Lifestyle
Smart Summon is here! And so is the FUD. Should Tesla do anything about it?
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Tesla’s Smart Summon is out on beta release and, as expected from videos previously published by Early Access Program participants, it’s still learning how to be as amazing as it hopes to eventually be.
Hands down, the feature is ridiculously cool and (dare I say it) finally delivering on some of the sci-fi movie promises over the decades that dangled sans-human, self-driving cars in front of our imaginations. However, Smart Summon is also being birthed into a somewhat hostile media environment that has a vendetta against its maker, particularly its CEO. Perhaps a college psychology class could (or has already) taken a dive into why people like Elon Musk inspire so much detraction and (dare I say this as well) “fake news.” But, regardless of what causes the disease, the symptoms are what they are. Have a look at this NBC Today Show headline from a segment they did and published on YouTube:
“Tesla’s Smart Summon Feature Is Causing Parking Lot Chaos.”
I hate to be a whattabout-ist, but I could do a similar video every time Microsoft forces some sort of mandatory update to my Outlook email program. “But, that’s not the same as a car hitting a person!” one might cry. Au contraire, my friend. Whereas Smart Summon is a beta release and users are warned to monitor their car’s activity using the feature, i.e., the human in charge is ultimately responsible for any bad actions just as if they were behind the wheel, Microsoft’s updates are not beta releases and impact businesses, governments, and even emergency services worldwide. The old ‘follow the money’ phrase isn’t just for political foes. If Microsoft screws up someone’s ability to do their job, someone, somewhere, could be suffering.
Does this seem silly? I hope so, because it’s supposed to be silly.
You wouldn’t hold Microsoft responsible for a family’s financial difficulties because an administrator at an insurance company missed an email about their claim thanks to some update to their Outlook that screwed up their organizational system. So, then, why do the media try to hold Tesla (and Musk) responsible for a Smart Summon user that’s not paying attention and lets their car run into a curb or cross a street with active traffic, requiring emergency braking to avoid an accident?
Honestly, those in the Tesla community already know the answer. Aside from making sensational headlines (this is also common with Autopilot-involved accidents), there are interest groups and individuals who actively cheer Tesla’s failure. I can only understand (not condone) the groups that benefit from it financially in one way or another via Wall Street, but the rest is beyond me. Perhaps it’s political, and perhaps that’s just going to be something Tesla will always deal with as part of its politically-tied mission. For what it’s worth, I do understand politics, but I don’t understand cheering the collapse of something that consumers find desirable in the marketplace. But, I digress…
At the end of the day, one can fight against the Smart Summon headlines and become exhausted in the end, or one can focus on making the feature better. Which one can Tesla control? Which one can Tesla owners control? I think Gandhi is quoted a lot on this one – be the change you want to see in the world and so forth. Tesla’s community has a unique advantage in this problem, both because of how responsive Tesla is to its customers and via its frequent and unique over-the-air updates to its vehicle software.
Some Tesla drivers posting on Reddit have noted how huge amounts of data, to the tune of hundreds of megabytes and even gigabytes, have been uploaded to the company’s servers after using Smart Summon. Given that Smart Summon is in beta, this is a really good sign that Tesla is actively working to learn from as much data as it can as quickly as possible to improve the feature. As one part of the battle against negative headlines, if the feature merely fixes most of the indicated issues, there won’t be any issues to report.
Another set of comments I saw floating around on Reddit, other forums, and videos was whether Smart Summon should have communicative aspects while in beta to give a heads-up to other drivers and pedestrians to clear up any confusion in lieu of human driver language.
For instance, if a car stops for a pedestrian and the pedestrian isn’t sure of the car’s intentions, a human driver could wave them along. Not so with Smart Summon. There’s also the fear of a car moving without a driver that gives the impression it’s a runaway vehicle left in neutral gear. Some have suggested hazard lights be used while Smart Summon is activated, others have suggested specific noises or audio announcements. Non-verbal communication is tough, even for humans, so would updates like these help Smart Summon integrate better with humans that aren’t yet accustomed to autonomous cars? Personally, I know I pay attention to the loud beeps coming from a truck that’s reversing, but they are annoying albeit rare.
