News
Tesla Sweden workers may be fine now, but not as good as they would be with a union: IF Metall
Amidst the ongoing conflict between Tesla Sweden and trade union IF Metall, the electric vehicle maker’s employees are expressing their overall sentiments through an old-fashioned but effective strategy. As noted by Swedish newspaper Jönköpings-Posten (JP), some employees at Tesla’s facility in Hedentorp have placed a fairly large banner on a fence highlighting a simple but direct message — they are fine.
IF Metall’s protests against Tesla Sweden were triggered by the electric vehicle maker’s lack of a collective agreement. The trade union has argued that it would be able to fight for Tesla employees if the company had an agreement. Tesla Sweden, for its part, has argued that its workers are already compensated better than if they were unionized.
These sentiments seem to be the focus of the banner being used by Tesla Sweden’s employees. The banner, which features a cartoon version of the meme hedgehog used by Tesla in its vehicle ordering process, featured the words “Tack, det är bra,” which generally translates to “Thanks, it is good.” Through the banner, it appears that Tesla employees are highlighting the idea that they do not need a collective agreement at all.
Kängan i Tesla-strejken – banderoll protesterar mot konflikten
Allt som skrivs om Teslastrejken är inte ensidigt vinklat utifrån vad facket påstår – och ibland svarar Tesla faktiskt på frågor från media. Jönköpings-Posten har varit på besök utanför Teslas anläggning i Hedentorp,…— Anders Nyman (@Knytanders) January 21, 2024
In a comment to JP, Maria Lantz, communications manager at Tesla Sweden, noted that the banner was the idea of Tesla employees themselves, and it could be seen as a declaration of loyalty to the electric vehicle maker. She also reiterated the idea that over 90% of Tesla Sweden’s employees are not participating in IF Metall’s protests.
“The banner is also used during the conflict in other parts of the country. The employees took the initiative, and they also have similar vests. It’s completely driven by the employees at Tesla,” she said.
IF Metall Ombudsman Dan Axelsson, for his part, noted that he is skeptical about the idea that the banner was the idea of Tesla Sweden workers. Axelsson argued that he has different information, though he did not provide further details.
“If that’s true, the employees are fine, but not as good as they would be with a collective agreement,” he said.
Union strike guard Elin Mainhed also argued that the union is doing its protests for the sake of Tesla Sweden’s employees. “The employees may think that we should not remain here. But we feel that they may not understand the whole thing. We do not know what is said at their meetings, what information they receive from the employer. We do this for their sake, for their safety. Collective agreements are just a floor,” Mainhed stated.
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Elon Musk
xAI’s Grok approved for Pentagon classified systems: report
Under the agreement, Grok can be deployed in systems handling classified intelligence analysis, weapons development, and battlefield operations.
Elon Musk’s xAI has signed an agreement with the United States Department of Defense (DoD) to allow Grok to be used in classified military systems.
Previously, Anthropic’s Claude had been the only AI system approved for the most sensitive military work, but a dispute over usage safeguards has reportedly prompted the Pentagon to broaden its options, as noted in a report from Axios.
Under the agreement, Grok can be deployed in systems handling classified intelligence analysis, weapons development, and battlefield operations.
The publication reported that xAI agreed to the Pentagon’s requirement that its technology be usable for “all lawful purposes,” a standard Anthropic has reportedly resisted due to alleged ethical restrictions tied to mass surveillance and autonomous weapons use.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is scheduled to meet with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei in what sources expect to be a tense meeting, with the publication hinting that the Pentagon could designate Anthropic a “supply chain risk” if the company does not lift its safeguards.
Axios stated that replacing Claude fully might be technically challenging even if xAI or other alternative AI systems take its place. That being said, other AI systems are already in use by the DoD.
Grok already operates in the Pentagon’s unclassified systems alongside Google’s Gemini and OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Google is reportedly close to an agreement that will result in Gemini being used for classified use, while OpenAI’s progress toward classified deployment is described as slower but still feasible.
