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Tesla shares timelapse video of busy Fremont factory lot during Model 3’s final Q2 push
Tesla shared a rare glimpse inside the Fremont factory’s outbound logistics lot during the final week of Q2 2018 — the week when the electric carmaker finally achieved its target of producing 5,000 Model 3 per week. As could be seen in the short timelapse video, Tesla worked around the clock to achieve its goal, with the outbound lot seeing a flurry of activity during the week of June 24.
Particularly notable in the short video was the quick turnover rate of the vehicles that were filling up the outbound logistics lot day in and day out. The timelapse also depicted the consistent stream of delivery trucks hauling vehicles away as soon as the vehicles were rolled out into the lot.
Fremont outbound logistics lot, week of June 24th pic.twitter.com/fUPASRrTBd
— Tesla (@Tesla) July 3, 2018
Tesla’s 5,000/week milestone for Model 3 production was teased Saturday night by some employees at the Fremont factory, and later confirmed by Elon Musk himself in a leaked email. According to Musk, Tesla was not only able to manufacture 5,000 Model 3 during the final week of June; it was also able to sustain the 2,000/week production rate for the Model S &X and produce a total of 7,000 vehicles in 7 days.
The Model 3’s production milestone did not come easy for the electric car manufacturer, however. When Tesla started deliveries for the Model 3 last July, Musk estimated that the company would be able to attain a production rate of 5,000 vehicles per week by the end of December 2017. Due to several production bottlenecks, however, Tesla failed to achieve its goal. The company eventually moved the 5,000/week Model 3 production target to the end of Q2 2018, while placing a target of 2,500 vehicles per week for the end of Q1 2018.
Both Tesla and Musk himself had to dig deep in order to achieve its Q2 2018 production targets for the Model 3. During the quarter, Tesla enacted a 10-day production shutdown for the vehicle in order to make way for additional equipment to be installed on the Model 3 line. Back in May, Tesla also opted to air-freight six airplanes’ worth of robots and equipment from Europe to the United States. A company-wide restructuring was enacted as well, resulting in Telsa trimming off 9% of its workforce. Just like the Model X days, the serial tech entrepreneur and CEO began sleeping on the factory floor, in order to address any issues in the Model 3 line in real-time.
Most importantly, however, Tesla also built the Model 3’s newest assembly line inside a sprung structure set up on the grounds of the Fremont factory. This additional line enabled Tesla to augment its manufacturing capabilities, with the company stating in its Q2 delivery and production that around 20% of Model 3 produced during the June 24 week were assembled inside GA4.
Apart from achieving its self-imposed Model 3 targets, Tesla’s recent moves are also aimed at achieving profitability by Q3 or Q4 2018. According to Musk, it is high time for Tesla to become profitable, especially since most of the pieces are already in place for the company to successfully scale the production of the Model 3. With Tesla now targeting a pace equivalent to 6,000 Model 3 per week, the company is now edging closer to its goal of being profitable.
Elon Musk
xAI’s Grok approved for Pentagon classified systems: report
Under the agreement, Grok can be deployed in systems handling classified intelligence analysis, weapons development, and battlefield operations.
Elon Musk’s xAI has signed an agreement with the United States Department of Defense (DoD) to allow Grok to be used in classified military systems.
Previously, Anthropic’s Claude had been the only AI system approved for the most sensitive military work, but a dispute over usage safeguards has reportedly prompted the Pentagon to broaden its options, as noted in a report from Axios.
Under the agreement, Grok can be deployed in systems handling classified intelligence analysis, weapons development, and battlefield operations.
The publication reported that xAI agreed to the Pentagon’s requirement that its technology be usable for “all lawful purposes,” a standard Anthropic has reportedly resisted due to alleged ethical restrictions tied to mass surveillance and autonomous weapons use.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is scheduled to meet with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei in what sources expect to be a tense meeting, with the publication hinting that the Pentagon could designate Anthropic a “supply chain risk” if the company does not lift its safeguards.
Axios stated that replacing Claude fully might be technically challenging even if xAI or other alternative AI systems take its place. That being said, other AI systems are already in use by the DoD.
