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Tesla produces one Model Y every 2 minutes, media finds after Giga Shanghai tour
Chinese motoring outlet Pacific Automotive Network was recently granted limited access to the Phase 2 area of Gigafactory Shanghai, which produces the Model Y. Over the course of its exclusive tour, the media outlet observed several interesting tidbits about the state of the electric car maker’s Model Y production line. One of these is the fact that Giga Shanghai’s Phase 2 zone is already building an average of 700 Model Y per day.
According to the media outlet, the Model Y line in the Shanghai-based plant currently has a converted production cycle of 29 jobs per hour. This means that Tesla China, despite only producing the all-electric crossover for a few months, is already capable of building one Model Y every two minutes. That’s an impressive milestone, especially considering that this translates to an annual run-rate of about 250,000 vehicles.
Local projections for the Model Y line in Giga Shanghai’s Phase 2 zone estimate that the facility would have an annual production capacity of 200,000 vehicles this year. Considering that Tesla is already producing an average of 700 Model Y per day, however, this 200,000-vehicle target may very well be exceeded by the end of the year. Tesla’s Q4 FY 2020 Update Letter also estimated Giga Shanghai to produce a total of 450,000 Model 3 and Model Y this year, a number that seems conservative considering the current pace of the all-electric crossover’s manufacturing ramp.
Apart from its observations about the Model Y’s output, PC Auto also shared several insights and observations from Gigafactory Shanghai’s Phase 2 zone. These include Tesla’s use of a two-story layout for the vehicle’s production line, which enables a seamless assembly of the vehicle. Also notable were the cleverly-placed logistics doors on the side of the Phase 2 building, which allows parts and components to be taken to the production line directly after they are delivered. Interestingly enough, the entire complex was also observed to be immaculately clean and tidy, which the motoring outlet noted is quite rare to see in a vehicle manufacturing plant.
Of course, no trip to a Model Y production line would be complete without a look at the Giga Press, which produces the all-electric crossover’s single-piece rear underbody. The motoring news outlet highlighted that Tesla is pretty much the only company that uses such massive machines, which make the production of the Model Y simpler. This simple assembly process carries over to the Model Y’s wiring as well, which is already far shorter than the 1.5 km of wiring used in the Model 3 at just about 100 meters.
Ultimately, the rare visit to Giga Shanghai’s Model Y facility proved one thing: Tesla’s electric car factories definitely follow their own rhythm. Very little of the Phase 2 building could be considered similar to the factories of traditional automakers, while the majority of the operations in the area are specifically-designed for the company’s vehicles. This emphasis on simplicity and efficiency is evident throughout the entire complex, from the number of components in the Model Y to the design of the production line itself.
Check out PC Auto’s full account of its Giga Shanghai visit here.
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For years, there have been images and videos across social media platforms that have reminded me of when I was a 15-year-old kid teased by “Xbox 720” videos on YouTube. These videos are of the supposed “Tesla Phone” that Elon Musk was secretly developing in between leading Tesla with its electric cars and SpaceX with its reusable rockets.
Would you buy a Tesla phone ? pic.twitter.com/aaTwvvIJit
— Tesla Owners Silicon Valley (@teslaownersSV) October 6, 2023
Although Musk has put those rumors to bed several times, it was never completely out of the realm that he could get involved in cell phones in some capacity. Think outside the box and more macro-level, though. Instead of reinventing the computer, Musk reinvented connectivity by developing Starlink with SpaceX.
It could be something similar, TD Cowen analyst Gregory Williams said in a note last week, where he hinted SpaceX could be gathering some steam to acquire T-Mobile.
Williams said it would be the “clear choice” for SpaceX if it decided to go through with a network acquisition. He also suggested AT&T.
The move would be possible through selling more of its own stock, which would help SpaceX raise the money to purchase T-Mobile, which would cost roughly $300 billion. It could be one of the moves SpaceX makes post-IPO in terms of an acquisition: it already acquired Cursor AI for $60 billion.
Other analysts, like Dan Ives of Wedbush, believe SpaceX and Tesla will eventually merge into one anyway, and that conglomeration could come as soon as this year, some have said.
The implications of SpaceX purchasing T-Mobile are massive. A combined entity would create a truly ubiquitous network: T-Mobile’s terrestrial 5G towers and Starlink’s growing constellation of Direct-to-Cell satellites. This would essentially eliminate dead zones across the U.S. and potentially globally.
