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Tesla’s Elon Musk talks Autopilot and Level 5 Autonomy at China AI conference

(Credit: WAIC 2020/YouTube)

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5 years ago

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Quite unlike his previous appearance at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in China last year, Elon Musk’s appearance at this year’s event featured what could only be described as a Q&A session about Tesla’s tech and AI. During his talk, Musk covered several topics, from the rollout of Level 5 Autonomy to the utilization of Project Dojo to the work that’s being done so far in Gigafactory Shanghai.

When Musk was asked about how AI plays a role in the rollout of full self-driving technologies, the CEO remarked that autonomy is indeed coming, and it would be coming quickly. Musk then reiterated his previous points about the release of a feature-complete version of Tesla’s Full Self Driving suite, which should be ready by the end of the year. Interestingly enough, the CEO emphasized that he no longer sees any fundamental challenges that Tesla could face on the way towards achieving Level 5 autonomy.

Apart from these, Musk highlighted that real-world data is incomparable when it comes to developing full self-driving systems. Real-world scenarios are complex, Musk stated, and thus, simulations simply don’t cut it. To accomplish this, Tesla designed its own FSD unit, Hardware 3, as well as Dojo, a training computer that could allow the company’s neural networks to be trained in a quicker, more effective manner. This vertical integration matters, and it sets Tesla apart from competitors in the market.

“I think there are no fundamental challenges remaining for Level 5 autonomy. There are many small problems. And then there’s the challenge of solving all those small problems and then putting the whole system together and just keep addressing the long tail of problems. So you’ll find that you’re able to handle the vast majority of situations. But then there will be something very odd. You have to have a system figure out a train to deal with these odd situations. This is why you need real world situations. Nothing is more complex and weird than the real world,” Musk noted.

Apart from his discussions on Tesla’s Full Self Driving suite, Dojo program, and vertical integration, Elon Musk also spoke highly of the progress that could be seen in Gigafactory Shanghai. The facility, which is Tesla’s first vehicle production plant outside the United States dedicated for the Model 3 and Model Y, has been firing on all cylinders despite the onset of the coronavirus, and it has allowed China to provide a good boost to the company’s numbers in the second quarter. Musk remarked that he is impressed with Gigafactory Shanghai’s ramp so far, and that he cannot wait to visit the site once more.

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Overall, Musk’s appearance at the WAIC this year was a lot more insightful compared to his ad hoc debate with Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma last year. During that debate, Musk and Ma bumped opinions about the safety of AI, as well as the proper approach to developing artificial intelligence. While Musk was his usual cautious self, the Alibaba co-founder was optimistic, stating that AI would never be able to exceed the true capabilities of humans.

https://youtu.be/EPEIZAFpvgA?t=7274
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Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Tesla Optimus is learning martial arts in new video teasing capabilities

For the past few months, Tesla has been refining its capabilities and making some serious progress on what Optimus is capable of. This morning, Musk released a new video showing Optimus learning Kung Fu, perhaps its most impressive feat yet.

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2 hours ago

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October 4, 2025

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Credit: Elon Musk | X

Tesla Optimus is learning martial arts, a new video released by CEO Elon Musk shows, a crazy development and advancement in the robotics project the company has been working on for a few years.

Optimus has been a major focus of Tesla for the past several years, especially as Musk has said he believes it will be the biggest product of all time and could be the biggest contributor to the company’s valuation.

For the past few months, Tesla has been refining its capabilities and making some serious progress on what Optimus is capable of. This morning, Musk released a new video showing Optimus learning Kung Fu, perhaps its most impressive feat yet:

The video shows Optimus working with a Kung Fu teacher, known as a Shifu, going through what appears to be some sort of routine of combinations. It’s quite impressive to see the fluidity of the movements and Optimus’s ability to keep up with Shifu.

Tesla has been “working hard” to scale Optimus production, Musk said last week, a project that has obviously confronted both AI and manufacturing teams with a variety of challenges.

The plan is to have an annual production run-rate of one million units by 2030, and there were plans to build 5,000 units this year.