Grok already operates in the Pentagon’s unclassified systems alongside Google’s Gemini and OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Google is reportedly close to an agreement that will result in Gemini being used for classified use, while OpenAI’s progress toward classified deployment is described as slower but still feasible.
The publication noted that the Pentagon continues talks with several AI companies as it prepares for potential changes in classified AI sourcing.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk denies Starlink’s price cuts are due to Amazon Kuiper
“This has nothing to do with Kuiper, we’re just trying to make Starlink more affordable to a broader audience,” Musk wrote in a post on X.
Elon Musk has pushed back on claims that Starlink’s recent price reductions are tied to Amazon’s Kuiper project.
In a post on X, Musk responded directly to a report suggesting that Starlink was cutting prices and offering free hardware to partners ahead of a planned IPO and increased competition from Kuiper.
“This has nothing to do with Kuiper, we’re just trying to make Starlink more affordable to a broader audience,” Musk wrote in a post on X. “The lower the cost, the more Starlink can be used by people who don’t have much money, especially in the developing world.”
The speculation originated from a post summarizing a report from The Information, which ran with the headline “SpaceX’s Starlink Makes Land Grab as Amazon Threat Looms.” The report stated that SpaceX is aggressively cutting prices and giving free hardware to distribution partners, which was interpreted as a reaction to Amazon’s Kuiper’s upcoming rollout and possible IPO.
In a way, Musk’s comments could be quite accurate considering Starlink’s current scale. The constellation currently has more than 9,700 satellites in operation today, making it by far the largest satellite broadband network in operation. It has also managed to grow its user base to 10 million active customers across more than 150 countries worldwide.
Amazon’s Kuiper, by comparison, has launched approximately 211 satellites to date, as per data from SatelliteMap.Space, some of which were launched by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. Starlink surpassed that number in early January 2020, during the early buildout of its first-generation network.
Lower pricing also aligns with Starlink’s broader expansion strategy. SpaceX continues to deploy satellites at a rapid pace using Falcon 9, and future launches aboard Starship are expected to significantly accelerate the constellation’s growth. A larger network improves capacity and global coverage, which can support a broader customer base.
In that context, price reductions can be viewed as a way to match expanding supply with growing demand. Musk’s companies have historically used aggressive pricing strategies to drive adoption at scale, particularly when vertical integration allows costs to decline over time.
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Tesla Giga Berlin makes a statement of solidarity amid IG Metall conflict
The display comes as tensions between Tesla and IG Metall continue to escalate.
Tesla Giga Berlin is sending a strong message of solidarity amid its ongoing legal dispute with German union IG Metall.
In a post on social media platform X, Giga Berlin plant manager André Thierig shared an image of the facility’s lobby covered with a large banner that reads: “Progress. Innovation. Success.” He added that the slogan reflects what the facility has stood for since Day One.
“Our lobby at Giga Berlin covered in a huge banner these days. Progress. Innovation. Success – this is what we stand for since we started production in 2022 and how we will go into our future!” Thierig wrote in his post on X.
The display comes as tensions between Tesla and IG Metall continue to escalate.
The dispute began after Tesla accused a union representative of secretly recording a works council meeting at Giga Berlin. Tesla stated that it filed a criminal complaint after the alleged incident. Police later confirmed they had seized a computer belonging to an IG Metall member as part of their investigation.
“What has happened today at Giga Berlin is truly beyond words! An external union representative from IG Metall attended a works council meeting. For unknown reasons he recorded the internal meeting and was caught in action! We obviously called police and filed a criminal complaint!” Thierig wrote on X at the time.
IG Metall denied the accusation and characterized Tesla’s move as an election tactic ahead of upcoming works council elections. The union subsequently filed a defamation complaint against Thierig. Authorities later confirmed that an investigation had been opened in connection with the matter.
Giga Berlin began production in 2022 and has since become one of Tesla’s key European manufacturing hubs, producing the Model Y, the company’s best-selling vehicle. The facility has expanded capacity over the past years despite environmental protests, labor disputes, and regulatory scrutiny.
xAI’s Grok approved for Pentagon classified systems: report
Elon Musk denies Starlink’s price cuts are due to Amazon Kuiper
