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Tesla’s Xinjiang Showroom prompts harsh warning and criticism from WH Press Sec

Credit: Tesla China/Weibo

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Tesla’s new showroom and store in the region of Xinjiang, China, seemed to get acknowledgment from President Joe Biden’s Press Secretary, Jen Psaki, during a recent press conference. Psaki did not mince words, hinting that public and private companies should oppose China’s human rights abuses.

Earlier this week, Tesla opened a showroom in Xinjiang, a region of China that is often under intense scrutiny due to its human rights abuses. According to Human Rights Watch, a non-governmental, international organization which “defends the rights of people in 100 countries worldwide,” estimates that one million Uyghur Muslims are detained in the region.

On Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki was asked about the Tesla showroom in Xinjiang, according to a video from The Recount. Psaki acknowledged the claims, stating that private sector companies cannot fail to address forced human labor and human rights abuses. Psaki added that companies that fail to do so could “face serious legal, reputational, and customer risk.”

“I can’t speak to the specific situation of one company. But, as a general matter, we believe the private sector should oppose the PRC’s human rights abuses and genocide in Xinjiang,” Psaki said. “The international community, including the public and private sectors, cannot look the other way when it comes to what is taking place in Xinjiang. As we’ve said before, companies that fail to address forced labor in their supply chains and other human rights abuses face serious legal, reputational, and consumer risk, not only in the United States but in Europe and around the world.”

In December, President Biden signed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention act, which bans imports from the Xinjiang region unless companies can prove that their products were not made with forced labor.  Human Rights Watch says that China has detained one million Uyghur Muslims, placing them in “re-education” camps where they are abused with beatings, forced labor, medical experiments, and forced abortions. China has denied these allegations, stating that it has not abused the Uyghur people.

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I’d love to hear from you! If you have any comments, concerns, or questions, please email me at joey@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

Joey has been a journalist covering electric mobility at TESLARATI since August 2019. In his spare time, Joey is playing golf, watching MMA, or cheering on any of his favorite sports teams, including the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles, Miami Heat, Washington Capitals, and Penn State Nittany Lions. You can get in touch with joey at joey@teslarati.com. He is also on X @KlenderJoey. If you're looking for great Tesla accessories, check out shop.teslarati.com

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Tesla Full Self-Driving shows stunning maneuver in Europe to silence skeptics

In a striking demonstration of autonomous driving prowess, Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system recently showcased its capabilities on the narrow rural roads of the Netherlands. Captured in two in-car videos, the system encountered scenarios that would challenge even the most experienced human drivers.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla Full Self-Driving, fresh on the heels of its approval for operation on European roads for the first time, showed off a stunning maneuver that will certainly silence any skeptics on the continent.

Fresh off its approval in the Netherlands, Full Self-Driving is working toward a significant expansion into more parts of Europe.

In a striking demonstration of autonomous driving prowess, Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system recently showcased its capabilities on the narrow rural roads of the Netherlands. Captured in two in-car videos, the system encountered scenarios that would challenge even the most experienced human drivers.

In the first clip, a wide tractor occupied more than half the lane on a tight two-way road. Rather than braking abruptly or forcing a collision risk, FSD smoothly edged the vehicle onto the adjacent bike path—using the extra space with precision—before seamlessly returning to the lane once clear.

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The second clip was equally demanding: while overtaking a group of cyclists, an oncoming car approached at speed.

FSD maintained a safe, minimal buffer to the cyclists while timing the pass perfectly, avoiding any swerve or hesitation that could unsettle passengers or other road users.

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This maneuver highlights FSD’s advanced spatial reasoning and predictive planning. On roads often under three meters wide, with no room for error, the system calculated available clearance in real time, incorporated shoulder and path geometry, and executed a controlled deviation without compromising safety.

It treated the bike path as a legitimate extension of navigable space, something many drivers might hesitate to do, while respecting Dutch road norms and cyclist priority.

Such feats align closely with a growing library of impressive FSD maneuvers documented on camera worldwide.

In urban Amsterdam, for instance, FSD has navigated the world’s densest cyclist environments, weaving through hundreds of unpredictable bike movements on canal-side streets with tram tracks and pedestrians.

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One uncut drive showed it yielding smoothly at crossings, overtaking where needed, and even handling a near-perfect auto-park in a tight residential spot, demonstrating the same low-speed precision seen in the rural clips.

