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Electrek can confirm that Tesla has dissolved its PR department — technically becoming the first automaker who doesn’t talk to the press. It’s something that we have discussed on our podcast several times over the last few months, but now that reporters are publicly complaining about it, we thought we’d clear things up in an article. Tesla hasn’t responded to a press inquiry in months. We have received the odd email here and there from former press people, but it almost seems to be in an unofficial capacity. If you’re a reporter who isn’t getting a response from Tesla, don’t...

Speaking on the New York Times opinion podcast Sway, Musk told host Kara Swisher that he and his family would not be taking a coronavirus vaccine because he doesn't believe the virus poses a serious enough risk to their health. “I’m not at risk, neither are my kids,” Musk said. Musk said sweeping restrictions on movement and business enacted due to the coronavirus had “diminished" his "faith in humanity." The entrepreneur said that instead of sweeping lockdowns, governments should focus on isolating those most at risk while allowing the rest of society to continue with normal life. Musk told Fisher...

Piedmont Lithium PLL.AX on Monday said it signed a five-year deal with Tesla Inc TSLA.O to supply high-purity lithium ore mineral to the U.S. electric carmaker, prompting an 83% surge in the Australian lithium miner's shares. The initial five-year agreement implies that Piedmont will supply about a third of its planned 160,000-tonnes-per-year spodumene concentrate produce from its deposits in North Carolina. Both companies have an option to extend the deal for another five years. Shares of the Australian miner touched their highest since May 2007.

The two dozen tech geniuses who endorsed Joe Biden in a recent New York Times letter showed an obliviousness all too typical of the industry. Biden and running mate Kamala Harris “listen to experts before setting public policy,” they claim — which evidently means they’ll favor the tech industry’s preferences when it comes to immigration policy. The 24 winners of the Turing Award, aka the Nobel Prize of programming, don’t run the Big Tech companies. But they clearly join in the industry’s upset over H-1B visas, which normally allow for the recruitment of immigrants with specialized skills — until President...

Tesla Inc. unveiled battery innovations and increased efficiencies that appeared to underwhelm investors late Tuesday at its much anticipated “Battery Day.” Tesla stock’s TSLA, -8.89%, which had gained more than 4% after an upbeat post-shareholder-meeting presentation, turned south as soon as Chief Executive Elon Musk said that some of the innovations showcased at the event were “close to working” and some three years away from fruition. Shares fell as much as 7.6% in Tuesday’s after-hours session, but have pared some gains to trade down 6.0% in Wednesday’s premarket session. “It does work but not [yet] with a high yield,” Musk...

Something's stirring over at Tesla. The company's highly anticipated Battery Day is just on the horizon, and ahead of the event, CEO Elon Musk shared some insight into energy density via Twitter. Replying to a Twitter thread surrounding the possibility of an electric airplane, Musk said batteries with 400 watt hours per kilogram are highly likely in the next three to four years. And not just one-off units, either, but mass produced batteries with long lifecycles, too. This type of energy density could provide 50% more energy density compared to today's batteries, noting today's batteries used in the Tesla Model...

Elon Musk test-drove the ID.3 when he made a final stopover to meet with one of his biggest competitors, Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess. Musk also inspected the ID.4 electric SUV that Volkswagen will launch later this month. Before Tesla Inc Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk returned to the US after a three-day visit to Germany, he made a final stopover to meet with one of his biggest competitors - Volkswagen AG CEO Herbert Diess. The two auto executives met at a small airport in Braunschweig for about two hours on Thursday evening and Musk test-drove VW’s ID.3 electric-car, according to...

Tesla and its CEO Elon Musk are no strangers to critics, and in the past, YouTube personality Steven Crowder of the “Change My Mind” series fame has counted himself among them. However, a search for the best Autopilot functionality to help his wife’s recent health issues led the conservative comedian to reconsider the merits of the all-electric carmaker’s products. “It’s not even close… It’s pretty damn cool. It is so fun to drive,” he expressed matter-of-factly on Tuesday’s Louder with Crowder episode. “That wasn’t the case back when I had a friend who had a Prius… [The Tesla] is more...

Following reports of a failed attempt to introduce malware into the company's Nevada Gigafactory, Tesla's CEO took to Twitter to confirm the incident. Tesla's Gigafactory plant in Nevada was the target of an attempted cyberattack, CEO Elon Musk confirmed on Thursday. The confirmation follows reports of the thwarted attempt, although the company had not spoken publicly about the situation. Musk tweeted that it "was a serious attack." The US Department of Justice earlier this week announced the arrest of a Russian national and described a plot to introduce malware "into a Nevada company's computer network." The DoJ did not mention...

