Tesla

Tesla sues former Optimus engineer over alleged trade secret theft

AI /

Tesla sued a former engineer for allegedly stealing trade secrets from its humanoid robotics program, Optimus, and using them to launch a rival startup. The lawsuit, which was filed on Wednesday and originally reported on by Bloomberg, accuses Zhongjie “Jay” Li of stealing trade secrets regarding Tesla’s development of “advanced robotic hand sensors” to launch […]

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Musk targets June 22 launch of Tesla’s long-promised robotaxi service

Transportation /

Tesla CEO Elon Musk said his company will start offering public rides in driverless vehicles in Austin, Texas on June 22, which would mark the beginning of his long-promised robotaxi service. That date could shift because Musk claimed Tesla is “being super paranoid about safety.” Tesla Model Y SUVs have been spotted in recent days

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Tesla’s Optimus robot VP is reportedly leaving the company

Transportation /

The head of Tesla’s Optimus humanoid robot program, Milan Kovac, is leaving the company, according to Bloomberg News. The departure comes as Tesla CEO Elon Musk has claimed the company will have “thousands” of Optimus robots operating in its factories by the end of this year. “And we expect to scale Optimus up faster than

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Tesla files new ‘Robotaxi’ trademark applications after prior attempt stalls

Transportation /

Tesla has filed trademark applications for the term “Tesla Robotaxi,” after the company’s previous attempts to secure trademarks for its planned self-driving vehicle service hit roadblocks. The company originally applied in October 2024 for the trademark of the words “Robotaxi” and “Cybercab.” The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) told the company last month

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Elon Musk is lobbying lawmakers on driverless vehicle rules

Transportation /

Elon Musk may have stepped away from his duties as the lead of the Department of Government Efficiency and adviser to President Trump, but he’s still active in D.C. circles. This time, he’s on the other side, lobbying lawmakers on legislation related to autonomous vehicles, according to a report by Bloomberg that cited unnamed sources.

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TechCrunch Mobility: A ride-sharing pioneer comes for Uber, Tesla loses more ground, and dog-like delivery robots land in Texas

Transportation /

Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility — your central hub for news and insights on the future of transportation. Sign up here for free — just click TechCrunch Mobility! It might have been a short week, but there was still plenty of news, including another Zoox recall, an update on the Stellantis-Amazon partnership, and a few

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Tesla alum’s Heron Power closes $38M Series A to transform key grid technology

Climate /

Heron Power, the electrical grid-focused startup founded by former Tesla executive Drew Baglino, announced Thursday it has raised $38 million in a Series A funding round. Heron Power is developing solid-state transformers, which promise to be more compact and responsive than the century-old analog models. Transformers are key parts of the electrical grid, stepping voltage

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Tesla pleads for Senate to spare its booming energy business

Climate /

Tesla is a business built, in part, on government regulations and incentives, from a Department of Energy loan guarantee in 2009 to the regulatory credits it sells to other automakers, which have driven a third of its $32 billion in profits since 2012.  Now, the company’s energy business — a rare bright spot amid faltering demand

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Dozens of unsold Tesla Cybertrucks are piling up at Detroit parking lot

Transportation /

Tesla’s Cybertruck sales dropped significantly in recent quarters, leading to a rapid buildup of unsold inventory. And it looks like the company is resorting to unconventional storage sites for the excess vehicles. One such location, per Crains Detroit Business, is a Detroit shopping center that is now in violation of city code for storing dozens

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