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Tesla vehicles to get Zoom video conference features

Credit: Zoom/YouTube

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It appears that Tesla owners will soon be able to attend Zoom video meetings from the comfort of their vehicles. The upcoming feature was announced by video conference service Zoom during their recently-held Zoomtopia event. 

Zoom showcased several new features for its service during Zoomtopia. One of these, which was announced by Group Product Manager, Meetings Nitasha Walia, was the capability to launch the Zoom app from a Tesla’s infotainment system. With the feature, Tesla occupants would be able to hold or attend virtual meetings from their vehicles. 

Zoom did not provide a lot of details on the upcoming service in its brief teaser, only that the company is excited to bring the feature to “all new Tesla models soon.” Interestingly enough, Zoom’s short teaser showed that the Tesla passenger had a video feed in the call, so the feature would likely use the in-cabin camera present in the Model 3, Model Y, and the new Model S and Model X. 

As per Zoom’s demo, it appears that if Zoom users sync their phone’s calendar to their Tesla, they would be able to launch a meeting directly from the vehicle’s in-car calendar. This should make Zoom meetings simple for Tesla owners. It still remains to be seen, however, if Zoom video conferencing would require a dedicated Wi-Fi connection or if Tesla’s Premium Connectivity would cover the service. 

While Zoom’s announcement of its Tesla in-car video conferencing service is exciting, the feature has been teased for quite some time now. Back in May 2020, Tesla CEO Elon Musk was asked on Twitter if video conferencing services would be coming to the company’s electric vehicles. Musk responded that such services are “definitely a future feature.”  

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A behind-the-scenes look at Tesla’s software V11 that was posted on the company’s official LinkedIn account also included a sequence that showed an app icon which looked very similar to Zoom. Eagle-eyed Tesla enthusiasts even noticed then that the word “Zoom” seemed to be visible in the V11 app drawer. 

Watch Zoom’s segment on its Tesla video conferencing integration in the video below. 

The Teslarati team would appreciate hearing from you. If you have any tips, contact me at maria@teslarati.com or via Twitter @Writer_01001101.

Maria--aka "M"-- is an experienced writer and book editor. She's written about several topics including health, tech, and politics. As a book editor, she's worked with authors who write Sci-Fi, Romance, and Dark Fantasy. M loves hearing from TESLARATI readers. If you have any tips or article ideas, contact her at maria@teslarati.com or via X, @Writer_01001101.

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Tesla dispels reports of ‘sales suspension’ in California

“This was a “consumer protection” order about the use of the term “Autopilot” in a case where not one single customer came forward to say there’s a problem.

Sales in California will continue uninterrupted.”

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has dispelled reports that it is facing a thirty-day sales suspension in California after the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) issued a penalty to the company after a judge ruled it “misled consumers about its driver-assistance technology.”

On Tuesday, Bloomberg reported that the California DMV was planning to adopt the penalty but decided to put it on ice for ninety days, giving Tesla an opportunity to “come into compliance.”

Tesla enters interesting situation with Full Self-Driving in California

Tesla responded to the report on Tuesday evening, after it came out, stating that this was a “consumer protection” order that was brought up over its use of the term “Autopilot.”

The company said “not one single customer came forward to say there’s a problem,” yet a judge and the DMV determined it was, so they want to apply the penalty if Tesla doesn’t oblige.

However, Tesla said that its sales operations in California “will continue uninterrupted.”

It confirmed this in an X post on Tuesday night:

The report and the decision by the DMV and Judge involved sparked outrage from the Tesla community, who stated that it should do its best to get out of California.

One X post said California “didn’t deserve” what Tesla had done for it in terms of employment, engineering, and innovation.

Tesla has used Autopilot and Full Self-Driving for years, but it did add the term “(Supervised)” to the end of the FSD suite earlier this year, potentially aiming to protect itself from instances like this one.

This is the first primary dispute over the terminology of Full Self-Driving, but it has undergone some scrutiny at the federal level, as some government officials have claimed the suite has “deceptive” naming. Previous Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg was vocally critical of the use of the name “Full Self-Driving,” as well as “Autopilot.”

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New EV tax credit rule could impact many EV buyers

We confirmed with a Tesla Sales Advisor that any current orders that have the $7,500 tax credit applied to them must be completed by December 31, meaning delivery must take place by that date. However, it is unclear at this point whether someone could still claim the credit when filing their tax returns for 2025 as long as the order reflects an order date before September 30.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla owners could be impacted by a new EV tax credit rule, which seems to be a new hoop to jump through for those who benefited from the “extension,” which allowed orderers to take delivery after the loss of the $7,500 discount.

After the Trump Administration initiated the phase-out of the $7,500 EV tax credit, many were happy to see the rules had been changed slightly, as deliveries could occur after the September 30 cutoff as long as orders were placed before the end of that month.

However, there appears to be a new threshold that EV buyers will have to go through, and it will impact their ability to get the credit, at least at the Point of Sale, for now.

Delivery must be completed by the end of the year, and buyers must take possession of the car by December 31, 2025, or they will lose the tax credit. The U.S. government will be closing the tax credit portal, which allows people to claim the credit at the Point of Sale.

We confirmed with a Tesla Sales Advisor that any current orders that have the $7,500 tax credit applied to them must be completed by December 31, meaning delivery must take place by that date.

However, it is unclear at this point whether someone could still claim the credit when filing their tax returns for 2025 as long as the order reflects an order date before September 30.

If not, the order can still go through, but the buyer will not be able to claim the tax credit, meaning they will pay full price for the vehicle.

This puts some buyers in a strange limbo, especially if they placed an order for the Model Y Performance. Some deliveries have already taken place, and some are scheduled before the end of the month, but many others are not expecting deliveries until January.

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Elon Musk takes latest barb at Bill Gates over Tesla short position

Bill Gates placed a massive short bet against Tesla of ~1% of our total shares, which might have cost him over $10B by now

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Elon Musk took his latest barb at former Microsoft CEO Bill Gates over his short position against the company, which the two have had some tensions over for a number of years.

Gates admitted to Musk several years ago through a text message that he still held a short position against his sustainable car and energy company. Ironically, Gates had contacted Musk to explore philanthropic opportunities.

Elon Musk explains Bill Gates beef: He ‘placed a massive bet on Tesla dying’

Musk said he could not take the request seriously, especially as Gates was hoping to make money on the downfall of the one company taking EVs seriously.

The Tesla frontman has continued to take shots at Gates over the years from time to time, but the latest comment came as Musk’s net worth swelled to over $600 billion. He became the first person ever to reach that threshold earlier this week, when Tesla shares increased due to Robotaxi testing without any occupants.

Musk refreshed everyone’s memory with the recent post, stating that if Gates still has his short position against Tesla, he would have lost over $10 billion by now:

Just a month ago, in mid-November, Musk issued his final warning to Gates over the short position, speculating whether the former Microsoft frontman had still held the bet against Tesla.

“If Gates hasn’t fully closed out the crazy short position he has held against Tesla for ~8 years, he had better do so soon,” Musk said. This came in response to The Gates Foundation dumping 65 percent of its Microsoft position.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk sends final warning to Bill Gates over short position

Musk’s involvement in the U.S. government also drew criticism from Gates, as he said that the reductions proposed by DOGE against U.S.A.I.D. were “stunning” and could cause “millions of additional deaths of kids.”

“Gates is a huge liar,” Musk responded.

It is not known whether Gates still holds his Tesla short position.

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