CarPervert Jonny Smith reminds us that the Volkswagen ID.3 is just the beginning of a brand-new era for Volkswagen... The ID.3 is arguably not incredible to look at, but neither is the Golf. These cars are designed for a global audience of mass-market buyers. It banks on compact, practical, and affordable, which are all keys to adoption. Smith wrote: "The exterior is pleasant, with its side profile being a grower. The space inside is phenomenal, given its dimensions. The layout of the interior is pleasing, however there are more hard plastic surfaces than the equivalent Golfs. An e-Golf probably feels...

The day has arrived. Stock in the electric-vehicle pioneer Tesla is splitting 5 for 1 after the market closes for trading. Tesla (ticker: TSLA) shares will open on Monday at roughly $450—one-fifth of where the stock currently trades. Stock-split math and figures associated with it generally don’t amount to much, but Tesla is the exception.

This Tuesday, the Department of Justice announced the arrest of Egor Igorevich Kriuchkov, a Russian citizen accused of conspiring to breach the network of a US company and introduce malware to compromise the said company’s networks. Media reports about the incident have identified the US company to be electric car maker Tesla. ...the fact that Kriuchkov approached a Russian-speaking, non-US citizen working at Gigafactory Nevada suggests that the team behind the cyberattack attempt has done their research well. During their “business” meeting, Kriuchkov revealed his hand. The plan involved the Tesla employee inserting malware provided by Kriuchkov and his associates...

Congressional negotiators are considering whether NASA contracts awarded to Elon Musk's SpaceX represent a potential national security risk due to Chinese financial support for the billionaire owner's electric car company, Tesla. “What is there to stop them from going to Musk directly and saying, 'We'll call your line of credit early, unless you give us X, Y, or Z?'” said a congressional Republican aide involved in negotiations over the comprehensive legislation governing the space agency. “And, there's no real clarity that there's any kind of mechanism that would stop that other than good behavior by an individual.” The question underscores...

Elon Musk has become the fourth-richest person in the world, amassing a fortune worth nearly $85 billion. The mark was crossed on Monday after shares of Tesla Inc. surged more than 11%, boosting the affable tech exec's net worth by nearly $8 billion, according to Bloomberg. At a net worth of $84.8 billion, Musk trails only Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on Bloomberg's Billionaires Index. Much of Musk's net worth is tied up in his electric car maker Tesla, which has seen its shares surge more than 300% this year. The car...

VIDEO If your Tesla car runs out of electricity on the road miles away from the nearest charging station, what do you do? This video shows what actually happened in this situation.

Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) already has some of the most energy-dense electric vehicle batteries available, with the company's Model S able to travel over 400 miles on a single charge. Now it looks like Tesla's vehicles will be able to travel even farther, as a report from Reuters details Panasonic's (OTC: PCRFY) lans for future improvements. Over the next five years, Panasonic is planning to increase energy density by 20%, while also having cobalt-free batteries available in the next two to three years, according to Reuters. The 2170 cells that will be receiving these improvements are currently found in Tesla's...

Make room, Austin. Tesla is coming to town. The electric automaker will build a $1.1 billion assembly plant in Travis County, according to a press release from Gov. Greg Abbott. The factory – to be built on 2,100 acres off Texas 130 and Harold Green Road in southeastern Travis County – will employ 5,000 people with wages starting at $35,000 annually.

Last Updated Jul 22nd, 2020 at 12:52 pm Ford Motor Company has unveiled what is being called a "one-off prototype" electric race car named the Mach-E 1400. The insane vehicle boasts a near 57-kilowatt battery, seven different motors, and 1,400 horsepower. Three of its motors power the front wheels, with four connected to the rear, providing a stunning 2,300 pounds of downforce. "Getting behind the wheel of this car has completely changed my perspective on what power and torque can be," professional driver Vaughn Gittin Jr. said. Ford executives are not planning to sell the car but rather use it...

The sweeping hack of verified Twitter accounts Wednesday night was one of the largest security lapses in the platform’s history and led to thousands of users being partially locked out for hours. But the social media giant, and its users, may have gotten off easy. Now lawmakers and top officials are mulling how to ensure Twitter is not hacked by groups with more malicious intentions and how to protect other potential cyber targets from the same fate. The conversation has taken on a particular urgency as geopolitical tensions increase during the COVID-19 pandemic with only months left until a presidential...

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