News
Tesla Semi returns to Des Moines, IA as road tests and customer visits continue
Just a few days after visiting UPS’ hub in Addison, IL, the Tesla Semi has been spotted in Des Moines, IA. The Semi’s interstate travels appear to be part of the company’s continued road tests, which also involve visits to some of its reservation holders.
This is actually not the first time the Tesla Semi was photographed in Des Moines. Last April, the matte black Tesla Semi, an operational prototype that has not been spotted on roads lately, was sighted being transported heading east into I-80 in the Des Moines, IA area. Des Moines hosts the headquarters of Ruan Transportation Management Systems, one of Tesla’s reservation holders for the Semi.

Ruan noted in an announcement back in January that it had been in touch with Tesla about the upcoming all-electric long-hauler even before the Semi was unveiled in November. Over the months leading up to the vehicle’s reveal, Ruan was invited by Tesla to take part in on-site meetings and discussions about the vehicle.
Ruan announced an order of 5 Tesla Semis in January, though it has not provided an update since then. Considering that the Tesla Semi has been making the rounds visiting some reservation holders like J.B. Hunt and UPS, it would not be too surprising if Ruan’s headquarters would soon get a visit from the prototype electric truck as well.
Tesla’s recent visits and sightings are quite notable, in the way that the company appears to be adopting a more open stance about the vehicle. Anecdotes from members of the Tesla community fortunate enough to come across the Semi indicate that the team accompanying the truck are incredibly willing to answer any questions about the long-hauler. Apart from this, the truck’s recent visits to reservation holders like J.B. Hunt and UPS were also a lot more hands-on and interactive. The truck’s recent visit at the Addison, IL UPS hub, for one, even involved rides (and seemingly even test drives) in the vehicle.
Tesla had around 2,000 reservations for the Semi as of the Q1 2018 earnings call last May. The company has not issued an update on the number of pre-orders for the truck since then, though Elon Musk noted during the Q2 2018 earnings call that Tesla is still in the process of improving the vehicle’s capabilities before it enters production.
The Tesla Semi could be the company’s most disruptive vehicle in its lineup, considering that the trucking industry is responsible for the transportation of up to 71% of food, retail goods, construction supplies, and other cargo delivered to customers and businesses every day. The industry is steadily growing as well, with the trucking market generating $700.3 billion in economic activity last year, a 3.5% increase compared to the $676.6 billion it made in 2016.
Just like Tesla’s other vehicles, the Semi boasts impressive specs. The electric truck is powered by four Model 3-derived electric motors, which give it instant torque. The Semi is also rated as a Class 8 truck, and is listed with a 0-60 mph time of 5 seconds flat when accelerating without cargo. The Semi is expected to be released in two variations — a 300-mile short-range variant and a 500-mile long-range version. That said, Elon Musk has noted that the long-range Semi could have closer to 600 miles of range per charge.
News
Tesla Model Y and Model 3 named safest vehicles tested by ANCAP in 2025
According to ANCAP in a press release, the Tesla Model Y achieved the highest overall weighted score of any vehicle assessed in 2025.
The Tesla Model Y recorded the highest overall safety score of any vehicle tested by ANCAP in 2025. The Tesla Model 3 also delivered strong results, reinforcing the automaker’s safety leadership in Australia and New Zealand.
According to ANCAP in a press release, the Tesla Model Y achieved the highest overall weighted score of any vehicle assessed in 2025. ANCAP’s 2025 tests evaluated vehicles across four key pillars: Adult Occupant Protection, Child Occupant Protection, Vulnerable Road User Protection, and Safety Assist technologies.
The Model Y posted consistently strong results in all four categories, distinguishing itself through a system-based safety approach that combines structural crash protection with advanced driver-assistance features such as autonomous emergency braking, lane support, and driver monitoring.