I’m not so sure overall, but I think it’s at least worth a try.
Lifestyle
Tesla hit by Iranian missile debris in Israel
A Tesla in Israel absorbed a direct hit from missile debris, and the glassroof held.
On March 30, 2026, Lara Shusterman was in Netanya, Israel when Iranian ballistic missiles triggered air raid sirens across the city. While she remained in safety, her 2024 Tesla Model Y did not escape untouched. A heavy piece of missile debris struck the car’s massive glass roof, leaving a deep crater but without shattering. In a Facebook post to the Tesla Israel community the following morning, Shusterman described what happened: “The glass did not shatter into dangerous shards. She stopped the damage and pushed the metal part to the ground.” She closed by thanking Elon Musk and the Tesla team for building what she called “security and a sense of trust even in extreme situations.”
Netanya is a coastal city in central Israel, roughly 18 miles north of Tel Aviv and has been among the areas most frequently struck during Iran’s ongoing missile campaign, following coordinated U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iranian military infrastructure. Falling shrapnel from intercepted missiles is a common occurrence.
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- Tesla Model Y glass roof shattered from a piece of falling Iranian missile debris
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- A piece of Iranian missile debris that struck Lara Shusterman’s Tesla Model Y in Netanya, Israel on March 30, 2026, after being intercepted by Israeli air defenses.
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- Tesla Model Y glass roof shattered from a piece of falling Iranian missile debris
Source: Tesla Israel Facebook Group
The incident is a testament to Tesla’s structural engineering. Tesla’s glass roof is designed to support over four times the vehicle’s own weight. That strength has shown up in real-world accidents too. In 2021, a Model Y in California was struck by a falling tree during a storm, with the glass roof holding firm and the cabin remaining intact. In another widely reported incident, a Tesla Model Y plunged 250 feet off the cliff at Devil’s Slide in California in January 2023, with all four occupants, including two young children, surviving.
Disturbing details about Tesla’s 250-foot cliff drop emerge amid initial investigation
Tesla officially launched sales in Israel in early 2021 and captured over 60 percent of Israel’s EV market in the first year. The brand’s foothold in Israel remains significant. Tens of thousands of Teslas are now on Israeli roads, making incidents like Shusterman’s easy to corroborate. On the same week her Model Y took the hit, the U.S. Space Force awarded SpaceX a $178.5 million contract to launch missile tracking satellites, a separate but fitting reminder of how intertwined the Musk ecosystem has become with the realities of modern conflict.
Elon Musk
NASA sends humans to the Moon for the first time since 1972 – Here’s what’s next
NASA’s Artemis II launched four astronauts toward the Moon on the first crewed lunar mission since 1972.
NASA’s Space Launch System rocket launches carrying the Orion spacecraft with NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, commander; Victor Glover, pilot; Christina Koch, mission specialist; and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist on NASA’s Artemis II mission, Wednesday, April 1, 2026, from Operations and Support Building II at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA’s Artemis II mission will take Wiseman, Glover, Koch, and Hansen on a 10-day journey around the Moon and back aboard SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft launched at 6:35pm EDT from Launch Complex 39B. (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
NASA launched four astronauts toward the Moon on April 1, 2026, marking the first crewed lunar mission since Apollo 17 in December 1972. The Artemis II mission lifted off from Kennedy Space Center aboard the Space Launch System rocket at 6:35 p.m. EDT, sending commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen on a 10-day journey around the far side of the Moon and back.
The mission does not include a lunar landing. It is a test flight designed to validate the Orion spacecraft’s life support systems, navigation, and communications in deep space with a crew aboard for the first time. If the crew reaches the planned distance of 252,000 miles from Earth, they will set a new record for the farthest any human has ever traveled, surpassing even the Apollo 13 distance record.
