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Tesla’s apparent red carpet treatment in India an effective tool against rivals
While Tesla has seen notable challenges breaking into India in the past, the electric vehicle maker appears to be receiving a red carpet welcome of sorts this time around. This bodes well for Tesla, and it could result in the company not competing with some of its strongest rivals in the country, at least in the near future.
Tesla is the world leader in pure electric vehicles, but in China, the company has a number of strong competitors. These include BYD, which outsell Tesla in China in terms of New Energy Vehicles (NEVs) sales. BYD’s sales of pure electric cars lag against Tesla’s, but in terms of raw NEV volumes, the Chinese automaker is far ahead of the American EV company.
India is an increasingly important market in the auto industry. Thus, companies that could attain a lead against rivals in the Indian market could establish a notable lead against their rivals. This was hinted at by Jasmeet Khurana of the World Economic Forum in a comment to Reuters.
“The future of who wins in India will have some bearing on who wins globally in the EV race,” Khurana said.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met in New York back in June, and since then, it appears that the EV maker is being fast-tracked for its entry into the country. Tesla is reportedly in discussions with Indian officials for the buildout of a plant that would have the capacity to produce a new low-cost electric car that’s expected to be priced at around $24,000.
Sources reportedly close to the matter have noted that the talks had continued over the past week, with Tesla allegedly discussing the details of its plans. Modi is reportedly tracking the discussions’ developments as well.
Amidst these circumstances, Chinese automaker BYD, which is arguably Tesla’s largest rival in China, seems to be taking a backseat in India. BYD had previously aimed to secure clearance for a $1 billion investment into the country, but later reports suggested that the company is no longer keen to secure the deal. BYD is also facing an investigation over allegations that it had underpaid import taxes in the country.
Indian officials are reportedly worried as well about the national security implications of Chinese-made vehicles in the country. An official has reportedly noted that India is “uncomfortable with Chinese automakers” as well.
Without some of its strongest rivals in India, Tesla could very well expand its reach into the country’s growing EV sector without any issues. This bodes well for Tesla, especially if it is able to release a small, affordable car that’s a good fit for the Indian market. Sam Fiorani of AutoForecast Solutions stated that ultimately, India presents some great possibilities for Tesla.
“Tesla has become a desirable product in name alone. Add to that an affordable product tailored for the Indian market, and it has the potential to be a hit locally,” Fiorani said.
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News
Tesla begins Robotaxi certification push in Arizona: report
Tesla seems serious about expanding its Robotaxi service to several states in the coming months.

Tesla has initiated discussions with Arizona transportation regulators to certify its driverless Robotaxi service in the state, as per a recent report from Bloomberg News. The move follows Tesla’s launch of its Robotaxi pilot program in Austin, Texas, as well as CEO Elon Musk’s recent comments about the service’s expansion in the Bay Area.
The Arizona Department of Transportation confirmed to Bloomberg that Tesla has reached out to begin the certification process for autonomous ride-sharing operations in the state. While details remain limited, the outreach suggests that Tesla is serious about expanding its driverless Robotaxi service to several territories in the coming months.
The Arizona development comes as Tesla prepares to expand its service area in Austin this weekend, as per CEO Elon Musk in a post on X. Musk also stated that Tesla is targeting the San Francisco Bay Area as its next major market, with a potential launch “in a month or two,” pending regulatory approvals.
Tesla first launched its autonomous ride-hailing program on June 22 in Austin with a small fleet of Model Y vehicles, accompanied by a Tesla employee in the passenger seat to monitor safety. While still classified as a test, Musk has said the program will expand to about 1,000 vehicles in the coming months. Tesla will later upgrade its Robotaxi fleet with the Cyercab, a two-seater that is designed without a steering wheel.
Sightings of Cybercab castings around the Giga Texas complex suggests that Tesla may be ramping the initial trial production of the self-driving two-seater. Tesla, for its part, has noted in the past that volume production of the Cybercab is expected to start sometime next year.
In California, Tesla has already applied for a transportation charter-party carrier permit from the state’s Public Utilities Commission. The company is reportedly taking a phased approach to operating in California, with the Robotaxi service starting with pre-arranged rides for employees in vehicles with safety drivers.
News
Tesla sets November 6 date for 2025 Annual Shareholder Meeting
The automaker announced the date on Thursday in a Form 8-K.

Tesla has scheduled its 2025 annual shareholder meeting for November 6, addressing investor concerns that the company was nearing a legal deadline to hold the event.
The automaker announced the date on Thursday in a Form 8-K submitted to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The company also listed a new proposal submission deadline of July 31 for items to be included in the proxy statement.
Tesla’s announcement followed calls from a group of 27 shareholders, including the leaders of large public pension funds, which urged Tesla’s board to formally set the meeting date, as noted in a report from The Wall Street Journal.
The group noted that under Texas law, where Tesla is now incorporated, companies must hold annual meetings within 13 months of the last one if requested by shareholders. Tesla’s previous annual shareholder meeting was held on June 13, 2024, which placed the July 13 deadline in focus.
Tesla originally stated in its 2024 annual report that it would file its proxy statement by the end of April. However, an amended filing on April 30 indicated that the Board of Directors had not yet finalized a meeting date, at least at the time.
The April filing also confirmed that Tesla’s board had formed a special committee to evaluate certain matters related to CEO Elon Musk’s compensation plan. Musk’s CEO performance award remains at the center of a lengthy legal dispute in Delaware, Tesla’s former state of incorporation.
Due to the aftermath of Musk’s legal dispute about his compensation plan in Delaware, he has not been paid for his work at Tesla for several years. Musk, for his part, has noted that he is more concerned about his voting stake in Tesla than his actual salary.
At last year’s annual meeting, TSLA shareholders voted to reapprove Elon Musk’s compensation plan and ratified Tesla’s decision to relocate its legal domicile from Delaware to Texas.
Elon Musk
Grok coming to Tesla vehicles next week “at the latest:” Elon Musk
Grok’s rollout to Tesla vehicles is expected to begin next week at the latest.

Elon Musk announced on Thursday that Grok, the large language model developed by his startup xAI, will soon be available in Tesla vehicles. Grok’s rollout to Tesla vehicles is expected to begin next week at the latest, further deepening the ties between the two Elon Musk-led companies.
Tesla–xAI synergy
Musk confirmed the news on X shortly after livestreaming the release of Grok 4, xAI’s latest large language model. “Grok is coming to Tesla vehicles very soon. Next week at the latest,” Musk wrote in a post on social media platform X.
During the livestream, Musk and several members of the xAI team highlighted several upgrades to Grok 4’s voice capabilities and performance metrics, positioning the LLM as competitive with top-tier models from OpenAI and Google.
The in-vehicle integration of Grok marks a new chapter in Tesla’s AI development. While Tesla has long relied on in-house systems for autonomous driving and energy optimization, Grok’s integration would introduce conversational AI directly into its vehicles’ user experience. This integration could potentially improve customer interaction inside Tesla vehicles.
xAI and Tesla’s collaborative footprint
Grok’s upcoming rollout to Tesla vehicles adds to a growing business relationship between Tesla and xAI. Earlier this year, Tesla disclosed that it generated $198.3 million in revenue from commercial, consulting, and support agreements with xAI, as noted in a report from Bloomberg News. A large portion of that amount, however, came from the sale of Megapack energy storage systems to the artificial intelligence startup.
In July 2023, Musk polled X users about whether Tesla should invest $5 billion in xAI. While no formal investment has been made so far, 68% of poll participants voted yes, and Musk has since stated that the idea would be discussed with Tesla’s board.
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