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Tesla Semi test drive, demo event reportedly planned for Safeway workers next week

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The Tesla Semi appears to be maintaining a notable level of interest among its reservation holders. Take grocery giant Albertsons, for one. As could be seen in a recently shared announcement from Safeway corporate (one of Albertsons’ subsidiaries), the company seems to be preparing to showcase the all-electric long-hauler to some of its CA employees this coming Wednesday.

An image of Safeway corporate’s memo was recently shared on the r/TeslaMotors subreddit by Tesla enthusiast u/MGC1987, who noted that the demo would be held at the retailer’s Tracy, CA Distribution Center. Apart from referencing demos of the vehicle by a team from Tesla, the announcement also noted that a number of Safeway drivers would have the opportunity to test drive the Semi.

“On 12/5/2018, we will be hosting the Tesla team along with our own corporate leadership team for a demo of the new Tesla tractors. We will be selecting a few drivers to represent the company and test drive the tractor here at the DC.”

A memo from Safeway Corporate referencing a Tesla Semi demo on 12/5/2018. [Credit: MGC1987/Reddit]

Albertsons is among the United States’ largest grocery chains. The grocery giant is among the Tesla Semi’s more recent reservation holders, placing a reservation for 10 of the vehicles last month. The company’s Tesla Semis would join its growing fleet of trucks, which currently number more than 1,400 nationwide. Albertsons did not provide the specifics of its orders, though references to the Semi’s 500-mile range in a press release suggests that the company had purchased the long-range version of the vehicle. Tom Nartker, Safeway’s VP of Transportation, noted that the company’s purchase of the Tesla Semis is part of Albertsons’ ongoing efforts to reduce its carbon footprint.

“Advancing supply chain efficiency and sustainability is an important goal for our company. We’re excited to pilot this expansion of our transportation program with trucks that help us limit our overall carbon footprint,” he said.

Demos of the Tesla Semi to employees of reservation holders have been conducted in the past. Earlier this year, social media was briefly saturated by images uploaded by employees of JB Hunt, a trucking giant with a fleet of 12,000 trucks and over 100,000 trailers and containers. Pictures taken of the Semi’s visit to JB Hunt’s headquarters show lines of employees interacting with the vehicle. Not long after that, the Semi also paid a visit to UPS’ hub in Addison, IL, where some employees from the package delivery company seemingly took a test drive on the electric long-hauler.

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The Tesla Semi at JB Hunt. [Credit: tslalytix/Twitter]

Elon Musk noted during the Semi’s unveiling that the vehicle would likely start production sometime in 2019. Since the electric truck’s unveiling, though, Tesla has remained tight-lipped about the location where the Semi would be produced. The company appears to be taking a rather conservative stance with its estimates on the Semi’s production too, as head of investor relations Martin Viecha reportedly noted during a tour of Gigafactory 1 that Tesla is planning on “earnestly” producing the all-electric truck by 2020.

For now, Tesla appears to be set on refining the Semi before it enters production. Over the past months, multiple sightings of the vehicle have been reported by the Tesla community, as the truck continued to get road-tested across the United States. A recent sighting of the vehicle at the iconic Madonna Inn in CA even gave a glimpse of the vehicle’s temporary charging system, which it currently uses in place of Tesla’s upcoming Megacharger network. 

Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Tesla snags Lamborghini alum to help in newly entered market

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has snagged a Lamborghini alum to help with its entrance into a new market, which has proven to be an intricate situation for the automaker.

A report from Bloomberg states that Tesla has hired Sharad Agarwal, who was formerly employed by the Italian luxury carmaker, to run its operations in India. With Lamborghini, he was employed to handle operations in India.

Tesla launches in India with Model Y, showing pricing will be biggest challenge

Tesla has gone through quite a few different team members with its launch in India, starting with a few hirings a few years ago, well before the company actually committed to selling cars in the country.

The move helps Tesla streamline its executive decision-making process, as it previously had employees in India reach out to managers based in China, among other areas. Agarwal will be stationed in India and will handle the company’s operations.

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Tesla’s mentality behind the strategy is to have local leadership, something that seems to cater to the market specifically.

Tesla had previously put Isabel Fan, the manager of Southeast Asia for the company, in the position. However, Tesla seemed to want someone who was more permanent and would be dedicated to India exclusively.

India has the largest population on Earth and has a massive automotive market for that reason. Tesla stands to gain a lot from a strong performance in India, and its clean energy vehicles could help with pollution of all kinds in the region.

Tesla’s path to entrance in the Indian market was a long one, as the company tried for nearly ten years to get into the elusive region. Back in 2016, CEO Elon Musk said Tesla “would love to be in India,” teasing the Model 3.

By 2017, Tesla had met with officials from the country, but tried to get import duties down to nothing from 100 percent.

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Indian authorities denied Tesla’s request.

For years, Musk met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to try and iron out a deal of some sort. Nothing truly came to fruition, at least until last year, when real movement started.