Teslas using FSD have tackled turbo roundabouts in the Netherlands, complex multi-lane circles notorious for geometry challenges, merging confidently while yielding to traffic. Similar clips depict smooth handling of construction zones, emergency vehicle pull-overs, and gated parking barriers, where the car stops precisely, waits for clearance, and proceeds without driver input.

Collectively, these examples illustrate FSD’s evolution toward handling the unpredictable.

The rural Netherlands maneuvers aren’t isolated. Instead, they reflect a pattern of spatial awareness, cyclist deference, and traffic anticipation seen from city streets to highways.

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As FSD continues refining through real-world data, videos like this one are certainly building a compelling case for its readiness on Europe’s varied roads.

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Tesla utilizes its ‘Rave Cave’ for new awesome safety feature

Part of the massive interior overhaul of both the Model 3 “Highland” and Model Y “Juniper” was the addition of interior accent lighting to help bring out the mood of the vehicle, increase the customization of the interior, and to create a unique listening experience.

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Credit: Tesla | X

Tesla is utilizing its ‘Rave Cave’ for an awesome new safety feature that will arrive with the upcoming Spring Update for 2026.

Part of the massive interior overhaul of both the Model 3 “Highland” and Model Y “Juniper” was the addition of interior accent lighting to help bring out the mood of the vehicle, increase the customization of the interior, and to create a unique listening experience.

Tesla added a Sync Lights feature that will strobe the accent strips with the beat of the music.

It is one of the most unique and one of the coolest non-functional features of a Tesla, as it does not improve the driving of the vehicle, but makes it a cool and personal addition to the interior.

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However, Tesla is going to take it one step further, as the Rave Cave lights will now be used for blind spot recognition. This feature will be added as the Spring 2026 Update starts to roll out.

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Tesla writes:

“Accent lights now turn red when an object is in your blind spot and your turn signal is engaged, or when an approaching object is detected while parked.”

This neat new safety feature will now increase the likelihood of a driver, who is operating their Tesla manually, of seeing the blind spot warnings that are currently available on the A pillar and on the center touchscreen.

These new alerts will now warn drivers of cross traffic as they back out of a parking space with little to no visibility of what is coming. It is a great new addition that will only increase the safety of the vehicles, while also utilizing something that is already installed in these specific Model 3 and Model Y units.

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The Model 3 and Model Y were the central focus of the Spring 2026 Update, especially considering the fact that the Model S and Model X are basically gone, with only a few hundred units left. Additionally, Tesla included new Immersive Sound and Car Visualization for the Model 3 and Model Y specifically in this new update.

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Tesla parked 50+ Cybercabs outside its Texas Factory with some crash tested

Dozens of Tesla Cybercabs have been spotted at Giga Texas crash testing facility ahead of launch.

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Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)
Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas on April 13, 2026 [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

Drone footage captured by longtime Giga Texas observer Joe Tegtmeyer shows over 50 units of Tesla Cybercab at the Austin factory campus, including several units clustered by Tesla’s on-site crash testing facility.

The outbound lot at Gigafactory Texas sits just outside the factory exit and serves as the primary staging area where finished vehicles are held before being loaded onto transport carriers or dispatched for validation testing. On any given day, the lot holds a mix of Model Y and Cybertruck units alongside the growing Tesla Cybercab fleet, as can be seen in the drone footage captured by Joe Tegtmeyer.

Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas on April 13, 2026 [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

Roughly 50 Cybercab units are visible across the campus, parked in tight organized rows. Most of the units visible still carry steering wheels and pedals, temporary additions Tesla included to satisfy current safety regulations while the vehicles accumulate real-world data ahead of full regulatory approval for a steering wheel-free design.

Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

Tesla operates dedicated Crash Labs at both its Giga Texas and Fremont facilities that are purpose-built for controlled structural crash tests. Historically, automakers begin intensive crash testing roughly one to two months before volume production kicks off. The Cybertruck followed almost exactly that pattern. The Cybercab appears to be on the same track facility that we first saw back in October 2025.

Tesla Cybercab crash test units spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

Tesla Cybercab crash test units spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

The first production Cybercab rolled off the Giga Texas line on February 17, 2026. Volume production is now targeted for April. Musk previously wrote on X that “the early production rate will be agonizingly slow, but eventually end up being insanely fast,” and separately stated Tesla is targeting at least 2 million Cybercab units per year. Commercial robotaxi service in Austin is targeted for late 2026.

 

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