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The Boring Company cleverly lays bricks on Elon Musk’s ‘Monty Python’ watchtower

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The Boring Company continues to set the stage for its tunnel opening party this coming Tuesday, with the startup’s projects in Hawthorne showing progress. Elon Musk’s Monty Python-style watchtower, for one, has started taking shape, with bricks now being overlaid on the structure’s metal framework.

The tall, rather imposing structure has its roots from one of Elon Musk’s more playful Twitter sessions. Last month, Musk lightly announced on Twitter that The Boring Company would be constructing a watchtower made of Boring Bricks on its Los Angles site, where a person dressed as a knight would be tasked to “yell insults at people in a French accent” to passers-by. A job listing for a “Watchtower Guard” was posted in The Boring Company’s official website soon after. A picture featuring several knight-clad individuals applying for the post was shared by the tunneling startup on Twitter as well. 

The Boring Company lays bricks on its ‘Monty Python’ watchtower. (Photo: Pauline Acalin/Teslarati)

Photos taken earlier this month by Teslarati photographer Pauline Acalin revealed that the initial phases of the watchtower’s construction were underway. The images, which were taken on December 4, showed that the structure’s metal framework was nearly complete. During that time, there were no Boring Bricks overlaid on the multi-story framework. Returning to the site this Friday, Pauline has found that The Boring Company is now laying some bricks on the watchtower — and it is doing so in an incredibly clever way.

As could be seen in Pauline’s recent photographs, the Boring Company is laying large pre-made sections of Boring Bricks on the watchtower’s metal framework. Using this system, the tunneling startup is able to cover large sections of the watchtower framework quickly and efficiently. With such a system in place, it would not be surprising if The Boring Company actually finishes its watchtower on time for the startup’s Hawthorne test tunnel opening party this coming December 18.

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The Boring Company lays bricks on its ‘Monty Python’ watchtower. (Photo: Pauline Acalin/Teslarati)

The construction of a watchtower made up of bricks stems from Elon Musk’s unabashed love for pop culture. Musk has openly expressed his love for the 1975 comedy film Monty Python and the Holy Grail, which is still widely regarded as one of the funniest films ever made. In one of the movie’s most memorable sequences, a sharp-tongued and interestingly articulate French guard played by actor John Cleese mercilessly taunted King Arthur by hurling multiple (and incredibly creative) insults from the top of a castle wall.

Elon Musk openly admits that he is a nerd at heart, previously expressing his interest in otherwise nerdy topics such as role-playing games and lately, Japanese animation. Musk’s love of pop culture and his nerdy tendencies are reflected in his companies. Tesla’s electric cars, for one, are loaded with features and Easter Eggs that are brimming with movie references. There’s the James Bond Lotus Easter Egg, Mad Max mode for Navigate on Autopilot, and a volume setting that goes all the way up to 11 — a reference to This is Spinal Tap. With this in mind, a Monty Python-style watchtower for The Boring Company can be described as classic Elon Musk.

The Boring Company’s opening party for its Hawthorne test tunnel was initially scheduled to be held on December 10. In a recent announcement, though, Musk stated that the event would be moved to December 18 instead.

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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 Cybercab tests are going on overdrive with production-ready units

Tesla is ramping its real-world tests of the Cybercab, with multiple sightings of the vehicle being reported across social media this week.

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Credit: @JT59052914/X

Tesla is ramping its real-world tests of the Cybercab, with multiple sightings of the autonomous two-seater being reported across social media this week. Based on videos of the vehicle that have been shared online, it appears that Cybercab tests are underway across multiple states.

Recent Cybercab sightings

Reports of Cybercab tests have ramped this week, with a vehicle that looked like a production-ready prototype being spotted at Apple’s Visitor Center in California. The vehicle in this sighting was interesting as it was equipped with a steering wheel. The vehicle also featured some changes to the design of its brake lights.

The Cybercab was also filmed testing at the Fremont factory’s test track, which also seemed to involve a vehicle that looked production-ready. This also seemed to be the case for a Cybercab that was spotted in Austin, Texas, which happened to be undergoing real-world tests. Overall, these sightings suggest that Cybercab testing is fully underway, and the vehicle is really moving towards production.

Production design all but finalized?

