Energy
Tesla battery partner Panasonic debunks rumors about alleged Gigafactory 1 conflicts
Panasonic Corporation President Kazuhiro Tsuga effectively debunked speculations alleging that the Japanese company’s relationship with American electric car maker Tesla is on the rocks. During a recent Q&A session, Tsuga explained the dynamic between Tesla and Panasonic, as well as his insights about the idea of the electric car maker utilizing another battery supplier for Gigafactory 3.
The relationship between Tesla and Panasonic was thrown into question following a report from the Nikkei Asian Review last month, which alleged that the Japanese company was freezing its investments in Gigafactory 1. Tesla responded to the report, stating that there is far more output to be gained by improving the existing production lines in the Nevada-based factory. Elon Musk took to Twitter as well, stating that Panasonic’s lines at Gigafactory 1 are only operating at ~24 GWh per year despite having a theoretical capacity of 35 GWh.
Musk’s tweets were promptly interpreted as a “public battle” with Panasonic. Craig Irwin of Roth Capital Partners noted that “Tesla and Panasonic need couples counseling ASAP,” adding that “this is looking like a much more acrimonious relationship.” Tsuga, for his part, mentioned that Tesla and Panasonic maintain a “very good relationship between ourselves” during the Q&A session. Explaining further, the Panasonic President pointed out that the two companies have always been candid with each other, especially when it comes to investments in facilities such as Gigafactory 1.
“(In) the earlier session with the media, there was a question as to (whether) we have (a) bad relationship, (or if) we’re not getting along with Tesla. Well, we are making sure that we have a partnership relationship, not a supplier relationship. And since we are partners, we are very frank and candid and honest to each other. So on this battery business, as for the investment facilities — for the facilities that we have invested, can we maintain the battery operation with the orders coming in? From Tesla’s point of view, with the batteries being supplied, they can manufacture their vehicles on a full capacity basis.
“Unless that is established, this would not be a win-win relationship. In the past, what hurt us (was) that we were told that ‘This is the capacity you’ll need,’ but we couldn’t sell that much batteries. That’s the worst case. And that sense, Tesla is purchasing everything that we manufacture. And they have not just the electric vehicles but they do have the storage batteries as well, and they are asking for the capacity increase all the time. And therefore, we have capacity but not being produced. That situation is not envisioned for Gigafactory for now. So I think we have a very good relationship between ourselves,” Tsuga said.
Other concerns that were brought forward on the heels of the Nikkei report were Panasonic’s speculated issues about Tesla’s potential local battery partner in Gigafactory 3. Tesla is speculated to utilize a local battery supplier for the Shanghai-based electric car production facility, a strategy that analysts such as Cairn Energy Research Advisors managing director Sam Jaffe believed would irk Panasonic. “Tesla is starting to flirt with other battery makers in China, and Panasonic doesn’t like that,” Jaffe said in a statement to the Los Angeles Times.
Panasonic President Tsuga expressed a completely different sentiment about the topic, noting that it makes sense for Tesla to adopt a multiple supplier model for Gigafactory 3. “Now because of what happens in China, Tesla is considering a multiple supplier structure, which makes sense for Tesla maybe given the very special nature of doing business in China, and maybe they need to have that structure so as to be approved by China authority. So on the part of Tesla, they might prefer — they might start considering getting multiple suppliers, but that doesn’t mean that our relationship is being hurt and is being unstable, no. We continue to have very solid, very strong relationship with Tesla,” Tsuga said.
Panasonic and Tesla have been in a close working relationship for years. The Japanese company currently produces the battery cells for Tesla’s vehicles, from the 18650 cells used in the Model S and Model X to the 2170 cells utilized in the Model 3. Considering the recent statements of the Panasonic President, as well as Tesla’s ramp of its existing and upcoming products, it appears that the two companies’ partnership will likely remain strong for some time to come.
Energy
Taiwan power firm bets big on Tesla Megapacks as AI data center thirst grows
Taiwan’s Apollo Power orders 260 Tesla Megapacks, betting AI data centers will need more electricity.
A Taiwanese power company has ordered 260 Tesla Megapack 2XL units, roughly 1GWh of storage, betting that electricity rather than chips will decide how fast AI data centers come online. Apollo Power signed the contract with Tesla’s Taiwan energy arm on October 8, according to the company’s filing with the Taiwan stock exchange.
The filing says the units are meant for behind the meter storage and resilient grid projects, with delivery in batches from the end of 2027 and sites operating in 2028. Apollo and Tesla did not disclose a price, citing a confidentiality agreement. Apollo plans to pay for the equipment through a cash capital increase and bank financing, and it noted the purchase is not revenue and does not mean it holds firm orders from its partners.
Biggo reported that only about 33 units are under signed customer contracts, with roughly 150 more in negotiation. The same report put total project investment near NT$130 billion, but that figure includes installation work, with the equipment itself making up about 40 to 50 percent. In other words, a large share of this order is Apollo reserving supply ahead of demand. Apollo’s chairman told local media global large storage supply is tight, which is why the company locked in the units early, according to Yahoo Taiwan Finance.
Apollo also launched an AI data center and grid resilience alliance with Phison, Gigabyte and Shihlin Electric. The pitch rests on a pilot at Phison’s Zhunan plant, where Apollo and Tesla Energy Taiwan installed grid forming Megapack 2XLs in June. Tesla Energy Taiwan general manager Sun Hsiao-Han said the project went from demo to 1GWh in four months, and that Tesla Energy has deployed more than 50GWh worldwide.
Taiwan’s cabinet has approved amendments that would require large energy users to install their own generation and storage, which gives enterprise storage a regulatory tailwind.
