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Tesla’s unmistakable EV lead strongly acknowledged by Lucid and VW CEOs

Next-gen Tesla Roadster and Cybertruck at Hawthorne Design Center, 2019 Tesla Holiday Party (Credit: giftedkick_/Instagram)

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Lucid Motors and Volkswagen Auto Group CEOs Peter Rawlinson and Herbert Diess recently expressed their support towards Tesla and Elon Musk. The two automotive executives took particular note of Tesla’s growing lead in the electric car segment.

“There’s a recognition that Tesla is in a preeminent position in terms of EV technology,” Lucid Motors CEO Peter Rawlinson said at the BloombergNEF Summit. Rawlinson stated that Tesla’s lead in the EV sector is actually growing since the company continues to improve its already industry-leading products.

“They’re even further ahead than has been reported, and I think the gap is widening, not closing,” Rawlinson added.

This is a change in tune from Rawlinson as he was not always a firm supporter of Tesla, especially after he left the company. Before joining Lucid Motors, Rawlinson served as one of the chief engineers of Tesla’s flagship sedan, the Model S. In 2018, he spoke about Tesla’s lack of “truly luxury” features, arguing that the electric vehicles are “premium and high-tech, but not luxury.”

Tesla holds a considerable lead in the electric vehicle market, especially in terms of range and performance. This particular combination has eluded traditional carmakers who are dipping their feet into EVs so far. The Porsche Taycan Turbo, for example, knocks it out of the park with its classic sports car performance. But when it comes to range, the vehicle earned a paltry rating of 201 miles from the EPA.

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Indeed, Tesla’s lead in electric vehicles is something that’s becoming undeniable. It’s not only the Lucid Motors CEO that seems to be open enough to admit this, either.

Volkswagen AG CEO Herbert Diess has been vocal of his support of both Tesla and Musk in the past. After Musk announced his company’s plan to create a production plant in Germany while receiving an award for the Model 3, Diess was supportive of Musk. “I know all of this competition here in Germany, this award, it’s a great achievement,” Diess stated.

When Tesla’s value eclipsed Volkswagen’s by nearly $50 billion, Diess was nothing but supportive. Diess stated that he believes cars will eventually surpass the cell phone as “the most important mobile device” and Tesla’s technology is a key contributor to that idea. “If we see that, then we also understand why Tesla is so valuable from the view of analysts,” the VW CEO said.

Tesla stock has skyrocketed over the past three months. The price per stock at the closing bell on February 4 was $887.06, a new all-time-high for the company. Tesla’s technology has been a key to the company’s success, and based on Rawlinson and Diess recent statements, it appears that other automakers are starting to recognize the hard work Tesla has dedicated in the development of its core technologies.

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Joey has been a journalist covering electric mobility at TESLARATI since August 2019. In his spare time, Joey is playing golf, watching MMA, or cheering on any of his favorite sports teams, including the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles, Miami Heat, Washington Capitals, and Penn State Nittany Lions. You can get in touch with joey at joey@teslarati.com. He is also on X @KlenderJoey. If you're looking for great Tesla accessories, check out shop.teslarati.com

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Tesla bolsters Referral Program with big change and bigger rewards

The Tesla Referral Program offers benefits to both car buyers and existing Tesla owners, including complimentary Full Self-Driving trials, free Supercharging miles, and discounts on select purchases, such as cars.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has bolstered its Referral Program by offering more significant benefits for both the referrer and the referee. However, it only applies to certain vehicles in the Tesla lineup.

The Tesla Referral Program offers benefits to both car buyers and existing Tesla owners, including complimentary Full Self-Driving trials, free Supercharging miles, and discounts on select purchases, such as cars.

It changes relatively frequently, and is a great way to encourage people to buy a new car. Tesla is routinely making adjustments to it to stimulate demand, but the referral program likely does not encourage too many sales. Instead, it’s more of a reward for the referrer.

However, the latest adjustments are more substantial for both the buyer and the owner, offering pretty sizeable discounts on the purchase price of a Model S, Model X, or Cybertruck.

There are also discounts for current owners, giving them money off of all five Tesla vehicles.

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Here’s the rundown of the new Referral Program awards:

  • You’ll earn $250 in Tesla Credits for each person you refer who takes delivery of a new Tesla
  • The first 10 people who order a new Model S, Model X, or Cybertruck using your referral link and take delivery will receive $1,000 off their purchase
  • When you purchase a new Model S, Model X, or Cybertruck for yourself, you’ll get $1,000 off
  • When you purchase a new Model 3 or Model Y, you’ll get $500 off
  • Limited to 10 awards

This is a pretty big discount as $1,000 off a Model S, Model X, or Cybertruck is a nice benefit to three of Tesla’s most expensive vehicles.