Recently, a near-production-ready Cybercab was showcased at Tesla’s Santana Row showroom in San Jose. The vehicle was equipped with frameless windows, dual windshield wipers, powered butterfly door struts, an extended front splitter, an updated lightbar, new wheel covers, and a license plate bracket. Interior updates include redesigned dash/door panels, refined seats with center cupholders, updated carpet, and what appeared to be improved legroom.

There seems to be a pretty good chance that the Cybercab’s design has been all but finalized, at least considering Elon Musk’s comments at the 2025 Annual Shareholder Meeting. During the event, Musk confirmed that the vehicle will enter production around April 2026, and its production targets will be quite ambitious. 

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Tesla gets a win in Sweden as union withdraws potentially “illegal” blockade

As per recent reports, the Vision union’s planned anti-Tesla action might have been illegal. 

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Andrzej Otrębski, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Swedish union Vision has withdrawn its sympathy blockade against Tesla’s planned service center and showroom in Kalmar. As per recent reports, the Vision union’s planned anti-Tesla action might have been illegal. 

Vision’s decision to pull the blockade

Vision announced the blockade in early December, stating that it was targeting the administrative handling of Tesla’s facility permits in Kalmar municipality. The sympathy measure was expected to start Monday, but was formally withdrawn via documents sent to the Mediation Institute and Kalmar Municipality last week. 

As noted in a Daggers Arbete report, plans for the strike were ultimately pulled after employer group SKR highlighted potential illegality under the Public Employment Act. Vision stressed its continued backing for the Swedish labor model, though Deputy negotiation manager Oskar Pettersson explained that the Vision union and IF Metall made the decision to cancel the planned strike together.

“We will not continue to challenge the regulations,” Petterson said. “The objection was of a technical nature. We made the assessment together with IF Metall that we were not in a position to challenge the legal assessment of whether we could take this particular action against Tesla. Therefore, we chose to revoke the notice itself.”

The SKR’s warning

Petterson also stated that SKR’s technical objection to the Vision union’s planned anti-Tesla strike framed the protest as an unauthorized act. “It was a legal assessment of the situation. Both for us and for IF Metall, it is important to be clear that we stand for the Swedish model. But we should not continue to challenge the regulations and risk getting judgments that lead nowhere in the application of the regulations,” he said. 

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Vision ultimately canceled its planned blockade against Tesla on December 9. With Vision’s withdrawal, few obstacles remain for Tesla’s long-planned Kalmar site. A foreign electrical firm completed work this fall, and Tesla’s Careers page currently lists a full-time service manager position based there, signaling an imminent opening.

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Tesla Semi program Director teases major improvements

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla Semi Program Director Dan Priestly teased the major improvements to the all-electric Class 8 truck on Thursday night, following the company’s decision to overhaul the design earlier this year.

Priestley said he drove the Semi on Thursday, and the improvements appear to be welcomed by one of the minds behind the project. “Our customers are going to love it,” he concluded.

The small detail does not seem like much, but it is coming from someone who has been involved in the development of the truck from A to Z. Priestley has been involved in the Semi program since November 2015 and has slowly worked his way through the ranks, and currently stands as the Director of the program.

Tesla Semi undergoes major redesign as dedicated factory preps for deliveries

Tesla made some major changes to the Semi design as it announced at the 2025 Annual Shareholder Meeting that it changed the look and design to welcome improvements in efficiency.

Initially, Tesla adopted the blade-like light bar for the Semi, similar to the one that is present on the Model Y Premium and the Cybertruck.

Additionally, there are some slight aesthetic changes to help with efficiency, including a redesigned bumper with improved aero channels, a smaller wraparound windshield, and a smoother roofline for better aero performance.

All of these changes came as the company’s Semi Factory, which is located on Gigafactory Nevada’s property, was finishing up construction in preparation for initial production phases, as Tesla is planning to ramp up manufacturing next year. CEO Elon Musk has said the Semi has attracted “ridiculous demand.”

The Semi has already gathered many large companies that have signed up to buy units, including Frito-Lay and PepsiCo., which have been helping Tesla test the vehicle in a pilot program to test range, efficiency, and other important metrics that will be a major selling point.

Tesla will be the Semi’s first user, though, and the truck will help solve some of the company’s logistics needs in the coming years.

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