Tesla has rebranded its FSD (Supervised) driver-assistance package as "Assisted Driving" in Europe following criticism from Germany's Federal Ministry of Transport, which called the original name misleading. The U.S. version remains marketed as Full Self-Driving (Supervised) under a $99-a-month subscription. German regulators stated the system only assists with tasks like steering, braking and accelerating, and does not take over driving entirely.
Tesla has renamed its driver-assistance software in Europe from 'Full Self-Driving (Supervised)' to 'Tesla Assisted Driving,' following criticism from Germany's transport ministry. Minister Steffen Bilger said the previous name was misleading since the system does not fully drive itself, and said Tesla proposed the new name after talks with his ministry.
Tesla has changed the name of its advanced driver-assistance software from 'Full Self-Driving (Supervised)' to 'Tesla Assisted Driving' on its websites and apps in European countries including Germany, Spain and the UK. The change follows talks with Germany's transport ministry, and comes as German transport minister Steffen Bilger said he would back EU-wide approval of the system under its new name.
CNBC reports that individual investors are increasingly using margin accounts — borrowing against their holdings to buy more stock — contributing to a record level of Wall Street margin debt. One case profiled is Hy Luu, a 29-year-old Houston engineering consultant who lives with his mother and began margin trading Tesla shares in 2021, at one point amassing more than $100,000 in margin debt and later exercising options that pushed his borrowing above $156,000.
WIRED's Leah Feiger and Zoë Schiffer discuss Elon Musk's renewed political spending through America PAC heading into the midterm elections, following his major financial involvement in the 2024 cycle. They note this spending pattern is echoed by other Silicon Valley tech leaders and their own PACs, who are similarly active this election cycle.
Director Alex Gibney has released a four-part documentary titled 'Musk' examining the life and career of Elon Musk, running roughly four hours in total. A review describes the film as engaging but prone to hyperbole in its portrayal of the tech entrepreneur.
WIRED partnered with Neal Agarwal to create 'Spend Elon Musk’s Money,' an interactive website allowing users to virtually spend Musk’s estimated trillion-dollar wealth on various items. The tool tracks spending in real-time, illustrating how far a trillion dollars can go through tangible purchases. It aims to help people better grasp the scale of such immense wealth.
Tesla's humanoid robot, Optimus, has appeared in videos performing simple tasks such as passing popcorn and vacuuming, but struggles with more complex actions like ironing. Despite Elon Musk's optimistic forecasts of mass-market availability by 2027 and potential to automate nearly all human labor, the robot's current performance remains rudimentary. Industry leaders continue to project rapid growth and transformative impact for humanoid robots in the coming decades.
Tesla has expanded its Powershare Home Backup feature, previously exclusive to the Cybertruck, to Premium and Performance Model 3 and Model Y vehicles paired with a Powerwall 3. Tesla says these EVs can power a home for over two days during an outage, less than the three-plus days claimed for the Cybertruck. Support for Powerwall 2 and Powerwall Plus is said to be coming soon, and the feature currently applies only to vehicles ordered from October 1st onward in the US and Puerto Rico.
Elon Musk said Tesla extended its Austin robotaxi operating hours from 10pm to 11pm, explaining the limit exists to avoid hitting pets that are hard to see at night, specifically citing grey kittens on grey pavement. Tesla relies solely on cameras for its self-driving system, forgoing the radar and LIDAR sensors used by rival robotaxi operators.
Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 1246, a new California law requiring autonomous vehicle companies such as Waymo, Tesla and Zoox to provide local support when their robotaxis malfunction or obstruct traffic. The law mandates penalties if a vehicle blocks police or firefighters for more than 30 minutes and requires remote drivers to be U.S.-based with valid U.S. licenses. It takes effect in July 2028, with the California DMV handling remaining implementation details.
Georgetown space law professor Steve Mirmina argues in a new paper, published Sept. 19 in Air and Space Law, that no US agency has legal authority to regulate what companies send to the lunar surface. He cites examples including Celestis's $3,495 pet-ashes memorials, a beverage company's drink-shaped payload, Jeff Koons's 125 mini-sculptures tied to NFTs, and a crowdfunded cross, noting humans have left roughly 500,000 pounds of material on the moon.
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