By 2024, India had introduced a strategy to reduce import duties for some companies, which was enough for Tesla to make a move. It is now 2025, and the company still has not committed to building a factory in the region. However, it is not completely out of the question.

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Tesla Sentry Mode helps lock up drive-by shooting suspect in Seattle

“A nearby Tesla actually captured the video that showed a man crouched behind a vehicle firing gunshots. A lot of vehicles record, and officers know that Teslas, especially, record, so we use that video all the time in these instances.”

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tesla side repeater camera
(Credit: Tesla)

Police in Seattle, Washington, are crediting Tesla’s well-known Sentry Mode for helping find a suspect in a drive-by shooting case.

A 21-year-old was arrested for an alleged drive-by shooting in the Pioneer Square neighborhood of Seattle this past Sunday, and the leads on the case seemed to be slim.

However, a Tesla parked nearby was able to record the shooting, as well as the car that the suspect hopped in after the crime occurred. It helped police identify the person they were looking for.

Seattle Police Department Detective Brian Pritchard said to MyNorthwest that the Tesla was a critical part of finding the suspect and placing him under arrest:

“A nearby Tesla actually captured the video that showed a man crouched behind a vehicle firing gunshots. A lot of vehicles record, and officers know that Teslas, especially, record, so we use that video all the time in these instances.”

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The Tesla footage helped the Police put the suspect into handcuffs about an hour after the crime was committed. They are currently charged with drive-by shooting and unlawful possession of a firearm.

Tesla Sentry Mode is a security feature the vehicle utilizes to help solve crimes like vandalism, but it is also a cool feature that has caught things like accidents and other incidents on camera.

Many people still do not know about it, including the many vandals who keyed or broke the windows of Teslas earlier this year, as people damaged others’ cars in an act of retaliation against CEO Elon Musk when he became involved in politics.

This is far from the first time Sentry Mode has helped Police Departments solve crimes. Last September, we reported on Oakland’s Police Department in California using Teslas near crime scenes to help solve cases.

Tesla Sentry Mode is Oakland PD’s secret weapon against rising crime

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Sergeant Ben Therriault, president of the Richmond Police Officers Association, said, “We have all these mobile video devices floating around,” in reference to the Teslas that sit and capture nearly everything that surrounds them.

Sentry Mode has helped officers arrest a variety of suspects, including several people who were allegedly involved in the murder of a 27-year-old woman in Northern California.

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UPDATE: Tesla investors push Charles Schwab for Musk comp plan clarification

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tesla cybertruck elon musk
Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveils futuristic Cybertruck in Los Angeles, Nov. 21, 2019 (Photo: Teslarati)

Update: 4:00 p.m. EDT – Charles Schwab has reached out to TESLARATI with the following statement, clarifying that it plans to vote FOR Musk’s compensation package:

“Schwab Asset Management’s approach to voting on proxy matters is thorough and deliberate. We utilize a structured process that focuses on protecting and promoting shareholder value. We apply our own internal guidelines and do not rely on recommendations from Glass Lewis or ISS. In accordance with this process, Schwab Asset Management intends to vote in favor of the 2025 CEO performance award proposal. We firmly believe that supporting this proposal aligns both management and shareholder interests, ensuring the best outcome for all parties involved.”

There have also been updates to the headline and various paragraphs to reflect this as well as accuracy.

Tesla investors are pushing Charles Schwab for clarification after it was expected to vote against CEO Elon Musk’s pay package.

Several high-profile Tesla influencers are speaking out against Charles Schwab, saying its decision to vote against the plan that would retain Musk as CEO and give him potentially more voting power if he can achieve the tranches set by the company’s Board of Directors.

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The Tesla community appeared to see that Schwab is one firm that tends to vote against Musk’s compensation plans, as they also voted against the CEO’s 2018 pay package, which was passed by shareholders but then denied by a Delaware Chancery Court.

Schwab’s move was recognized by investors within the Tesla community and now they are speaking out about it:

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At least six of Charles Schwab’s ETFs were expected to vote against Tesla’s Board recommendation to support the compensation plan for Musk. The six ETFs represent around 7 million Tesla $TSLA shares.

Jason DeBolt, an all-in Tesla shareholder, summarized the firm’s decision really well:

As a custodian of ETF shares, your fiduciary duty is to vote in shareholders’ best interests. For a board that has delivered extraordinary returns, voting against their recommendations doesn’t align with retail investors, Tesla employees, or the leadership we invested to support. If Schwab’s proxy voting policies don’t reflect shareholder interests, my followers and I will move our collective tens of millions in $TSLA shares (or possibly hundreds of millions) to a broker that does, via account transfer as soon as this week.”

Tesla shareholders will vote on Musk’s pay package on Thursday at the Annual Shareholders Meeting in Austin, Texas.

It seems more likely than not that it will pass, but investors have made it clear they want a decisive victory, as it could clear the path for any issues with shareholder lawsuits in the future, as it did with Musk’s past pay package.

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