The publication noted that the Pentagon continues talks with several AI companies as it prepares for potential changes in classified AI sourcing.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk denies Starlink’s price cuts are due to Amazon Kuiper
“This has nothing to do with Kuiper, we’re just trying to make Starlink more affordable to a broader audience,” Musk wrote in a post on X.
Elon Musk has pushed back on claims that Starlink’s recent price reductions are tied to Amazon’s Kuiper project.
In a post on X, Musk responded directly to a report suggesting that Starlink was cutting prices and offering free hardware to partners ahead of a planned IPO and increased competition from Kuiper.
“This has nothing to do with Kuiper, we’re just trying to make Starlink more affordable to a broader audience,” Musk wrote in a post on X. “The lower the cost, the more Starlink can be used by people who don’t have much money, especially in the developing world.”
The speculation originated from a post summarizing a report from The Information, which ran with the headline “SpaceX’s Starlink Makes Land Grab as Amazon Threat Looms.” The report stated that SpaceX is aggressively cutting prices and giving free hardware to distribution partners, which was interpreted as a reaction to Amazon’s Kuiper’s upcoming rollout and possible IPO.
In a way, Musk’s comments could be quite accurate considering Starlink’s current scale. The constellation currently has more than 9,700 satellites in operation today, making it by far the largest satellite broadband network in operation. It has also managed to grow its user base to 10 million active customers across more than 150 countries worldwide.
Amazon’s Kuiper, by comparison, has launched approximately 211 satellites to date, as per data from SatelliteMap.Space, some of which were launched by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. Starlink surpassed that number in early January 2020, during the early buildout of its first-generation network.
Lower pricing also aligns with Starlink’s broader expansion strategy. SpaceX continues to deploy satellites at a rapid pace using Falcon 9, and future launches aboard Starship are expected to significantly accelerate the constellation’s growth. A larger network improves capacity and global coverage, which can support a broader customer base.
In that context, price reductions can be viewed as a way to match expanding supply with growing demand. Musk’s companies have historically used aggressive pricing strategies to drive adoption at scale, particularly when vertical integration allows costs to decline over time.
News
Tesla Giga Berlin makes a statement of solidarity amid IG Metall conflict
The display comes as tensions between Tesla and IG Metall continue to escalate.
Tesla Giga Berlin is sending a strong message of solidarity amid its ongoing legal dispute with German union IG Metall.
In a post on social media platform X, Giga Berlin plant manager André Thierig shared an image of the facility’s lobby covered with a large banner that reads: “Progress. Innovation. Success.” He added that the slogan reflects what the facility has stood for since Day One.
“Our lobby at Giga Berlin covered in a huge banner these days. Progress. Innovation. Success – this is what we stand for since we started production in 2022 and how we will go into our future!” Thierig wrote in his post on X.
The display comes as tensions between Tesla and IG Metall continue to escalate.
The dispute began after Tesla accused a union representative of secretly recording a works council meeting at Giga Berlin. Tesla stated that it filed a criminal complaint after the alleged incident. Police later confirmed they had seized a computer belonging to an IG Metall member as part of their investigation.
“What has happened today at Giga Berlin is truly beyond words! An external union representative from IG Metall attended a works council meeting. For unknown reasons he recorded the internal meeting and was caught in action! We obviously called police and filed a criminal complaint!” Thierig wrote on X at the time.
IG Metall denied the accusation and characterized Tesla’s move as an election tactic ahead of upcoming works council elections. The union subsequently filed a defamation complaint against Thierig. Authorities later confirmed that an investigation had been opened in connection with the matter.
Giga Berlin began production in 2022 and has since become one of Tesla’s key European manufacturing hubs, producing the Model Y, the company’s best-selling vehicle. The facility has expanded capacity over the past years despite environmental protests, labor disputes, and regulatory scrutiny.
xAI’s Grok approved for Pentagon classified systems: report
Elon Musk denies Starlink’s price cuts are due to Amazon Kuiper
