News
Tesla Semi Run On Less results really show serious BAMF performance
The Tesla Semi is proving its worth in the ongoing 2023 Run on Less Electric Depot event. In less than 48 hours, one of the Tesla Semis from PepsiCo covered a distance of 1,600 miles. As per Rocky Mountain Institute’s David Mullaney, it’s the Tesla Semi’s charging performance that is making these impressive feats possible.
When Elon Musk unveiled the Tesla Semi way back in late 2017, he made it a point to highlight that the electric Class 8 truck would be a cut above its peers. One of the slides that were shown during the event caught the eye of social media users as it stated that the Tesla Semi will feature “BAMF performance.”
“BAMF” typically means “bad *ss mother f**ker” on the internet, which is pretty much in line with Tesla’s humor. Based on the performance of the Tesla Semis at the 2023 Run on Less Electric Depot event so far, it would appear that such a description is indeed accurate for the vehicle.
PepsiCo is testing three Tesla Semi units in the 2023 Run on Less Electric Depot event. One of the trucks, Tesla Semi #3, was tracked to have done 794 miles during its second day of tests. The following day, the Class 8 all-electric truck traveled a total of 806 miles. Interestingly enough, Mullaney noted that during the nearly 48-hour period and 1,600-mile journey, Tesla Semi #3 was continuously on the move.
The Tesla Semis are not exactly running the routes with no load either. As per North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE) ‘s Mike Roeth, the Tesla Semi trucks are hauling heavy loads.
“We’re tracking the beverage. It’s impressive, a fairly heavy haul at nearly 80,000 pounds. It goes to one location and drops off soda, but maybe picks up some waters, goes to another location to drop off water but pick up Gatorade. We don’t really know the payload, (but) NACFE has verified that these are fairly fully loaded when they leave and stay fairly loaded. They’re not out there gaming Run on Less,” Roeth said.
Mullaney noted that such performance is only made possible by the Tesla Semi’s battery. While Tesla has not shared the full specs of the vehicle’s battery, it is evident that the Semi can take high power charges for an extended period of time.
“PepsiCo’s Tesla Semi #3 just did 1600 miles in a little less than 48 hours, with the truck pretty much continually moving outside three brief but fruitful charges (along with two range extending mini charges). It’s really that charging that unlocks this. The early morning charge on Day 3 gets 75% SOC in about an hour (from 5% to 80%).
“That is remarkable. This isn’t just enabled by the 750 kW charger, but also the ability of the battery to take a high power charge for a long period of time. That ‘charge curve’ remaining very steep up to and beyond 80% SOC is what really unlocks the mileage we are seeing from this truck. In the old days, charging a battery like that would fry it in pretty short order,” Mullaney said.
Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads-up.
Elon Musk
Brazil Supreme Court orders Elon Musk and X investigation closed
The decision was issued by Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes following a recommendation from Brazil’s Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet.
Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court has ordered the closure of an investigation involving Elon Musk and social media platform X. The inquiry had been pending for about two years and examined whether the platform was used to coordinate attacks against members of the judiciary.
The decision was issued by Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes following a recommendation from Brazil’s Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet.
According to a report from Agencia Brasil, the investigation conducted by the Federal Police did not find evidence that X deliberately attempted to attack the judiciary or circumvent court orders.
Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet concluded that the irregularities identified during the probe did not indicate fraudulent intent.
Justice Moraes accepted the prosecutor’s recommendation and ruled that the investigation should be closed. Under the ruling, the case will remain closed unless new evidence emerges.
The inquiry stemmed from concerns that content on X may have enabled online attacks against Supreme Court justices or violated rulings requiring the suspension of certain accounts under investigation.
Justice Moraes had previously taken several enforcement actions related to the platform during the broader dispute involving social media regulation in Brazil.
These included ordering a nationwide block of the platform, freezing Starlink accounts, and imposing fines on X totaling about $5.2 million. Authorities also froze financial assets linked to X and SpaceX through Starlink to collect unpaid penalties and seized roughly $3.3 million from the companies’ accounts.
Moraes also imposed daily fines of up to R$5 million, about $920,000, for alleged evasion of the X ban and established penalties of R$50,000 per day for VPN users who attempted to bypass the restriction.
Brazil remains an important market for X, with roughly 17 million users, making it one of the platform’s larger user bases globally.
The country is also a major market for Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet service, which has surpassed one million subscribers in Brazil.
Elon Musk
FCC chair criticizes Amazon over opposition to SpaceX satellite plan
Carr made the remarks in a post on social media platform X.
U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr criticized Amazon after the company opposed SpaceX’s proposal to launch a large satellite constellation that could function as an orbital data center network.
Carr made the remarks in a post on social media platform X.
Amazon recently urged the FCC to reject SpaceX’s application to deploy a constellation of up to 1 million low Earth orbit satellites that could serve as artificial intelligence data centers in space.
The company described the proposal as a “lofty ambition rather than a real plan,” arguing that SpaceX had not provided sufficient details about how the system would operate.
Carr responded by pointing to Amazon’s own satellite deployment progress.
“Amazon should focus on the fact that it will fall roughly 1,000 satellites short of meeting its upcoming deployment milestone, rather than spending their time and resources filing petitions against companies that are putting thousands of satellites in orbit,” Carr wrote on X.
Amazon has declined to comment on the statement.
Amazon has been working to deploy its Project Kuiper satellite network, which is intended to compete with SpaceX’s Starlink service. The company has invested more than $10 billion in the program and has launched more than 200 satellites since April of last year.
Amazon has also asked the FCC for a 24-month extension, until July 2028, to meet a requirement to deploy roughly 1,600 satellites by July 2026, as noted in a CNBC report.
SpaceX’s Starlink network currently has nearly 10,000 satellites in orbit and serves roughly 10 million customers. The FCC has also authorized SpaceX to deploy 7,500 additional satellites as the company continues expanding its global satellite internet network.
Energy
Tesla Energy gains UK license to sell electricity to homes and businesses
The license was granted to Tesla Energy Ventures Ltd. by UK energy regulator Ofgem after a seven-month review process.
Tesla Energy has received a license to supply electricity in the United Kingdom, opening the door for the company to serve homes and businesses in the country.
The license was granted to Tesla Energy Ventures Ltd. by UK energy regulator Ofgem after a seven-month review process.
According to Ofgem, the license took effect at 6 p.m. local time on Wednesday and applies to Great Britain.
The approval allows Tesla’s energy business to sell electricity directly to customers in the region, as noted in a Bloomberg News report.
Tesla has already expanded similar services in the United States. In Texas, the company offers electricity plans that allow Tesla owners to charge their vehicles at a lower cost while also feeding excess electricity back into the grid.
Tesla already has a sizable presence in the UK market. According to price comparison website U-switch, there are more than 250,000 Tesla electric vehicles in the country and thousands of Tesla home energy storage systems.
Ofgem also noted that Tesla Motors Ltd., a separate entity incorporated in England and Wales, received an electricity generation license in June 2020.
The new UK license arrives as Tesla continues expanding its global energy business.
Last year, Tesla Energy retained the top position in the global battery energy storage system (BESS) integrator market for the second consecutive year. According to Wood Mackenzie’s latest rankings, Tesla held about 15% of global market share in 2024.
The company also maintained a dominant position in North America, where it captured roughly 39% market share in the region.
At the same time, competition in the energy storage sector is increasing. Chinese companies such as Sungrow have been expanding their presence globally, particularly in Europe.
Brazil Supreme Court orders Elon Musk and X investigation closed
FCC chair criticizes Amazon over opposition to SpaceX satellite plan
