China’s regulatory agency handling automotive concerns has released a draft on what it is considering to be standard for door handle designs on vehicles, following some scrutiny it placed upon Tesla’s designs.

Over the past few weeks, we have reported on two different criticisms Tesla has faced with its door handle designs, one in China and one in the United States. Both will require the company to come up with solutions and potentially new engineering.

Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen appeared on Bloomberg last week and said the company is already looking to implement something that will bring together the mechanical and electrical releases that the door handles depend on.

Tesla addresses door handle complaints with simple engineering fix

Some vehicles in the Tesla lineup already have mechanical latches on all four doors to enable them to open in the event of a dead battery. However, there are some additional measures that need to be taken.

The first guidelines are being released by the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), which composed a draft called “Technical Requirements for Automobile Door Handle Safety.”

🚨 It sounds like some changes will be coming to Tesla’s door handles in China

The MIIT wrote in a new case study that it’s requiring a change to prevent getting locked in the car:

“[The] operating space must be ≥60mm×20mm×25mm (roughly the space for a palm to maneuver).” https://t.co/IYkruyzogI

— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) September 24, 2025

There are a handful of new standards, including a required mechanical release for every door on the vehicle apart from the trunk. Additionally, there are some other requirements, such as the ability to open side doors from the external handles without the use of tools.

Here are the six guidelines that the MIIT are mulling as requirements (via CarNewsChina):

• Every door (excluding trunk lids) must feature an external handle with mechanical release functionality
• In case of accidents involving battery thermal events, non-collision side doors must be openable through external handles without tools
• External door handles must provide adequate hand operation space of at least 60mm×20mm×25mm, regardless of handle position
• Every door must include internal handles with mechanical release capability that can open doors without external tools
• If electric internal handles are installed, mechanical backup handles must also be provided
• Internal handles must be easily identifiable, clearly visible, positioned within 300mm of door edges, and located within specific zones relative to seating positions

These new standards were developed by the China Automotive Standardization Research Institute, and Deputy Director Rong Hui stated that the organization used 63 vehicle models from 20 different companies to establish these early requirements:

“With the development of automotive electrification, electric concealed door handles have been widely adopted, and the operation methods and structural types of door handle products on the market are increasingly diverse. These standards aim to respond to new technologies and safety requirements.”

The MIIT also did its own research, which utilized 230 different vehicle models’ door handle configurations. Validation testing was performed on more than 20 models.

Tesla’s Planned Adjustments

Based on what von Holzhausen said, Tesla plans to make some adjustments to its door handles, implementing simple fixes.

Tesla plans to combine both the mechanical and electrical releases to help reduce stress in “panic situations.” Franz said the company has a “really good solution for that.”

In regard to the mechanical release, he said, “it’s in the cars now…The idea of combining the electronic and the manual one together in one button, I think, makes a lot of sense.”

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) has finalized a major agreement with Elon Musk’s xAI, making its Grok artificial intelligence models available to government agencies nationwide. 

Announced on Thursday, the deal provides access to Grok at $0.42 per organization, one of the lowest pricing structures yet for AI services under GSA’s OneGov initiative. The contract runs until March 2027, marking the longest term for a OneGov AI agreement to date.

Low-cost access

The agreement covers both Grok 4 and Grok 4 Fast, xAI’s advanced reasoning models, and includes dedicated engineering support for agencies adopting the tools, the GSA stated in a press release. Federal offices will also be able to pursue upgrade paths to enterprise subscriptions aligned with FedRAMP and Department of Defense security standards.

To make adoption easier, xAI will deliver training programs and tailored enablement services, helping agencies integrate AI models into existing workflows securely. The GSA emphasized that the contract is designed to accelerate responsible AI use while standardizing pricing and avoiding duplicative procurement deals across the government.

Federal Acquisition Service Commissioner Josh Gruenbaum is optimistic about Grok’s use in the federal government. “Widespread access to advanced AI models is essential to building the efficient, accountable government that taxpayers deserve—and to fulfilling President Trump’s promise that America will win the global AI race. We value xAI for partnering with GSA—and dedicating engineers—to accelerate the adoption of Grok to transform government operations,” he stated.

Expanding AI access

The Grok agreement is part of the broader OneGov Strategy, which was launched earlier this year to modernize federal technology acquisition. Under the initiative, agencies gain access to AI tools from leading providers at negotiated rates, ensuring consistent pricing and simplified procurement. Companies such as OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and Meta have signed similar deals, but xAI’s contract is currently the longest in duration and lowest in cost. For context, OpenAI is charging government agencies $1 per year for ChatGPT, as noted in a Bloomberg News report.

Elon Musk, for his part, is grateful for the opportunity to use Grok in the federal government. “xAI has the most powerful AI compute and most capable AI models in the world. Thanks to President Trump and his administration, xAI’s frontier AI is now unlocked for every federal agency empowering the U.S. Government to innovate faster and accomplish its mission more effectively than ever before,” he said.

xAI cofounder Ross Nordeen also shared his thoughts about the matter. “‘Grok for Government’ will deliver transformational AI capabilities at $0.42 per agency for 18 months, with a dedicated engineering team ensuring mission success. We will work hand in glove with the entire government to not only deploy AI, but to deeply understand the needs of our government to make America the world leader in advanced use of AI,” he said.

During his annual speech, Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun shared his thoughts about Tesla and the Model Y. The best-selling all-electric crossover is the primary rival of Xiaomi’s own YU7, which has seen a lot of interest in China.

Despite the competition, Lei Jun noted that the Model Y is a very impressive vehicle.

Model Y teardown

As per the Xiaomi executive, the Chinese tech giant actually purchased three Tesla Model Y units earlier this year so they could study them. During their teardown, Xiaomi’s team was very impressed with the all-electric crossover.

“We bought three Tesla Model Ys for disassembly and research inside Xiaomi earlier this year. What a great vehicle,” Lei Jun stated.

He also noted that consumers who do not like Xiaomi’s YU7 should strongly consider a Model Y instead. “If you don’t like Xiaomi YU7, you can choose Model Y,” he said.

Not just because of Elon Musk’s fame

In previous comments, Lei Jun noted that the Model Y is a great vehicle, not just because the company’s CEO is a prolific individual. He also admitted that the Model Y is actually a leading vehicle in several important metrics, such as energy consumption and tech features like FSD, among others.

“It is the world’s best-selling vehicle not simply because of Musk fame and there is a lot to it. We (Xiaomi) torn down Model Y and analyzed it. There’s a lot to learn from Model Y. Tesla is not only leading in vehicle energy consumption, FSD, etc. It is also leading in many other aspects,” he said.

Lei Jun also shared his congratulations following Tesla’s first driverless vehicle delivery demonstrations in Austin. “Tesla is indeed amazing, leading the industry trends in many areas, especially FSD. We still have to continue learning!” Lei Jun wrote on Weibo in a response to Tesla VP Grace Tao, who posted about the milestone.