SpaceX would instantly become a full-scale facilities-based carrier with satellite differentiation; a huge advantage. This would pressure AT&T and Verizon heavily.
There are also concerns like a potential reduction in long-term competition, and of course, a deal of that size would face intense scrutiny from government agencies.
The strategic fit is compelling due to the existing Starlink–T-Mobile partnership and complementary technologies (space + terrestrial). It could create a dominant integrated communications player. However, the regulatory, financial, and execution hurdles are enormous — this remains highly speculative with no indication SpaceX is actively pursuing it right now.
Tesla revealed a major new Cybercab detail in a guide it released for First Responders, showing new territory in its beliefs and intentions for the ride-hailing-focused vehicle that entered production in April.
The First Responders Guide is released to give fire departments, paramedics, and other emergency personnel the proper guidance on what to do in the event of an accident, entrapment, or other situation that would require immediate attention.
On one of the pages of the First Responders Guide, Tesla revealed a stark detail about the Cybercab, which could help personnel enter the vehicle more easily in case of an emergency.
Tesla Cybercab has one important piece that AI4 cars might need for FSD
It shows Tesla has no intention of releasing any Cybercab units that were initially proposed for ride-hailing services for the general public with any manual controls, meaning a steering wheel or pedals:
“A Cybercab equipped with steering wheel, brake pedal, and an acceleration pedal is typically an engineering or test vehicle, and operates at SAE Level 2 autonomy. Cybercab is not typically equipped with a steering wheel or acceleration and brake pedals.”
New official Cybercab documentation from Tesla:
“A Cybercab equipped with steering wheel, brake pedal, and an acceleration pedal is typically an engineering or test vehicle, and operates at SAE Level 2 autonomy. Cybercab is not typically equipped with a steering wheel or… https://t.co/P6ut1mZyzr pic.twitter.com/yq6skl9s2J
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) June 27, 2026
This is a major development for those who continue to believe Tesla planned to release the Cybercab with any sort of manual controls so that passengers could take over if needed. However, when Tesla started manufacturing production versions of the Cybercab in Giga Texas earlier this year, they were spotted without a steering wheel or pedals.
It essentially confirms the company has no intentions of bringing manual controls to the car’s production versions. Some have argued that the likelihood of Tesla having something
There still are some Cybercab units out there with a steering wheel and pedals, and as Tesla said, these cars are engineering or test vehicles, which have Safety Monitors on board to help the car out of a precarious situation or emergency.
Tesla released the Full Self-Driving v14 ‘Lite’ suite to owners of Hardware 3 or AI3 vehicles today, adding several new features to the vehicles that were once believed to be capable of unsupervised self-driving.
Now, Tesla has released this modified suite to older Tesla vehicles, adding plenty of new features and capabilities.
Here are the full release notes for the suite:
- Distilled the intelligence from HW4 V14 into HW3. This allows HW3 to directly learn how to handle scenarios using HW4 V14 as a guide. This process unlocks the improvements that have been made to HW4 including Reinforcement Learning (RL) and offline models for HW3.
- Improved both proactive and reactive responsiveness across a wide variety of categories including navigation handling, merges and forks, pedestrian interactions, traffic lights, and vehicle cut-in scenarios.
- Improved general comfort in nominal scenarios through fewer false slowdowns, smoother steering and more consistent lane centering.
- Introduced parking, unparking, and reversing capabilities.
- Added Arrival Options for you to select where FSD should park: in a Parking Lot, on the Street, in a Driveway, or at the Curbside.
- Speed Profiles are now available at all times, to further customize driving style preference.
These improvements, according to Tesla’s Head of AI, Ashok Elluswamy, help distill the driving behavior from AI4’s v14 series into both the camera and compute configurations of AI3.
Tesla Full Self-Driving v14 ‘Lite’ for older cars finally gets released
He added:
“It includes destination options and speed profiles on city roads, but more importantly significantly improved safety. We hope you’ll enjoy it, once the build ships wide.”
FSD v14 Lite is now rolling out to AI3 early-access customers. Based on the feedback, will rollout to more customers over the next few weeks.
This build distills the driving behavior from AI4’s v14 series into both the camera and compute config of AI3. It includes destination…
— Ashok Elluswamy (@aelluswamy) June 29, 2026
Tesla will continue to roll out the v14 Lite suite more widely in the coming weeks, the company said.
Tesla Phone? Not quite, but close: analyst
Tesla reveals huge Cybercab detail in new guide for First Responders
