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Elon Musk is redefining the ‘ICE age,’ turning combustion engine cars into museum relics
Tesla might be bringing in a new definition for the term “Ice Age.” Instead of “a long period of reduction in the temperature of the Earth’s surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers,” Tesla’s Ice Age has to do with the disappearance of ICE, meaning Internal Combustion Engines. A relatively small percentage of the world’s vehicles are powered by battery cells, with the overwhelming majority of passenger modes of transportation being fueled by gasoline or diesel. However, Tesla is turning the tide by offering enhanced battery cell technology and making their cars more appealing than their gas counterparts.
Simply put, the development of Tesla’s battery-powered cars are bringing in a new era of transportation. Soon enough, gas cars will be the minority, and Teslas, along with other electric vehicles, will be the most popular cars on the road. How this will happen for the next twenty to thirty years comes down to the development of electric vehicles and the process of making them better than their adversary. Without a doubt, Tesla and Elon Musk are leading the charge.
Interestingly, Musk’s development of affordable electric transport is strikingly similar to Henry Ford’s development of the Model T. In 1908, Ford produced the first Model T, a step toward making cars a more mainstream and widely-affordable type of transportation for everyday people. While the rich and wealthy had been riding around in cars since the 1880s, Ford knew that the way cars were made had to be streamlined and that people would eventually need something affordable.
One hundred years after Ford produced the first Model T, Tesla was releasing the first Roadster. An expensive, but functional and revolutionary machine, the Roadster was really the first electric car that could be taken seriously. It had performance, range, and a car company that was only focusing on EVs had built it, so consumers knew it was the specialty of the company, not just some interesting side project.
The similarities between the two situations are resemblant to each other because both Musk and Ford knew that: 1) Transportation had to be revolutionized, and 2) Cars needed to be affordable.
Before the first cars were being built, people were primarily traveling by horse and buggy, by water, or by passenger trains. A combustion engine was the next best thing at the time because Ford knew how to make it affordable for the average person. It also gave people the freedom to travel where they wanted, and the time they desired instead of being packed into train cabins like a pack of sardines.
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Musk’s situation is that, while cars were already functional and nearly everybody had one, the industry needed to be revolutionized once again. Gas cars dominated the market because there was really no other option, but Musk saw a better way.
While the 2008 Roadster certainly wasn’t a perfect fit into everyone’s financial plan, it gave Tesla a headstart in the EV sector. Tesla was forced to work out the kinks that other car companies are experiencing now early on in its existence. The car’s hefty price tag definitely wasn’t for everyone. Still, it allowed Tesla to round up additional cash for its future projects, which included more affordable models and ramped production lines.
It is pretty rare that anyone sees a Model T on the road. Apart from if you’re in Los Angeles and you happen to see Jay Leno strolling around in his, or if you’re at Hershey Park riding on the Sunoco “Fast Lane” ride, you’re more than likely not going to see one puttering around. The fact that many people have never seen a Model T in real life is a sneak preview of what is to come in the automotive industry over the next 50 to 100 years: a disappearance of gas-powered cars. In their place, electric vehicles will roam the streets, free of noise and fossil fuel-driven pollution.
While the combustion engine was improved over time to increase efficiency and performance, the same thing needed to be done with batteries. Tesla’s Battery Day event on Tuesday brought to light how the electric automaker plans to deal with this roadblock. The company’s cars need to continue to improve. Efficiency needs to get better, longevity, performance, you name it. Tesla unveiled a new battery cell during the event that will effectively usher in the beginning of the new ICE Age.
Tesla debuts new 4680 battery cell: 500% more energy, 6X power, range increase
With the developments, gas-powered engines are beginning to appear pointless. When the cost of battery cell manufacturing goes down, people will be forced to reconsider what they’re driving now, especially if it is a gas-powered vehicle. While EVs are already appealing because of their low maintenance requirements, they will also be the same price as gas cars within the next 3-5 years, which is really the biggest factor in why consumers buy cars, to begin with.
