

News
Tesla is building an empire with Model 3 drive units, custom chips, and loyal customers
When the Tesla Semi and the next-generation Roadster were unveiled last year, Elon Musk pointed out that the whole company was built on the original Roadster, an electric car which proved that EVs could be exciting, fun, and quick. Tesla is now at a point where it could become a threat to established premium automakers; and just like how Apple built a trillion-dollar empire on the back of the iPhone, Tesla seems poised to establish its own empire through its Model 3 drive units, its custom-made chips, and its passionate consumer base.
The brilliance of the Model 3’s drive unit was recognized by Detroit veteran Sandy Munro, whose company conducted a thorough teardown and analysis of the electric sedan. While Munro noted some points for improvement with regards to the vehicle’s chassis, he was incredibly impressed with the car’s suspension, batteries, and electric motor. Recently relating his findings to Bloomberg, Munro noted that the Model 3’s electric motor is a “game changer,” and that “everyone should be benchmarking (it).” The entire subframe where the drive unit is housed even detaches cleanly from the Model 3, seemingly allowing DIY enthusiasts in the future to resurrect drive units from damaged vehicles by using them for electric car conversions.
Tesla recently shared images of the Model 3’s drive system after being tested for over 1 million miles. Images of the drive system’s gears suggest that there was very little wear and tear despite extensive testing. With this in mind, Tesla’s idea of using the Model 3’s drive unit to power upcoming vehicles like the Semi and the Model Y, or possibly even the Tesla Truck and the upcoming compact car, could pay off in spades for the company. If teardowns of the Model 3 are any indication, after all, the electric car’s drive unit could very well be reliable, easy to manufacture, and even swappable if the need arises. It could, in a way, be a building block in Tesla’s emerging empire.
Beyond the Model 3’s drive units, Tesla is also starting to dip its feet into creating its custom chip. Such a strategy is very much in line with Tesla’s character, considering that the company already manufactures many of its vehicles’ components in-house. In an interview with Yahoo Finance last week, ARK Invest CEO and CIO Cathie Wood noted that the electric car maker’s initiatives towards the creation of its own hardware are a “replay of Apple.” Wood notes that in the same way Apple’s innovations with the iPhone pushed the tech giant to create its own silicon, Tesla’s progress with the intelligent tech in its vehicles are driving the electric car maker to design and build its own chips.
“This is a replay of Apple. Apple was moving so fast with the smartphone that it had to design its own chip to move that fast. This is what has happened to Tesla. Nvidia chips will be in mostly every other autonomous vehicle to hit the market. But Musk has a vision for this market that needs (a) faster, better, cheaper, sooner (solution) – and so he designed it himself,” Wood noted.
Elon Musk is optimistic about the potential of Tesla’s custom silicon. Designed by a team led by Pete Bannon, who used to work for Apple, Musk noted that Tesla’s custom hardware would be ” the world’s most advanced computer designed specifically for autonomous operation.” This custom chip, which would be included in Tesla’s Hardware 3, will be rolled out to all production cars in around six months; and if Tesla’s other in-house solutions are any indication, the introduction of its upcoming silicon would likely allow the company to establish a lead against rival automakers who are also dabbling in self-driving initiatives.

While Tesla’s vehicles and their components make the company a formidable player in the car industry, it is perhaps its dedicated consumer base that makes Tesla downright threatening to traditional auto. It is quite rare to see a car company command such a devoted following, though considering Tesla’s stance in the auto industry today, the strong brand loyalty displayed by Tesla owners is not very surprising at all. As Tesla grew over the years, after all, the company has practically transformed itself into an entity that is far more than a carmaker or a battery storage provider. Tesla has become a movement of sorts, populated by electric car owners who are willing to pay it forward when needed. This was shown in the final weeks of Q3, when owners mobilized to help the company deliver as many vehicles as it could before September ended.
The Tesla community’s dedication to the company’s mission and vision were in full force earlier this month as well, as 36 Tesla Owner’s Clubs from nine countries convened in Fremont, CA to meet and strategize initiatives that can help support the growing number of electric car owners across the globe. Denver Tesla Club President Sean M. Mitchell, who attended the meeting, believes that the source of enthusiasm among electric car owners is multifold. For one, the company was able to integrate technology in a way that made even something as ordinary as driving exciting once more. Sean also notes that the company’s grass-roots marketing approach, which relies primarily on word-of-mouth, fosters a very authentic and honest relationship among owners.
It remains to be seen if Tesla would be succeed in its mission to accelerate the world’s transition to renewable energy. That said, the company’s strategy in its electric vehicle business seems to be working, as legacy carmakers such as Porsche and Jaguar are starting to fully embrace the idea of a zero-emissions fleet. Companies such as Audi and Mercedes-Benz have also begun offering premium electric vehicles of their own. In South Australia, Tesla’s big battery is also triggering a clean energy movement, with similar renewable projects now underway after the Powerpack farm proved to be effective. Ultimately, Tesla’s empire might not be as tangible or evident today, but the components that would make it are already there, steadily growing.
News
Tesla takes first step in sunsetting Model S and X with drastic move
Tesla won’t be taking custom orders of the Model S or Model X in Europe any longer.

