News
Tesla Giga Berlin employees bid farewell to ‘Mister Gigafactory’
Tesla employees that are working at the company’s Giga Berlin project in Germany are bidding farewell to Evan Horetsky, the company’s manager for the site.
Tesla reportedly relieved Giga Berlin Horetsky from his position on Thursday. The reasons for his dismissal are currently unknown.
However, last week, Tesla’s Global Supply Manager of Construction, Michaela Schmitz, was already saying her goodbyes to Horetsky. “it was my honor to work for and with you. We will finish it for you, Giga Meister. Take care!!” she said on one of Horetsky’s LinkedIn posts.
According to Rbb24, a German media site, people close to the Giga Berlin project stated that Horetsky was relieved of his duties. Some are speculating it is because of the water bill fiasco that took place last week.
However, Schmitz’s post was published on Horetsky’s LinkedIn before the water bill issue took place. This indicates that Horetsky may have been let go before the water was shut off at the construction site, and could be an indication of why the bill wasn’t paid.
Teslarati reported the rumors of a water shutoff at the Giga Berlin site. However, the water was still seen running normally, and the project never halted, local sources said.
I was at the GIGABERLIN at 17:00 pm
and could see that the cement mixing plant was still working and cement transporters were cleaned, WITH WATER.
it looks like the water is running.!!!! pic.twitter.com/LYLdHZ9g0Z— Gigafactory Berlin News (@Gf4Tesla) October 15, 2020
However, the report from Rbb24 says that the Strausberg Erkner water association did have a past due amount that went unpaid. Tesla paid the balance, and the water service was reactivated shortly after.
The site reported:
“Last week, the Strausberg Erkner Tesla water association had temporarily shut off the construction water because a payment deadline had expired. After the money was received, the water ran again.”
While the water bill was quickly taken care of because there appeared to be no interruption in Giga Berlin’s construction, the project manager’s responsibility would likely be to ensure that no possibility of interruptions could occur. This starts with the routine paying of bills that keep the site operating as usual.
If Horetsky was let go on early last week, there may have been nobody to handle paying the bill, which could be the reason as to why the water was shut off at the site temporarily.
Interestingly, Horetsky has supervised other Tesla projects, including the completion of Tesla Gigafactory 1 in Sparks, Nevada, and the initial construction phases of Giga Shanghai in China. Horetsky also oversaw the Fremont plant’s preparations for vehicle production. It is possible that Horesky could be assisting with other Tesla projects, as Giga Texas is also in its construction stages.
During Tesla’s Q3 Earnings Call on Wednesday, October 21st, the company outlined the timeline for Giga Berlin’s first phases of production, which are expected to begin in Summer 2021.
The company said in its Update Letter:
“Construction of the Gigafactory in Berlin continues to progress rapidly. Buildings are under construction, and equipment move-in will start over the coming weeks. At the same time, the Giga Berlin team continues to grow. Production is expected to start in 2021.”
According to Tesla’s Senior VP of Powertrain and Energy Engineering Drew Baglino, Giga Berlin’s initial ramp will require assistance from its pilot 4680 battery cell production line in Fremont.
Tesla’s pilot 4680 battery cell line in CA will support Giga Berlin’s initial ramp
“We will incorporate 4680 design solutions into many applications in time across both energy and vehicle, and we can use our pilot production facility in Fremont to support the new factory in Berlin as it ramps,” Baglino said.
Tesla will introduce the Model Y to Giga Berlin’s production lines initially but plans to manufacture other vehicles at the German plant in the future.
SpaceX has achieved an incredible milestone by launching its 11,000th Starlink satellite into orbit.
This accomplishment occurred during the Starlink Group 17-50 mission, which lifted off on August 19 at 04:01 UTC from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
Falcon 9 launches 24 @Starlink satellites from California pic.twitter.com/UscpmAxDls
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) August 19, 2026
A Falcon 9 rocket carried 24 Starlink V2 Mini satellites on this flight, successfully deploying them into low Earth orbit approximately one hour after liftoff. The first stage booster, identified as B1097 on its twelfth flight, landed successfully on the droneship Of Course I Still Love You in the Pacific Ocean.
According to tracking data compiled around that date, this deployment brought the total number of Starlink satellites in orbit to just over 11,000.
The Starlink program began with test satellites known as Tintin A and B, launched on February 22, 2018. The first operational batch of 60 Starlink satellites followed on May 24, 2019, when a Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral. Those initial satellites marked the start of a rapid expansion that has continued for more than seven years.
SpaceX has conducted hundreds of dedicated Starlink missions since then, routinely launching batches of 20 to 30 satellites at a time using reusable Falcon 9 rockets. By mid-2026, the company had already surpassed 12,000 total satellites launched across all versions, with continuous replacements for units that deorbit as designed to manage space debris.
Looking ahead, SpaceX continues to expand the Starlink constellation to enhance global broadband coverage, capacity, and speed. The network already serves millions of users across more than 160 countries and supports applications ranging from residential internet to maritime, aviation, and emergency services.
Future plans center on next-generation hardware, including larger V3 satellites capable of delivering substantially higher throughput, which require the increased payload capacity of the Starship vehicle currently under development and testing.