Just like a tube television, in a few decades, the young children will point at cars with tailpipes and say, “Mommy, what’s that Tesla with a pipe coming out of the back of it?” The Mother will answer, “Oh honey, that’s a gas car. They’ve been extinct for nearly 20 years.” This conversation will happen while both begin to breathe significantly cleaner air, and the average global temperature will be reduced. Not to mention, the quick back and forth will also occur at an Automotive History Museum, because gas cars will be so rare, that will be the only place most will see them.
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SpaceX has revealed the date for the maiden voyage of Starship v3, its newest and most advanced version of the rocket yet.
Starship v3 represents a significant leap forward. At 124 meters tall when fully stacked, it stands taller than previous versions and boasts substantial upgrades.
The vehicle incorporates next-generation Raptor 3 engines, which deliver higher thrust, improved reliability, and simplified designs with fewer parts. Both the Super Heavy booster (Booster 19) and the Starship upper stage (Ship 39) feature these enhancements, along with structural improvements for greater payload capacity—exceeding 100 metric tons to low Earth orbit in reusable configuration.
SpaceX and its CEO Elon Musk have announced that the company aims to push the first launch of Starship v3 this Thursday. Musk included some clips of past Starship launches with the announcement.
Now targeting launch as early as Thursday, May 21 → https://t.co/2gZQUxS6mm
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) May 19, 2026
First Starship V3 launch later this week! pic.twitter.com/JFX4CrSfnY
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 19, 2026
There are a lot of improvements to Starship v3 from past builds. Key hardware changes include a more robust heat shield, upgraded avionics, and modifications optimized for orbital refueling, a critical technology for future missions to the Moon and Mars. This flight marks the first launch from Starbase’s second orbital pad, allowing parallel operations and accelerating the cadence of tests.
This will be the 12th Starship launch for SpaceX. Flight 12 objectives include a full ascent profile, hot-staging separation, in-space engine relights, and reentry testing. The booster is expected to perform a controlled splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico, while the ship will deploy 20 Starlink simulator satellites and a pair of modified Starlink V3 units before attempting reentry.
Success would validate V3’s design for operational use, paving the way for rapid reusability and higher flight rates.
The rapid evolution from V2 to V3 underscores SpaceX’s iterative approach. Previous flights demonstrated booster catches, ship landings, and heat shield advancements. V3 builds on these with nearly every component refined, supported by an expanding production line at Starbase that churns out vehicles at an unprecedented pace.
Starship V3 is here putting SpaceX closer to Mars than it has ever been
This launch comes amid growing momentum for SpaceX’s ambitious goals. Starship is central to NASA’s Artemis program for lunar landings and Elon Musk’s vision of making humanity multiplanetary. A successful V3 debut would boost confidence in achieving orbital refueling and crewed missions in the coming years.
As excitement builds, enthusiasts and engineers alike await liftoff. Weather and technical readiness will determine the exact timing, but the community is optimistic. Starship V3 is poised to push the boundaries of spaceflight once again, bringing reusable interplanetary transport closer to reality.
Elon Musk broke his silence regarding the jury decision to throw out the case against OpenAI and Sam Altman. The Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI frontman has already indicated that an appeal will be filed regarding the decision, which went against him yesterday.
A Federal jury dismissed this high-profile lawsuit after less than two hours of deliberation due to a statute-of-limitations issue.
In a strongly worded post on X on May 18, Musk addressed the federal jury’s dismissal of his high-profile lawsuit against OpenAI, vowing to appeal the ruling to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The decision, according to Musk, was centered not on the substantive claims but on a statute-of-limitations technicality.
Musk’s lawsuit, filed in 2024, accused OpenAI co-founders Sam Altman and Greg Brockman of breaching the organization’s original nonprofit mission. OpenAI was established in 2015 as a non-profit dedicated to developing artificial intelligence for the benefit of all humanity, with Musk as a key early donor and co-founder before departing in 2018.
Musk alleged that Altman and Brockman improperly shifted the company toward a for-profit model, enriched themselves through massive valuations and partnerships (including with Microsoft), and betrayed founding agreements.
In his post, Musk emphasized that the judge and jury “never actually ruled on the merits of the case, just on a calendar technicality.” He stated unequivocally: “There is no question to anyone following the case in detail that Altman & Brockman did in fact enrich themselves by stealing a charity. The only question is WHEN they did it!”
