Austin, as it announced a dedicated event last week and invited many members of the Tesla community.
Additionally, members of the public will be invited as well. Tesla has been offering employee rides in Cybercab for nearly two months.
Tesla has said goodbye to one customization option for its vehicles: the wrap service it launched several years ago.
After launching an in-house wrap service in August 2020 for the first time in China. In the U.S., it launched in October 2023. Tesla continued to expand the program and adjust it with better pricing and fewer options for the Cybertruck.
By December 2023, it was giving owners of the Model 3, Model Y, and the Cybertruck the opportunity to give their vehicle a fresh look with a vinyl wrap.
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It was only available in five locations: Costa Mesa, Oceanside, Santa Clara, West Covina, all in California, and Seattle, Washington.
However, Tesla made some big adjustments to its shop, and the wrap service is officially gone:
Tesla has made a LOT of changes to its online shop recently — price increases, price cuts, new options, and several products being removed entirely.
Some of the biggest increases are wheel covers. 👀
📈 PRICE INCREASES
• 2017-2023 | Model 3 Aero Wheel Cover — Style: Refresh…— Phoenix Self-Driving 🐦🔥 (@PhoenixFSD) August 25, 2026
Wraps are very popular across the Tesla lineup, especially since the company offers relatively few colors. Many choose to wrap their Teslas with interesting colors, patterns, or even finishes, turning their cars from glossy to satin or matte.
However, Tesla’s wrap service was so limited geographically that it never really had a chance to get off the ground or compete with local shops. Every area in the United States is now overflowing with detailing shops, mobile detailers, and other automotive specialists, many of whom perform wrap services.
Tesla’s service was confined to the Pacific time zone and only spanned across two states. It was never going to be something Tesla was a major competitor in, nor was it going to disrupt the wrapping industry. Now that the program has ended, it seems pretty ideal to believe it was always going to be a short-term thing.
Along with the wrap service, Tesla removed several other products, but nothing too crazy. The Model 3 Door Pocket and Cupholder Liners, the Model S 19″ Magnetite Wheel and Winter Tire Package, Model X/Y Ski/Snowboard Carrier for Hitch Rack, Tesla’s Electric Summer Party Tee, and the Electric Summer Tee were the other items the company totally eliminated from its online shop.
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Tesla Robotaxi fleet gets a brain upgrade ahead of Cybercab launch event
Tesla’s Robotaxi service now runs longer hours nationwide as its unsupervised fleet quietly grows larger.
Tesla’s Robotaxi service just got easier to catch, with the company’s official Robotaxi account noting that rides are now available from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week, across its operating footprint. The account also said its unsupervised fleet is “a lot bigger” than before, though without specifics. The bigger change is what Tesla says upgraded intelligence in vehicle distribution and routing is what’s actually cutting wait times, not a new Full Self-Driving version.
While Tesla did not name the team behind the upgrade, the language points to its AI and fleet software group rather than the driving stack itself. Vehicle distribution and routing in Robotaxi has functioned mostly as a dispatch problem with the software deciding which idle car goes to which rider, and how far it has to travel to get there. “Upgraded intelligence” suggests a smarter version of that dispatch logic, likely using demand forecasting to position idle cars near where riders are about to request them rather than reacting once a request comes in. Tesla’s AI division has built similar prediction systems for other parts of the business, including the neural networks that power FSD itself, so applying that same approach to fleet logistics would be a natural extension rather than a new discipline for the team.
Robotaxi now runs 6am to 10pm, 7 days/week
Unsupervised fleet is a lot bigger
Also, upgraded intelligence in vehicle distribution & routing means you wait less pic.twitter.com/UFZ4bqg2dZ
— Tesla Robotaxi (@robotaxi) August 26, 2026
Tesla is also about a week away from a separate robotaxi milestone. The company plans to launch Cybercab, its purpose built two seat robotaxi with no steering wheel or pedals, in Austin on September 3. Cybercab has been giving employees rides on public and private roads for weeks, and the September event is expected to fold those vehicles into the existing Robotaxi fleet within days of the launch.
Thank you so much @Tesla for inviting us to the Cybercab launch in Austin! 🤠 pic.twitter.com/F1rAR8zd5O
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 22, 2026
Austin previously ran Robotaxi from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. as of last September, a schedule set before the service expanded into Dallas, Houston, Miami, Tampa, Orlando and the Bay Area. Wednesday’s post did not specify whether that extended overnight window still applies in Austin specifically or whether 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. is now the standard across every market. Tesla’s post, visible on its official Robotaxi account, framed the change simply as fewer riders waiting around for a car.
Whether the wider hours hold once Cybercab enters the fleet next week is the next thing worth watching. Tesla has tended to expand Robotaxi in increments, first geofence, then hours, then fleet size, and each step so far has arrived without much advance notice.
Tesla Cybercab uses a unique strategy for picking up the right rider
Tesla ends in-house wrap service that always seemed like a short-term program
