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Tesla promotes FSD misuse in its own videos — undermining its legal defense

11 June 2026 at 18:11

Tesla is facing up to $14.5 billion in lawsuits related to its “Full Self-Driving” and Autopilot systems — and the company’s own marketing department keeps making the problem worse. In two official promotional videos published in the last three weeks, Tesla showed a driver making espresso while FSD drives and shared footage where FSD committed multiple traffic violations in Denmark.

The problem is obvious: Tesla’s entire legal defense in crash lawsuits rests on the argument that drivers are responsible for supervising FSD at all times. But Tesla’s own promotional content actively encourages the opposite behavior.

Fleet buys Tesla Semi electric trucks after stunning 1.55 kWh/mile efficiency

11 June 2026 at 16:59

ArcBest (ARCB), the multibillion-dollar logistics company, is purchasing two Tesla Semi electric trucks for its ABF Freight fleet after a successful 2025 pilot program that averaged 1.55 kWh per mile over 4,494 miles.

The purchase marks a significant step beyond piloting and into actual fleet investment for the less-than-truckload (LTL) carrier, which is now expanding its electric Class 8 testing across a broader operating footprint.

BYD is deploying 2.4x more charging power per month than Tesla

10 June 2026 at 17:36

BYD is building a charging network that makes Tesla’s Supercharger look slow — and it’s deploying it at a pace that could see it surpass Tesla’s global network within two to three years.

The Chinese automaker has already deployed over 5,700 Flash Charging stations in China in just a few months and just opened its first overseas stations in Europe. The chargers deliver up to 1,500 kW of power — three times what Tesla’s latest V4 Superchargers can do.

BYD threatens to sue Trump administration over Pentagon military list

10 June 2026 at 14:52

BYD is threatening to sue the US government after the Pentagon added the world’s largest EV maker to its list of “Chinese military companies” this week.

Stella Li, BYD’s executive vice-president, said the company will use every legal “weapon” at its disposal to fight the designation, which she called a false claim aimed at hobbling BYD because of its international success.

Tesla ‘FSD’ approved in Denmark, 4th European country in 2 months

9 June 2026 at 17:07

Denmark has provisionally approved Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” (Supervised) system, making it the fourth European country to clear the software in roughly eight weeks.

The Danish Road Traffic Authority, Færdselsstyrelsen, confirmed the decision today — notably after Denmark had previously raised concerns about the technology at the EU level.

All the new EVs you can buy with 0% financing in June 2026

6 June 2026 at 12:30

Lease deals get all the hype, but a lot of people would still rather buy their vehicles. If that sounds like you, you’re in luck, because there’s a whole bunch of great EVs you can buy with 0% financing this month – including the best-selling Tesla Model Y!

Tesla pushes Roadster demo to August as SpaceX thruster work continues

5 June 2026 at 20:51

Tesla has pushed the planned public demo of its next-generation Roadster to August or later, according to a report from The Information citing four people with knowledge of the program. It marks yet another delay for the vehicle first unveiled as a prototype nearly nine years ago.

The demo, expected to take place in Texas, is meant to showcase the SpaceX cold gas thruster system that Tesla claims will allow the Roadster to achieve extreme acceleration and even lift off the ground.

Xpeng spends $500M/year on AI training to beat Tesla FSD

5 June 2026 at 14:58

Xpeng’s head of autonomous driving told Electrek that the company is spending roughly 300 million RMB (~$41 million) per month on AI training alone and believes it has already reached parity with Tesla’s FSD v13 — with v14 within reach before the end of summer.

I sat down with Dr. Xianming Liu, head of Xpeng’s General Intelligence Center, the day after he delivered a keynote at CVPR 2026 in Denver — sharing the stage with Tesla’s Ashok Elluswamy and leaders from Nvidia and Waymo at one of the world’s top computer vision conferences.

Tesla erases the past, CAT electrifies the future, and EV tech training TODAY

5 June 2026 at 02:55

On today’s time-traveling episode of Quick Charge, Tesla might be trying to erase evidence of FSD fraud, Caterpillar keeps trying to electrify the construction space, and time is rapidly running out on what’s left of the 30% home solar tax credit.

SpaceX’s xAI just bought another $269M of Tesla Megapacks

4 June 2026 at 13:58

SpaceX’s amended S-1 IPO filing, published yesterday, reveals that xAI purchased another $269 million worth of Tesla Megapack products in April 2026 alone. That single month exceeds what xAI spent on Tesla Megapacks in all of 2024.

The purchase brings total Megapack spending by xAI to roughly $1 billion since 2024 — a staggering figure that underscores both how power-hungry AI data centers have become and how deeply intertwined Elon Musk’s companies are.

