News
FBI taps Tesla Sentry Mode footage to help catch man behind alleged hate crimes
It appears that some members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) are now becoming familiar with Tesla’s built-in security features like Sentry Mode, which allows vehicles to record videos from their cameras to actively monitor their surroundings. This was undoubtedly the case in an incident back in December, which involved slashed tires, arson, and what appears to be a racially motivated attack against a church.
In an affidavit dated April 15, 2021, FBI Special Agent Casey Anderson outlined the events that led to an incident that resulted in the destruction of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Presbyterian Church in Springfield, Massachusetts. The suspect behind the incident, 44-year-old Maine resident Dushko Vulchev, is a naturalized United States citizen from Bulgaria. As per the FBI agent’s affidavit, Vulchev had previously run afoul of the law prior to his apparent arson in December, having been convicted of threatening a foreign official in 2015 and a series of offenses such as domestic violence assault in 2017.
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Presbyterian Church in Springfield, Massachusetts before the fires. (Credit: CourtListener)
The Attacks
In December 2020, the MLK Church experienced a series of fires, one of which eventually destroyed the whole building. The first of these fires were reported on December 13, when the fire department was deployed to extinguish a blaze behind the church. On the same day, a vehicle had its tires slashed two miles away from the church. The next day, a BMW about 1.5 miles away from the MLK church and a Tesla parked less than a mile away from the church had their tires slashed. In the case of the Tesla, its owner found that one of the vehicle’s wheels was also missing.
Another fire behind the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Presbyterian Church was set on December 15, 2020, at around 6:32 p.m. The Springfield Police Department (SPD) Arson and Bomb Squad investigated the fire and promptly determined that the blaze had been intentionally ignited. Interestingly enough, another fire in the church was reported at 11:03 p.m. that same day. Upon investigation, the SFD reported that the blaze had been “intentionally set to eventually involve the structure” of the church.
Things essentially calmed down until December 27, when a Dodge Charger had its tires slashed just 400-500 feet away from the MLK Church. At around 5:06 a.m. the next day, the American International College campus police reported a new blaze at the MLK Church. This time, the fire was started just outside the basement side door, where it burned through and up through the church’s main floor. The blaze essentially destroyed the church, and upon investigation, the SPD concluded that the fire was intentional.
Photos of the MLK Church during the December 28, 2020 blaze. (Credit: CourtListener)
The Investigation
Investigators working on the case were able to obtain several video footage relevant to the case. In the first tire slashing incident on December 13, footage from the City of Springfield recorded a gray Chevy Cruze pulling up into the same parking lot as the vehicle that was attacked. The car was found to have been registered to the suspect, Vulchev. City video footage captured the suspect crossing the street in the direction of the MLK Community Center later that day. The gray Chevy Cruze was also recorded circling the MLK Church.
Vulchev’s Chevy Cruze was sighted by city video footage once more the next day, when the BMW tire slashing incident transpired. As per the FBI agent’s affidavit, a while male matching Vulchev’s height, gait, and clothing, was spotted approaching the BMW. Later that day, a Tesla became the next victim of the suspect’s tire slashing tendencies. But this time around, the special agent didn’t just have a faraway shot of a man approaching a vehicle. This time around, authorities were able to get a clear shot of Vulchev as he was slashing and stealing the Tesla’s tires and stealing a wheel, thanks to Sentry Mode. Tesla’s built-in cameras even captured the suspect putting the stolen goods inside his trunk.
Special Agent Casey Anderson related his experience with Teslas and their built-in cameras in his affidavit. “Based on my training and experience and this investigation, I am aware that the Tesla referenced above is equipped with cameras at various points around the body. ATF Special Agent Marc Maurino (“SA Maurino”) and I have reviewed video footage retrieved from the Tesla showing an individual that I can identify as Vulchev, based on my observation of Vulchev during the Vulchev PPD Interview.
“The video footage from the Tesla shows Vulchev at a close distance crouching near the Tesla and using a tire iron to remove the wheels. Additional Tesla video footage captured Vulchev removing one of the Tesla’s wheels and placing it in the trunk of Vulchev’s car. Vulchev’s face is clearly visible in the video. Vulchev was wearing grey pants and a dark-colored sweatshirt, Adidas three-stripe sneakers, a black hat with two grey stripes, and light-colored work gloves, the agent noted in his affidavit.
Vulchev and his vehicle were spotted around the MLK Church fires, as well as subsequent tire slashing incidents.
The MLK Church after the December 28, 2020 fire. (Credit: CourtListener)
The Arrest
On December 30, 2020, a complaint about a vehicle driving erratically was reported to authorities. When provided with the license plate of the vehicle in question, it was determined that the car was Vulchev’s. Police stopped the suspect’s vehicle on suspicion of erratic driving and possible links to the multiple tire slashing incidents. Since they were aware of the ongoing federal investigation into the fires against MLK Church, local authorities promptly contacted FBI Supervisory Special Agent of the Springfield Resident Agency Matthew Fontaine.