Elon Musk gives update on Tesla Optimus progress

Musk still believes Optimus will make up roughly 80 percent of Tesla’s value. In January, he said it would be “overwhelmingly the value of the company.”

Tesla plans to launch the Gen 3 version of Optimus soon, and although a video of a new-look prototype was released by Marc Benioff, the CEO of Salesforce, the company’s frontman stated that this was not what the next-generation prototype would look like.

Elon Musk confirms Tesla has never shown Optimus V3 design yet

This video seems to show there is still significant progress being made on the Optimus project, and it will be perhaps one of the most impressive humanoid robots available to consumers in the coming years.

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Elon Musk

Tesla Full Self-Driving v14 gets new release date, Elon Musk details

“Last minute bug cropped up with V14. Released is pushed to Monday, but that gives us time to add a few more features.”

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10 hours ago

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October 4, 2025

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla’s Full Self-Driving version 14 has gotten a new release date after new details from CEO Elon Musk opened up some new perspectives on the suite.

Originally slated for an “early wide release” of v14 this past week, then a launch of v14.1 and v14.2 this week and next week, respectively, delays arose after Tesla’s Autopilot team found some issues within the software.

Tesla FSD V14 set for early wide release next week: Elon Musk

Musk detailed on X this morning that a “last minute bug” appeared before release, which has now pushed FSD v14’s release back to this Monday:

Musk also said the delay would give Tesla the ability to “add a few more features,” which seems like an added advantage, although he did not provide any additional details on what these features could be.

In classic Musk fashion, he has teased the capabilities of this version of the FSD suite since it became public knowledge that Tesla was working on it. He said that it is the second most important update for the AI/Autopilot team since FSD v12.

V14 will have a parameter count that is ten times what previous iterations were, which should provide more accuracy and a more human-like operation.

Musk has said v14 “feels alive” and has used the word “sentient” to describe its performance. The goal with the new FSD rollouts is to eliminate as many interventions as possible, making it as close to human driving as possible.

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Investor's Corner

Tesla just got a weird price target boost from a notable bear

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1 day ago

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October 3, 2025

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Credit: Tesla Manufacturing

Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) just got a weird price target boost from a notable bear just a day after it announced its strongest quarter in terms of vehicle deliveries and energy deployments.

JPMorgan raised its price target on Tesla shares from $115 to $150. It maintained its ‘Underweight’ rating on the stock.

Despite Tesla reporting 497,099 deliveries, about 12 percent above the 443,000 anticipated from the consensus, JPMorgan is still skeptical that the company can keep up its momentum, stating most of its Q3 strength came from leaning on the removal of the $7,500 EV tax credit, which expired on September 30.

Tesla hits record vehicle deliveries and energy deployments in Q3 2025

The firm said Tesla benefited from a “temporary stronger-than-expected industry-wide pull-forward” as the tax credit expired. It is no secret that consumers flocked to the company this past quarter to take advantage of the credit.

The bump will need to be solidified as the start of a continuing trend of strong vehicle deliveries, the firm said in a note to investors. Analysts said that one quarter of strength was “too soon to declare Tesla as having sustainably returned to growth in its core business.”

JPMorgan does not anticipate Tesla having strong showings with vehicle deliveries after Q4.

There are two distinct things that stick out with this note: the first is the lack of recognition of other parts of Tesla’s business, and the confusion that surrounds future quarters.

JPMorgan did not identify Tesla’s strength in autonomy, energy storage, or robotics, with autonomy and robotics being the main focuses of the company’s future. Tesla’s Full Self-Driving and Robotaxi efforts are incredibly relevant and drive more impact moving forward than vehicle deliveries.

Additionally, the confusion surrounding future delivery numbers in quarters past Q3 is evident.

Will Tesla thrive without the EV tax credit? Five reasons why they might

Tesla will receive some assistance from deliveries of vehicles that will reach customers in Q4, but will still qualify for the credit under the IRS’s revised rules. It will also likely introduce an affordable model this quarter, which should have a drastic impact on deliveries depending on pricing.

Tesla shares are trading at $422.40 at 2:35 p.m. on the East Coast.

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