In July, SpaceX submitted an application to the Federal Communications Commission seeking authority for a Gen3 constellation of up to 100,000 satellites. These spacecraft would operate in very low Earth orbit shells at altitudes near 325 kilometers and 475 kilometers. The filing requests use of existing Ku, Ka, V, and E band spectrum along with new greenfield W and D band frequencies between 92 and 275 GHz.
SpaceX states that the expanded system aims to deliver multi-gigabit symmetrical broadband to consumers, enterprises, governments, and billions of AI-powered devices worldwide while handling a majority of global internet traffic. Approval and subsequent deployment would depend on regulatory review and the operational readiness of Starship for high-volume launches.
This ambitious scale reflects SpaceX’s ongoing commitment to providing ubiquitous high-speed connectivity from space.
Tesla has opened a new sweepstakes to allow the public to be among the first to take an initial ride in a Cybercab. This all-electric, steering-wheel-less, pedal-less vehicle is the centerpiece of the company’s autonomous ride-hailing platform, Robotaxi.
There are two ways Tesla fans can get to Austin to take part in the first public rides of the Cybercab: by riding on the Robotaxi platform by August 23, or by mailing a very specific entry to their Headquarters at Gigafactory Texas.
Tesla announced the latter portion of the sweepstakes last night:
🚨 Want to win a trip to Austin to ride in one of the first Cybercab rides ever?
Here’s how:
Tesla has opened up a new sweepstakes to ride in a Cybercab upon its public launch. Here’s the details.
There are two methods of entry into the sweepstakes, and they are as follows:… pic.twitter.com/iJRd4evuWo
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 19, 2026
Tesla will give one entry into the sweepstakes if you mail a 3″ by 5″ piece of paper with your full name, mailing address, telephone number, email address, and date of birth to their address:
Tesla, Robotaxi Sweeps Event
1 Tesla Road,
Austin, TX 78725
There is a limit of one entry per stamped envelope. You can send as many as you’d like, but they must be in separate envelopes.
The company’s unique strategy to give people the opportunity to ride in a Cybercab before pretty much anyone else outside of the company is a hilarious but spot-on representation of how Tesla operates. In classic fashion, they had the perfect response to the event:
— Tesla (@Tesla) August 19, 2026
Cybercab will launch later this month, it appears, especially as it plans to announce the winners of the sweepstakes on August 25. The car has already been operating internally, as employees have been able to utilize the Cybercab for rides in some capacity, something it announced earlier this month.
Tesla weirdly confirms Cybercab employee rides, a huge milestone
Moving forward, the big goal is to get Cybercab out on the roads and integrated into the public Robotaxi fleet, one that will pick up real-world ride-hailers and give them a ride from Point A to Point B.
No matter which way you cut it, it appears Tesla is close to putting a vehicle with no steering wheel and no pedals on the road to help people travel autonomously.
You can ride along with us in our first Cybercab ride from the We, Robot event in October 2024. The video is embedded below:
🎥: Our FULL first ride in the @Tesla Cybercab pic.twitter.com/6gR7OgKRCz
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) October 11, 2024
Tesla has revealed plans through permit submissions for a massive Robotaxi charging hub in Austin, Texas.
Tesla plans to build the Supercharger hub in multiple phases, with the second phase potentially introducing wireless induction charging, something the company has been developing for the Robotaxi fleet.
Initially, 48 Tesla Robotaxi-geared Superchargers will be built on a lot just across from the St. Elmo, Texas, Service Center. There are about 80 additional spots that will not be impacted by phase 1 of the construction process.
Filings show that the second phase of the project will turn those 80 additional spots into wireless charging for Robotaxi, but it might be an error. The Key Notes state that item 3 is listed as “V4 Charging Cabinet to Support 80 Wireless Chargers in Phase 2. However, the drawings point to V3 Cabinets that are already tied to Superchargers:
There are roughly 128 total spots in the lot, but it is unclear if they will all be used for charging based on what appears to be some sort of typo in the blueprint.
A new Robotaxi fleet charging hub is coming soon to Austin, Texas!!
Permits have been filed for the installation of 48 (V3) stalls in a vehicle storage lot across the road from Tesla’s St Elmo service center. pic.twitter.com/xwRgSWDqht
— MarcoRP (@MarcoRPi1) August 18, 2026
This is among the first Robotaxi charging hubs Tesla has started to develop, as it currently has four others planned throughout various areas: one in Phoenix, one in San Antonio, another in Irving, which will serve the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and another in Las Vegas.
These projects are necessary as Tesla expands its Robotaxi program. Now that preparations have started for the public launch of Cybercab, Robotaxi will likely be expanding aggressively, especially over the next two to three years.
Last night, The Information reported that Tesla was planning to launch Cybercab as soon as the end of August. Hours later, Tesla then announced it was launching a competition for fans to potentially ride in Cybercab during its first public rides.
Tesla’s plan to expand its charging infrastructure in the regions where Robotaxi will initially operate is great preparation for the expanding service. There is still a lot to do, including launching the Cybercab on time.
SpaceX achieves incredible milestone with Starlink program
Tesla is opening Cybercab rides to a select few