Regarding the OpenAI case, the judge & jury never actually ruled on the merits of the case, just on a calendar technicality.
There is no question to anyone following the case in detail that Altman & Brockman did in fact enrich themselves by stealing a charity. The only question…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 18, 2026
Musk argued that allowing such actions to stand without review sets a dangerous precedent. “I will be filing an appeal with the Ninth Circuit, because creating a precedent to loot charities is incredibly destructive to charitable giving in America,” he wrote. He reiterated OpenAI’s founding purpose: “OpenAI was founded to benefit all of humanity.”
The jury’s unanimous advisory verdict found that Musk’s claims of breach of charitable trust and unjust enrichment were filed outside California’s three-year statute of limitations. U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers adopted the finding and dismissed the case. OpenAI hailed the outcome as vindication, while Musk’s legal team immediately signaled plans to appeal.
The trial, which featured testimony from Musk, Altman, Brockman, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, and others, exposed deep rifts in Silicon Valley over AI’s direction.
Musk has long warned that profit-driven AI development, especially with closed models and powerful corporate ties, risks endangering humanity—contrasting it with OpenAI’s original open, safety-focused charter. OpenAI countered that the suit stemmed from business rivalry and that Musk himself had explored for-profit paths earlier.
Musk’s appeal could prolong the saga, potentially affecting OpenAI’s valuation (reportedly over $800 billion) and IPO ambitions. Supporters view his stance as defending nonprofit integrity, while critics see it as sour grapes from a competitor whose own xAI is racing in the AI arena.
Regardless of the legal outcome, the case has spotlighted critical questions about trust, governance, and mission drift in the rapidly evolving AI industry. Musk’s willingness to fight on suggests this chapter is far from closed, with broader implications for how charitable organizations—and the tech giants born from them—operate in the future.
Elon Musk
NASA updated Artemis III and SpaceX’s role just got more complicated
SpaceX’s Starship is the key to NASA’s Moon plan and the timeline is already slipping.
SpaceX has been at the center of NASA’s Moon ambitions for five years, and the updated Artemis III plan recently released by NASA makes that relationship more visible than ever. In April 2021, NASA awarded SpaceX a $2.89 billion contract to develop the Starship Human Landing System, selecting it as the sole provider to land astronauts on the Moon under Artemis III. Blue Origin filed legal protests, lost, and eventually received its own contract, but SpaceX was always the program’s primary lander contractor.
The original plan called for Starship to land two astronauts on the lunar south pole. That mission slipped as Starship development ran behind schedule, and in February 2026, NASA officially revised the Artemis III architecture entirely. The mission will now remain in low Earth orbit and serve as a crewed rendezvous and docking test between the Orion spacecraft and both the SpaceX Starship HLS pathfinder and Blue Origin’s Blue Moon Mark 2 pathfinder, with the actual Moon landing pushed to Artemis IV in 2028.
What makes SpaceX’s position particularly significant is the direct line between this week’s Starship V3 launch and the Artemis timeline. The Starship HLS is essentially a modified version of the V3 upper stage, meaning SpaceX cannot realistically prepare a lander for a 2027 docking test until it has demonstrated that the base vehicle flies reliably at scale. Flight 12, targeting this week, is the first data point in that sequence.
NASA has spent nearly $7 billion on Human Landing System development since awarding contracts to SpaceX and Blue Origin in 2021 and 2023, and NASA administrator Jared Isaacman has indicated a desire to drive down costs going forward. As Teslarati reported, before Starship HLS can put anyone on the Moon it has to solve a problem no rocket has demonstrated at scale, which is refueling in orbit, requiring approximately ten tanker launches worth of propellant loaded into a depot before the lander has enough fuel to reach the lunar surface.
The Artemis III mission described by NASA is essentially a stress test for every system that needs to work before any of that happens.
SpaceX has gone from a launch contractor to the single most critical hardware provider in America’s return-to-the-Moon program. With an IPO targeting a $1.75 trillion valuation and Elon Musk’s compensation tied directly to Mars colonization, the pressure on every Starship milestone between now and 2028 has never been higher.
SpaceX reveals date for maiden Starship v3 launch
Elon Musk breaks silence on OpenAI trial decision