Special Agent Fontaine arrived at the scene of the stop, and upon initial investigation, the FBI agent noted that the suspect may have been living in his car for some time. The FBI agent spoke with the suspect for about eight minutes outside, and immediately, Fontaine noted that Vulchev was wearing the sneakers that were captured clearly by Tesla’s Sentry Mode. PPD officers initially released the suspect, though he was arrested the day after over his links to the multiple tire slashing incidents and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Presbyterian Church fires.
On January 4, 2021, the FBI and ATF conducted a search of Vulchev’s vehicle, where they found a computer, a hard drive, and several USB storage devices. A search of the computer revealed Vulchev’s shocking racially charged stance against non-white people. This was seen in messages to an ex-girlfriend—who currently has a lifetime protective order against Vulchev—which featured numerous slurs against Muslims and blacks. Vulchev’s apparent hate against non-whites was notable, as seen in a message to his ex-girlfriend where he was complaining about the race of ABC’s The Bachelorette. A search of the suspect’s phone revealed photos of several notable items, such as a firearm, an image of Adolf Hitler in an Adidas tracksuit, and a “White Lives Matter” mural, as well.
With these in mind, FBI Special Agent Casey Anderson noted that there is probable cause to believe that Vulchev committed damage to religious property, which is in violation of 18 USC §§ 247(c) and (d)(3), and the use of fire to commit a federal felony, which is in violation of USC § 844(h)(1). As per a press release from the US Department of Justice, Vulchev is currently in state custody and is due to make an initial appearance in federal court in Springfield at a later date.
FBI Special Agent Casey Anderson’s complete affidavit could be accessed below.
gov.uscourts.mad.233009.2.1_1 by Simon Alvarez on Scribd
Don’t hesitate to contact us for news tips. Just send a message to tips@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.
Elon Musk
Tesla Terafab set for launch: Inside the $20B AI chip factory that will reshape the auto industry
Tesla set to launch “Terafab Project: A vertically integrated chip fabrication effort combining logic processing, memory, and advanced packaging.
Tesla is making one of the boldest bets in its history. On March 14, Elon Musk posted on X that the “Terafab Project launches in 7 days,” pointing to March 21, 2026 as the start date for what he has described as a vertically integrated chip fabrication effort combining logic processing, memory, and advanced packaging.
Tesla first confirmed Terafab on its January 28, 2026 earnings call, where Musk told investors the company needs to build a chip fabrication facility to avoid a supply constraint projected to materialize within three to four years. But the seeds were planted even earlier. At Tesla’s annual general meeting last year, Musk warned that even in the best-case scenario for chip production from their suppliers, it still wouldn’t be enough, and declared that building a “gigantic chip fab” simply had to be done.
While there has been no official announcement on where Tesla plans to break ground on the massive Terafab, all signs point to the North Campus of Giga Texas in Austin.
Months of speculation has surrounded Tesla’s North Campus expansion at Giga Texas, where drone footage captured by observer Joe Tegtmeyer revealed massive construction site preparation just north of the existing factory on a scale that rivals the original Giga Texas footprint itself.
Samsung’s Tesla AI5/AI6 chip factory to start key equipment tests in March: report
The project is projected to produce 100–200 billion AI and memory chips annually, targeting 100,000 wafer starts per month, at an estimated cost of $20 billion. Tesla is targeting 2-nanometre process technology and anticipated to be the most advanced node currently in commercial production. Dubbed the Tesla AI5 chip, the chip will pack 40x–50x more compute performance and 9x more memory than AI4, and will be among the first products Terafab factory is set to produce. This highly optimized, and massively powerful inference chip is designed to make full self-driving (FSD) and Tesla’s Optimus robots faster, safer, and with full autonomy.
(Credit: Tesla)
This is where Terafab becomes a genuine game-changer. If Tesla successfully builds a 2nm chip fab at scale, it becomes one of only a handful of entities that’s capable of producing AI silicon in-house, with competitive implications that extend far beyond Tesla’s own vehicles, and potentially positioning Tesla as a chip supplier or licensor to other industries.
Credit: @serobinsonjr/X
The next-gen Tesla AI chips will power advancements in Full Self-Driving software, the Cybercab Robotaxi program, and the Optimus humanoid robot line. Musk’s projections for Optimus require chip volumes that no existing external supplier can commit to on Tesla’s timeline.Competitors like Waymo and GM’s Cruise remain dependent on third-party silicon, leaving them exposed to the same supply chain vulnerabilities Tesla is now working to eliminate entirely.
The Terafab launch this week may not mean a factory opens its doors overnight, but it signals Tesla is serious about owning the entire AI stack, from software to silicon.
Elon Musk
What is Digital Optimus? The new Tesla and xAI project explained
At its core, Digital Optimus operates through a dual-process architecture inspired by human cognition.
Tesla and xAI announced their groundbreaking joint project, Digital Optimus, also nicknamed “Macrohard” in a humorous jab at Microsoft, earlier this week.