Tesla hit with class action in Quebec over up to $400m in heat pump failures

4 June 2026 at 12:26

A Quebec Tesla owner has filed a class action request against Tesla over heat pump failures, seeking damages for all Tesla owners in the province after being stuck with a $4,477 repair bill when her Model 3’s heat pump died after just six years.

The lawsuit covers every Tesla model equipped with a heat pump — Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, and Cybertruck — and alleges the automaker has been hiding a known defect from buyers.

Tesla expands ‘Robotaxi’ to entire Austin metro — but still has only ~20 vehicles

3 June 2026 at 18:14

Tesla announced today that its unsupervised “Robotaxi” service now covers the entire Austin metro area, a significant expansion of its geofenced operating zone.

It’s a notable milestone on paper, but the actual fleet serving this massive area remains tiny — just ~20 active unsupervised vehicles, according to the latest data, a number that has actually been shrinking.

Tesla retroactively added ‘supervised’ to FSD contracts owners signed years ago

3 June 2026 at 13:54

Tesla has retroactively modified “Full Self-Driving” purchase agreements to add “supervised” language that did not exist when owners originally bought the product. In some cases, the original documents have been made entirely inaccessible.

Electrek has confirmed the issue with multiple owners. The contracts in question were signed between 2016 and early 2024, when Tesla sold the package as “Full Self-Driving Capability” — with no mention of “supervised” and the implicit promise of unsupervised autonomy.

Tesla found new buyers for its Cybertruck: Kazakh emergency services

3 June 2026 at 03:33

Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Emergency Situations has confirmed it will purchase additional Tesla Cybertrucks after the electric pickup proved effective in rescue operations in Almaty, the country’s largest city.

The Central Asian country has become the latest small international market to adopt the Cybertruck, as Tesla continues to struggle with collapsing domestic demand for the electric pickup.

Tesla Semi tackles the Grapevine with a loaded trailer, leaves fleet operator ‘amazed’

2 June 2026 at 15:20

Covenant Logistics, one of the largest trucking companies in the US with a fleet of over 2,600 tractors, completed a two-week evaluation of the Tesla Semi in California — including a loaded run over the notorious Grapevine pass on I-5.

The company’s VP of Sustainability and Innovation, Matt McLelland, said the driver “was amazed at the performance of the Tesla Semi and felt a level of confidence that was hard to match in a diesel truck.”

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Tesla patents camera wiper for self-driving — resulting in more doubts for FSD owners

2 June 2026 at 14:51

Tesla has been granted a new patent for a miniature camera cleaning system with a built-in wiper designed to keep vehicle cameras clear for autonomous driving.

The patent addresses one of the most frustrating and well-known issues with Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” system — dirty cameras that constantly trigger alerts telling drivers to clean them. But Tesla’s Robotaxi fleet in Austin already has its own camera washer hardware that consumer vehicles don’t get.

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Tesla FSD v14 is so good it’s making me dangerously complacent

1 June 2026 at 18:13

I was the first journalist to test Tesla’s Autopilot before it launched over a decade ago. I’ve tested every version of Autopilot and “Full Self-Driving” since. FSD v14 is by far the most impressive — and that’s exactly what makes it the most dangerous.

The danger isn’t that FSD v14 is bad. The danger is that it’s so good enough that it can make you stop paying attention — and Tesla is not doing enough to discourage complacency.

In fact, I’d argue that it is actively encouraging complacency with its marketing.

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BYD will pay for crashes on its FSD competitor, something Tesla never has

1 June 2026 at 10:46

BYD says it will assume full financial liability for at-fault accidents that happen while its “God’s Eye” urban driving system is active in China — with no cap on the payout.

It’s a commitment Tesla has never made for “Full Self-Driving,” and it flips the industry’s standard liability model on its head.

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Tesla’s ‘Full Self-Driving’ fraud lawsuit gets first hearing in China — 10 owners seek $583K

30 May 2026 at 17:20

A Beijing court held its first hearing in a consumer fraud lawsuit against Tesla over its “Full Self-Driving” software, with 10 owners seeking more than 3.95 million yuan ($583,000) in damages.

The case, which we first covered when it was filed last September, has grown from 7 to 10 plaintiffs and marks China’s first collective legal challenge targeting Tesla’s FSD promises.

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Rivian R2 matches Tesla Model Y efficiency despite bigger, heavier body

29 May 2026 at 11:22

The Rivian R2 Performance’s final EPA ratings are now published, and the numbers confirm something impressive: the R2 Performance matches the Tesla Model Y Performance on efficiency at 105 MPGe combined and 32 kWh per 100 miles — while actually beating it on range with 330 miles versus 306.

What makes this particularly noteworthy is the R2’s form factor. The Rivian is a boxier, taller, more utilitarian SUV that weighs nearly 800 lbs more than the Model Y, yet it achieves identical efficiency.

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