The additional $500 off a Model 3 or Model Y is also a nice cushion. A similar Referral Program was launched by Tesla last August.

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Tesla adjusts ‘Actually Smart Summon’ to avoid one common complaint

Tesla is adjusting Summon Standby’s settings slightly to combat the loss of battery life some owners might see with the feature active.

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tesla summon
Credit: YouTube/Hector Perez

Tesla has adjusted one portion of its “Actually Smart Summon” (ASS) feature to address a common complaint from owners: battery drain.

Teslas have a lot of really awesome features that make them one of the most technologically advanced vehicle models on the market. Things like Sentry Mode, Cabin Overheat Protection, and ASS’s “Summon Standby” features all keep the car on its toes for anything that comes its way.

Tesla finally launches Actually Smart Summon and Dumb Summon

However, the activation of these features contributes to battery drain while the vehicle sits parked. The amount varies, but I personally have lost up to five percent with some of these features active. That’s a lot if you do not utilize home charging.

Tesla is doing what it can to combat the battery drain with each of these features. It has done so with Sentry Mode, as an update last year helped combat battery percentage loss due to the activation of the security feature.

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Tesla is about to ship a fix to a big Sentry Mode issue

It also recently introduced “Low Power Mode,” which will automatically deactivate some features if your battery falls below 20 percent. This is a great way to combat battery loss if your car is parked somewhere long-term, like an airport, for example.

There is also another feature that is attached to ASS called “Summon Standby.” This keeps the vehicle awake in case the owner needs quick connectivity to the vehicle, allowing them to summon the car to their location swiftly.

But there’s a drawback: keeping this feature activated will drain the battery. By default, the feature is activated when you take your car home, so you have to turn it off manually by accessing the settings menu inside the vehicle.

Turning this off would save you between 2% and 3% overnight, in my experience. With ASS still being a feature that needs some work, I chose to turn Summon Standby off. ASS will still work with the standby mode deactivated; it will just take a few more seconds for your phone to connect to the vehicle.

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Tesla is adjusting Summon Standby’s settings slightly to combat the loss of battery life some owners might see with the feature active.

According to Not a Tesla App, Tesla has rolled out two conditions for which Summon Standby will be deactivated automatically:

Overnight Deactivation

Summon Standby will automatically be deactivated from midnight to 6 a.m. every night, which appears to be a data-driven decision made by Tesla based on the feature’s least-used hours.

This automatic pause cannot be turned off, at least for the time being.

Extended Parking Deactivation

If your Tesla is parked for over 24 hours, Summon Standby will also be deactivated automatically.

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This is a great way to save battery life for those who are on vacation or are at home for several days in a row. This works similarly to the Low-Power Mode we talked about earlier in this article.

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Neuralink is planning to launch US trials translating thoughts into text

The trial could help pave the way for people with speech impairments to communicate more quickly and efficiently.

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Credit: Neuralink

Neuralink, Elon Musk’s brain-computer interface company, is reportedly planning to start a US clinical trial in October to use its technology to translate thoughts directly into text. 

The trial was approved by the FDA under an investigational device exemption, and it could help pave the way for people with speech impairments to communicate more quickly and efficiently.

Thought-to-text technology

The upcoming trial aims to read speech directly from the brain, enabling participants to transmit words without moving their mouths or using a keyboard, as noted in a report from Bloomberg News.

DJ Seo, Neuralink’s president, told an audience at the Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies in Seoul that the company hopes to demonstrate communication with large language model AI platforms “at the speed of thought,” potentially faster than spoken speech.

“We think that it’s actually possible to demonstrate abilities to speak to the latest AI model, or LLM models, at the speed of thought, even faster than how you’re speaking, and being able to potentially get that information back through your AirPods, effectively closing the loop,” Seo stated.

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Production ambitions

Ultimately, Seo described the trial as a stepping stone toward broader human enhancement and consumer-facing applications, beyond the company’s initial focus on medical conditions like ALS, stroke, blindness, and Parkinson’s disease.

While initial implants will focus on patients with severe speech impairments, Neuralink plans to eventually expand to healthy individuals by 2030. The company aims to scale to 20,000 implants per year by 2031.

“We’re currently envisioning a world where, in about 3 to 4 years, there will be someone who’s otherwise healthy who’s going to get a Neuralink. If you’re imagining saying something, we would be able to pick that up,” the executive noted.

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