This software-based AI agent is designed to automate complex office workflows by observing and replicating human interactions with computers. As the first major outcome of Tesla’s $2 billion investment in xAI, it represents a powerful fusion of hardware efficiency and advanced reasoning.
At its core, Digital Optimus operates through a dual-process architecture inspired by human cognition.
Macrohard or Digital Optimus is a joint xAI-Tesla project, coming as part of Tesla’s investment agreement with xAI.
Grok is the master conductor/navigator with deep understanding of the world to direct digital Optimus, which is processing and actioning the past 5 secs of…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 11, 2026
Tesla’s specialized AI acts as “System 1”—the fast, instinctive executor—processing the past five seconds of real-time computer screen video along with keyboard and mouse actions to perform immediate tasks.
xAI’s Grok model serves as “System 2,” the strategic “master conductor” or navigator, providing high-level reasoning, world understanding, and directional oversight, much like an advanced turn-by-turn navigation system.
When combined, the two can create a powerful AI-based assistant that can complete everything from accounting work to HR tasks.
Will Tesla join the fold? Predicting a triple merger with SpaceX and xAI
The system runs primarily on Tesla’s low-cost AI4 inference chip, minimizing expensive Nvidia resources from xAI for competitive, real-time performance.
Elon Musk described it as “the only real-time smart AI system” capable, in principle, of emulating the functions of entire companies, handling everything from accounting and HR to repetitive digital operations.
Timelines point to swift deployment. Announced just days ago, Musk expects Digital Optimus to be ready for user experience within about six months, targeting rollout around September 2026.
It will integrate into all AI4-equipped Tesla vehicles, enabling parked cars to handle office work during downtime. Millions of dedicated units are also planned for deployment at Supercharger stations, tapping into roughly 7 gigawatts of available power.
Oh and it works in all AI4-equipped cars, so your car can do office work for you when not driving.
We’re also deploying millions of dedicated Digital Optimus units in the field at Superchargers where we have ~7 gigawatts of available power.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 12, 2026
Digital Optimus directly supports Tesla’s broader autonomy strategy. It leverages the same end-to-end neural networks, computer vision, and real-time decision-making tech that power Full Self-Driving (FSD) software and the physical Optimus humanoid robot.
By repurposing idle vehicle compute and extending AI4 hardware beyond driving, the project scales Tesla’s autonomy ecosystem from roads to digital workspaces.
As a virtual counterpart to physical Optimus, it divides labor: software agents manage screen-based tasks while humanoid robots tackle physical ones, accelerating Tesla’s vision of general-purpose AI for productivity, Robotaxi fleets, and beyond.
In essence, Digital Optimus bridges Tesla’s vehicle and robotics autonomy with enterprise-scale AI, promising massive efficiency gains. No other company currently matches its real-time capabilities on such accessible hardware.
It really could be one of the most crucial developments Tesla and xAI begin to integrate, as it could revolutionize how people work and travel.
News
Tesla adds awesome new driving feature to Model Y
Tesla is rolling out a new “Comfort Braking” feature with Software Update 2026.8. The feature is exclusive to the new Model Y, and is currently unavailable for any other vehicle in the Tesla lineup.
Tesla is adding an awesome new driving feature to Model Y vehicles, effective on Juniper-updated models considered model year 2026 or newer.
Tesla is rolling out a new “Comfort Braking” feature with Software Update 2026.8. The feature is exclusive to the new Model Y, and is currently unavailable for any other vehicle in the Tesla lineup.
Tesla writes in the release notes for the feature:
“Your Tesla now provides a smoother feel as you come to a complete stop during routine braking.”
🚨 Tesla has added a new “Comfort Braking” update with 2026.8
“Your Tesla provides a smoother feel as you come to a complete stop during routine braking.” https://t.co/afqCpBSVeA pic.twitter.com/C6MRmzfzls
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) March 13, 2026
Interestingly, we’re not too sure what catalyzed Tesla to try to improve braking smoothness, because it hasn’t seemed overly abrupt or rough from my perspective. Although the brake pedal in my Model Y is rarely used due to Regenerative Braking, it seems Tesla wanted to try to make the ride comfort even smoother for owners.
There is always room for improvement, though, and it seems that there is a way to make braking smoother for passengers while the vehicle is coming to a stop.
This is far from the first time Tesla has attempted to improve its ride comfort through Over-the-Air updates, as it has rolled out updates to improve regenerative braking performance, handling while using Full Self-Driving, improvements to Steer-by-Wire to Cybertruck, and even recent releases that have combatted Active Road Noise.
Tesla holds a unique ability to change the functionality of its vehicles through software updates, which have come in handy for many things, including remedying certain recalls and shipping new features to the Full Self-Driving suite.
Tesla seems to have the most seamless OTA processes, as many automakers have the ability to ship improvements through a simple software update.
We’re really excited to test the update, so when we get an opportunity to try out Comfort Braking when it makes it to our Model Y.
Tesla Terafab set for launch: Inside the $20B AI chip factory that will reshape the auto industry
What is Digital Optimus? The new Tesla and xAI project explained