Tesla has seemingly taken the first step in sunsetting two of its older vehicles, the Model S and Model X, by ending international orders.
The flagship sedan and SUV from Tesla are the two oldest cars in the company’s lineup. They account for a very small portion of overall sales, and several years ago, CEO Elon Musk admitted that Tesla only continues to build and sell them due to “sentimental reasons.”
Earlier this year, there were calls for Tesla to end the production of the two cars, but Lars Moravy said that the Model S and Model X were due to get some love later in 2025. That happened, but the changes were extremely minor.
Tesla launches new Model S and Model X, and the changes are slim
Some took this as an indication that Tesla has kind of moved on from the Model S and Model X. A handful of people seemed to think Tesla would overhaul the vehicles substantially, but the changes were extremely minor and included only a few real adjustments.
In Europe, customers are unable to even put a new order in on a Model S or Model X.
We noticed earlier today that Tesla pressing the ‘Order’ button on either of the flagship vehicles takes you to local inventory, and not the Design Studio where you’d configure your custom build:
🚨 Tesla has removed the Model S and Model X Design Configurators from European customers
It will now bring up available inventory for those two vehicles instead of allowing you to build your own config pic.twitter.com/sMnGAr2kuu
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 30, 2025
Tesla simply does not make enough Model S or Model X units to justify the expensive logistics process of shipping custom orders overseas. It almost seems as if they’re that they will essentially build a bunch of random configurations, send them overseas every few months, and let them sell before replenishing inventory.
Inversely, it could also mean Tesla is truly gearing up to sunset the vehicle altogether. It seems unlikely that the company will fade them out altogether in the next couple of years, but it could absolutely think about ending international orders because volume is so low.
Energy
Tesla inks multi-billion-dollar deal with LG Energy Solution to avoid tariff pressure
Tesla has reportedly secured a sizable partnership with LGES for LFP cells, and there’s an extra positive out of it.

Tesla has reportedly inked a multi-billion-dollar deal with LG Energy Solution in an effort to avoid tariff pressure and domesticate more of its supply chain.
Reuters is reporting that Tesla and LGES, a South Korean battery supplier of the automaker, signed a $4.3 billion deal for energy storage system batteries. The cells are going to be manufactured by LGES at its U.S. factory located in Michigan, the report indicates. The batteries will be the lithium iron phosphate, or LFP, chemistry.
Tesla delivers 384,000 vehicles in Q2 2025, deploys 9.6 GWh in energy storage
It is a move Tesla is making to avoid buying cells and parts from overseas as the Trump White House continues to use tariffs to prioritize domestic manufacturing.
LGES announced earlier today that it had signed a $4.3 billion contract to supply LFP cells over three years to a company, but it did not identify the customer, nor did the company state whether the batteries would be used in automotive or energy storage applications.
The deal is advantageous for both companies. Tesla is going to alleviate its reliance on battery cells that are built out of the country, so it’s going to be able to take some financial pressure off itself.
For LGES, the company has reported that it has experienced slowed demand for its cells in terms of automotive applications. It planned to offset this demand lag with more projects involving the cells in energy storage projects. This has been helped by the need for these systems at data centers used for AI.
During the Q1 Earnings Call, Tesla CFO Vaibhav Taneja confirmed that the company’s energy division had been impacted by the need to source cells from China-based suppliers. He went on to say that the company would work on “securing additional supply chain from non-China-based suppliers.”
It seems as if Tesla has managed to secure some of this needed domestic supply chain.
Lifestyle
Tesla brings perhaps the coolest interior feature to cars in latest update
Tesla adds on to the “fun” aspect of its vehicles.

Tesla has brought perhaps the coolest interior feature to its cars in a new update that is rolling out to vehicles now.
The feature will require a newer vehicle that has interior ambient lighting, which is present on the new Model S, Model X, Model 3 “Highland,” and Model Y “Juniper.” The Cybertruck also has ambient lighting strips throughout.
Tesla Model Y’s ambient lighting design changes revealed in leaked video
With the Version 2025.26+ Software Update, Tesla is rolling out a new “Sync Accent Lights w/ Music” feature, which is available on the Tesla Toybox:
Turn your Tesla into a rave cave with the new Light Sync feature 🎶
Rolling out now in software update 2025.26+ pic.twitter.com/IIsQxZ9jDP
— Tesla (@Tesla) July 29, 2025
To enable the feature, you’ll access the Toybox, choose “Light Sync,” and then choose “Sync Accent Lights w/ Music.”
Although it does not improve the performance of the vehicle, it is yet another example of Tesla making one of the coolest cars out there. This is truly a cool add-on that can be used to impress your friends and family.
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