This marked the second time the Model Y has topped ANCAP’s annual safety rankings. The Model Y’s previous version was also ANCAP’s top performer in 2022.
The Tesla Model 3 also delivered a strong performance in ANCAP’s 2025 tests, contributing to Tesla’s broader safety presence across segments. Similar to the Model Y, the Model 3 also earned impressive scores across the ANCAP’s four pillars. This made the vehicle the top performer in the Medium Car category.
ANCAP Chief Executive Officer Carla Hoorweg stated that the results highlight a growing industry shift toward integrated safety design, with improvements in technologies such as autonomous emergency braking and lane support translating into meaningful real-world protection.
“ANCAP’s testing continues to reinforce a clear message: the safest vehicles are those designed with safety as a system, not a checklist. The top performers this year delivered consistent results across physical crash protection, crash avoidance and vulnerable road user safety, rather than relying on strength in a single area.
“We are also seeing increasing alignment between ANCAP’s test requirements and the safety technologies that genuinely matter on Australian and New Zealand roads. Improvements in autonomous emergency braking, lane support, and driver monitoring systems are translating into more robust protection,” Hoorweg said.
News
Tesla Sweden uses Megapack battery to bypass unions’ Supercharger blockade
Just before Christmas, Tesla went live with a new charging station in Arlandastad, outside Stockholm, by powering it with a Tesla Megapack battery.
Tesla Sweden has successfully launched a new Supercharger station despite an ongoing blockade by Swedish unions, using on-site Megapack batteries instead of traditional grid connections. The workaround has allowed the Supercharger to operate without direct access to Sweden’s electricity network, which has been effectively frozen by labor action.
Tesla has experienced notable challenges connecting its new charging stations to Sweden’s power grid due to industrial action led by Seko, a major Swedish trade union, which has blocked all new electrical connections for new Superchargers. On paper, this made the opening of new Supercharger sites almost impossible.
Despite the blockade, Tesla has continued to bring stations online. In Malmö and Södertälje, new Supercharger locations opened after grid operators E.ON and Telge Nät activated the sites. The operators later stated that the connections had been made in error.
More recently, however, Tesla adopted a different strategy altogether. Just before Christmas, Tesla went live with a new charging station in Arlandastad, outside Stockholm, by powering it with a Tesla Megapack battery, as noted in a Dagens Arbete (DA) report.
Because the Supercharger station does not rely on a permanent grid connection, Tesla was able to bypass the blocked application process, as noted by Swedish car journalist and YouTuber Peter Esse. He noted that the Arlandastad Supercharger is likely dependent on nearby companies to recharge the batteries, likely through private arrangements.
Eight new charging stalls have been launched in the Arlandastad site so far, which is a fraction of the originally planned 40 chargers for the location. Still, the fact that Tesla Sweden was able to work around the unions’ efforts once more is impressive, especially since Superchargers are used even by non-Tesla EVs.
Esse noted that Tesla’s Megapack workaround is not as easily replicated in other locations. Arlandastad is unique because neighboring operators already have access to grid power, making it possible for Tesla to source electricity indirectly. Still, Esse noted that the unions’ blockades have not affected sales as much.
“Many want Tesla to lose sales due to the union blockades. But you have to remember that sales are falling from 2024, when Tesla sold a record number of cars in Sweden. That year, the unions also had blockades against Tesla. So for Tesla as a charging operator, it is devastating. But for Tesla as a car company, it does not matter in terms of sales volumes. People charge their cars where there is an opportunity, usually at home,” Esse noted.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk’s X goes down as users report major outage Friday morning
Error messages and stalled loading screens quickly spread across the service, while outage trackers recorded a sharp spike in user reports.
Elon Musk’s X experienced an outage Friday morning, leaving large numbers of users unable to access the social media platform.
Error messages and stalled loading screens quickly spread across the service, while outage trackers recorded a sharp spike in user reports.
Downdetector reports
Users attempting to open X were met with messages such as “Something went wrong. Try reloading,” often followed by an endless spinning icon that prevented access, according to a report from Variety. Downdetector data showed that reports of problems surged rapidly throughout the morning.
As of 10:52 a.m. ET, more than 100,000 users had reported issues with X. The data indicated that 56% of complaints were tied to the mobile app, while 33% were related to the website and roughly 10% cited server connection problems. The disruption appeared to begin around 10:10 a.m. ET, briefly eased around 10:35 a.m., and then returned minutes later.

Previous disruptions
Friday’s outage was not an isolated incident. X has experienced multiple high-profile service interruptions over the past two years. In November, tens of thousands of users reported widespread errors, including “Internal server error / Error code 500” messages. Cloudflare-related error messages were also reported.
In March 2025, the platform endured several brief outages spanning roughly 45 minutes, with more than 21,000 reports in the U.S. and 10,800 in the U.K., according to Downdetector. Earlier disruptions included an outage in August 2024 and impairments to key platform features in July 2023.