As Teslarati reported, SpaceX holds a central role in what comes next. The Starship Human Landing System is under contract to carry astronauts to the lunar surface for Artemis IV, now targeting 2028, after NASA restructured its mission sequence due to delays in Starship’s orbital refueling demonstration. Before any Moon landing happens, SpaceX must prove it can transfer propellant between two Starships in orbit, something no rocket program has done at this scale.
The last time humans left Earth’s orbit was 53 years ago. Gene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt of Apollo 17 were the final people to walk on the Moon, a record that stands to this day. Elon Musk has long argued that returning is not optional. “It’s been now almost half a century since humans were last on the Moon,” Musk said. “That’s too long, we need to get back there and have a permanent base on the Moon.”
The Artemis program involves 60 countries signed onto the Artemis Accords, and this mission sets several firsts beyond distance. Glover becomes the first person of color to travel beyond low Earth orbit, Koch the first woman, and Hansen the first non-American astronaut to reach the Moon’s vicinity. According to NASA’s live mission updates, the spacecraft’s solar arrays deployed successfully after liftoff and the crew completed a proximity operations demonstration within the first hours of flight.
Artemis II is step one. The Moon landing and the permanent lunar base come later. But after more than five decades, humans are heading back.
Elon Musk
Tesla Optimus Gen 3 is coming to the Tesla Diner with new ambitions
Tesla’s Optimus robot left the Hollywood Diner within months of opening. Now Musk is planning its return with a bigger role and a major Gen 3 upgrade underway.
![Tesla Optimus Gen 3 [Credit: Tesla]](https://www.teslarati.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/tesla-optimus-gen3-diner.jpg)
Tesla’s Optimus robot was one of the most talked-about features when the Tesla Diner opened on Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood on July 21, 2025. Dubbed “Poptimus” by Tesla fans, the Gen 2 robot stood upstairs at the retro-futuristic, drive-in theater and Tesla Supercharging station, scooping popcorn into bags and handing them to guests with a wave.
The diner itself had been years in the making. Elon Musk first floated the idea in 2018 with a tweet about building an “old-school drive-in, roller skates & rock restaurant” at a Hollywood Supercharger. What eventually opened was a unique two-story neon-lit space, with 80 EV charging stalls, and Optimus serving as a live demonstration of where Tesla’s ambitions were headed.
If our retro-futuristic diner turns out well, which I think it will, @Tesla will establish these in major cities around the world, as well as at Supercharger sites on long distance routes.
An island of good food, good vibes & entertainment, all while Supercharging! https://t.co/zmbv6GfqKf
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 21, 2025
But Optimus did not stay long, and was gone by December 2025.
Now, the robot is set to return with a more demanding job. Musk has ambitions for Optimus to take on a food runner role in 2026, delivering meals directly to cars at the Supercharger stalls. While the latest Gen 3 Optimus is likely to initially take on its previous popcorn-serving role, it wouldn’t be out of the question for Optimus to see a quick promotion. With improved hand dexterity that features 50 total actuators and 22 degrees of freedom per hand, and significantly more powerful processing through Tesla’s latest AI5 chip that includes Grok-powered voice interaction, Musk described Optimus at the Abundance Summit on March 12, 2026, as “by far the most advanced robot in the world, Nothing’s even close.”
Back to work
See you at Tesla Diner tomorrow pic.twitter.com/H3tTajrUbu
— Tesla Optimus (@Tesla_Optimus) March 30, 2026
That confidence is backed by a major manufacturing shift. At the Q4 2025 earnings call in January, Musk announced Tesla would discontinue the Model S and Model X and convert those Fremont production lines to build Optimus. “It’s time to basically bring the Model S and X programs to an end,” he said, calling for a pivot that reflects where the Tesla’s future lies.
Tesla FSD in Europe vs. US: It’s not what you think
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