The deal fits a pattern Teslarati has tracked. Tesla’s Megablock targets 1GWh commissioned in 20 business days, a pitch aimed squarely at fast moving data center builds. Megapacks already back xAI’s Colossus in Memphis and a 400MW AI campus in Brazil. Sun Media adds that Megapack 2XL was named among the first products in Nvidia’s DSX Ready qualification for battery storage in AI factories.
Deliveries are more than a year away, so the real test is how much of that 260 unit order turns into signed customer contracts.
Energy
Tesla Model 3 and Model Y can now do what only Cybertruck could
Tesla Model 3 and Model Y can power your home with Powerwall 3 during outages.
Tesla has turned its two top sellers into backup batteries for the house.
Tesla Energy announced on Tuesday that Powershare Home Backup is now available for new Model 3 and Model Y vehicles paired with a Powerwall 3, saying the car can “extend your home backup by over 2 days.” Minutes later, Tesla’s main account quoted the post with a broader pitch: “With Powerwall 3, every Tesla can now serve as your home’s backup battery.”
Until this week, the Cybertruck was the only Tesla that could send power back into a home, and that capability only began working alongside Powerwall 3 last month, after years of ambitious targets.
Tesla’s updated Powershare page says every Model 3 and Model Y ordered in the U.S. or Puerto Rico on or after October 1, 2026 can use the feature. Some, but not all, earlier cars also qualify. Owners can check on the touchscreen under Software, then Additional Vehicle Information, where a capable car shows “Powershare Support: Enabled.” As Electrek reported, bidirectional power on the two cars runs through an inverter Tesla calls PCS2 Lite, and the company has not said when that part entered production on each trim.
The home side is simpler. A house that already has a Powerwall 3 and either a Wall Connector 3 or Universal Wall Connector needs no additional equipment, and Tesla says compatibility is enabled through a software update. When the grid drops, the Powerwall and the car work together, with up to 11.52 kW of continuous power available. Tesla’s “over two days” estimate assumes a home using 30 kWh per day and a car starting at a 90 percent charge. Standard trims are rated for up to two days, while the Cybertruck adds more than three.
There are limits. Powerwall 2 and Powerwall+ support is listed as “coming soon.” Model S and Model X are not included, and Grid Support, the program that lets Cybertruck owners in Texas send power back to the grid during demand spikes for bill credits, is not available for Model 3 or Model Y.
The rollout also lines up with something Elon Musk said more than three years ago. At Tesla’s March 2023 Investor Day, Musk said, “I don’t think very many people are going to want to use bidirectional charging, unless you have a Powerwall.” Tesla has now shipped the feature for its volume cars with exactly that requirement attached.
The Powerwall pairing was the hard part on Cybertruck. Tesla told owners in December 2025 that Powershare with Powerwall had been pushed to mid 2026, and lead engineer Wes Morrill explained that two devices capable of forming a home’s grid have to negotiate which one leads during an outage, across multiple generations of hardware. With that work done for the truck, Tesla was able to extend it to the Model 3 and Model Y within a month.
Ford and GM have offered home backup from their EVs for several years, but both require a separate inverter and backup hardware. Tesla’s version leans on equipment many Powerwall 3 owners already have on the wall. Powershare for the two cars also ships as part of software update 2026.38.3, the same release that began delivering Halloween Mode on Tuesday.
Elon Musk
Google just picked SpaceX for its first step into orbital AI
Google will launch its first Project Suncatcher AI satellite on SpaceX’s Transporter-18 rideshare next week.
Google is about to put its own AI chips into orbit for the first time, and it is paying SpaceX to get them there.
The company said Thursday that the first in-orbit test of Project Suncatcher, its research effort to find out whether space can host large-scale AI computing, will fly next week on SpaceX’s Transporter-18 rideshare mission.
The satellite, called MVP, is about the size of a refrigerator and carries four of Google’s Tensor Processing Units, the same chips Google runs in its ground data centers. Google originally planned to launch two custom satellites in 2027, but chose to move faster by integrating its chips into a satellite.
MVP’s solar panels supply about one kilowatt of power, and Google will run Gemini models on the TPUs only in bursts of roughly 15 minutes before the chips shut down so the radiators can shed heat. In a blog post, Google said its Trillium TPUs survived vibration testing that mimicked sustained launch loads of up to 10g, with individual components seeing 50 to 100g, and handled a radiation dose greater than a five year mission would deliver.
SpaceX and Google mull massive partnership on Musk’s orbital data dream: report
Next week’s flight, slated for October 1, follows a relationship that became public in May, when Teslarati reported that Google was in talks with SpaceX for a launch deal tied to orbital data centers. Google also holds a stake of roughly 6% in SpaceX.
The two companies are chasing the same idea from very different starting points. SpaceX’s own orbital compute program is built around the AI1 satellite, a roughly 70 meter structure derived from Starlink V3 hardware that is designed for 150 kW of peak compute, about 150 times the power MVP will draw. Elon Musk has brushed off concerns about crowding orbit with those satellites, and SpaceX is building its Gigasat factory in Bastrop, Texas, to produce them, targeting an annualized rate of about 1 GW of space compute by the end of 2027.
Musk also posted on X on Thursday that “the amount of compute in space will obviously round up to 100% of all compute.”
Google has been more cautious in public. Its research estimates that launch prices need to fall below about $200 per kilogram before an orbital data center can compete with a ground facility on energy cost, a threshold the company believes could be reached around the mid 2030s. The Suncatcher team has said it expects the effort to remain a project rather than a product for years, which leaves the first real test of its hardware riding on a rocket from the company with the most aggressive timeline in the field.
Tesla’s secretive “Project Crystal Sun” gets a big green light in Texas
Tesla is building its own maps to fix Navigation issues
