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Posted
1 hour ago, Captain Ron said:

 

 

 

from that article:

Now, Musk is on record saying that Tesla will only launch the service in a limited area in Austin and even avoid certain intersections that Tesla is not sure it can handle:

We will geo‑fence it. It’s not going to take intersections unless we are highly confident it’s going to do well with that intersection. Or it will just take a route around that intersection.

In addition to geofencing, Tesla is also utilizing teleoperation to control vehicles with human operators remotely.

We reported last year when Tesla started building a “teleoperation team.”

Despite Tesla originally planning to launch the robotaxi service on June 12, and now “tentatively” on June 22, the automaker posted a new job listing days ago for engineers to help build a low-latency teleoperation system to operate its “self-driving” cars and robots

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Musk claims that Tesla is being “super paranoid” about safety, but you have to take his word for it.

We have pointed it out before, but it’s worth repeating: Waymo tested its self-driving vehicles in Austin for six months with safety drivers and then for another six months without safety drivers before launching its autonomous ride-hailing service in the city.

As for Tesla, it tested its vehicles with safety drivers throughout Austin for a few months. Then, Musk announced in late May, only weeks before the planned launch, that it had started testing without safety drivers.

Despite many people being on the lookout for these driverless Tesla Robotaxis, they were only spotted for the first time last week.

Since then, only two confirmed Tesla vehicles without drivers have been spotted testing.

Furthermore, several of those vehicles were spotted with Tesla employees in the front passenger seat. While Musk claims that there are “no safety driver”, these “passengers” pay attention at all times and have access to a kill switch to stop the vehicle.

They virtually operate like “safety drivers”, but they are on the passenger seat rather than the driver’s seat.

Tesla is currently still in the “testing” phase based on the listing with the state regulators, which also mentions “no” safety drivers

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Posted

Related to the above article about production pauses

Tesla stock falls after report EV maker is pausing production in Texas

Tesla Plans to Pause Cybertruck, Model Y Production July 4 Week - Business Insider

Quote

 

Tesla shares slid 4% on Tuesday after a report that the electric vehicle maker was halting production of Cybertruck and Model Y models for a week in Austin, Texas.

The production stoppage begins June 30, Business Insider reported, citing a staff meeting where the announcement was made. The pause, which is for maintenance on production lines, would be the third such shutdown at the Austin facility in the past year, according to BI.

 

 

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Posted
2 hours ago, tbone_ said:

wtf costs a billion a month?

 

Elon's drug habit?

But seriously - given how he throws money around, them burning through that kind of cash is not that crazy. I mean that crazy big data center powered by portable generators. The fact that he probably is paying the hell out of his team, even if they are substandard (see Meta offering $100 Million to Open AI employees)
https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/sam-altman-says-meta-offered-013520184.html

 

Them lighting cash on fire wouldn't shock me in the least.

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Posted
9 minutes ago, Firemans4Horn said:

Texas law makers are fine with kids getting shot in schools and old people freezing to death in their homes but even this is too dangerous. 
 

 

They just need bigger campaign contributions from Musk. Then it will all go away. 

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Posted

From the KXAN article above about the robotaxi, how long until a special session is called to help Tesla out?

A group of Texas lawmakers sent a letter to Tesla urging the company to delay its robotaxi operations in Austin. Tesla reportedly planned to launch the self-driving service on Sunday, June 22.

The letter said the Texas Legislature approved a revision to the state’s 2017 autonomous vehicle operations framework. It mentioned how this new law goes into effect this September.

“Under the new framework, commercial autonomous vehicle operators transporting passengers or property must receive prior authorization from the Department of Motor Vehicles before operating on public streets without a human driver,” the letter read.

In order to get that authorization, an operator must demonstrate each vehicle is:

  • Capable of operating in compliance with state traffic laws
  • Equipped with a recording device
  • Compliant with federal law, including federal motor vehicle safety standards
  • Capable of achieving a minimal risk condition if the automated driving system is rendered inoperable
  • Registered, titled, and insured under Texas law

Along with those requirements, operators have to submit a First Responder Interaction Plan to the Department of Public Safety to explain the following:

  • How first responders interact with the autonomous vehicles
  • How to communicate with fleet support and safely remove or tow vehicles from the roadway
  • Any additional information regarding hazardous conditions or public safety risks associated with the vehicles

“As members of the Austin delegation in the Texas Senate and Texas House of Representatives, we are formally requesting that Tesla delay autonomous robotaxi operations until the new law takes effect on September 1, 2025. We believe this is in the best interest of both public safety and building public trust in Tesla’s operations,” the letter read.

The letter said if Tesla still proceeds with its plans to launch this month, they request the company responds to this letter with detailed information demonstrating that Tesla will be “compliant with the new law upon the launch of driverless operations in Austin.”

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Since it's the Austin delegation, I'm guessing it's Democrats, but as somebody pointed out, Musk doesn't have a lot of friends on the right side of the anymore, so between Texas ambulance chasers and somebody looking to make a name for themselves, Tesla better not fuck this up. And don't think Trump won't be above mocking the shit out of him/having the NTSB look into any accidents if they fuck this up. When he's done with you, he's usually done with you, and I doubt Musk realizes that. He seems to operate under the belief that if you delete a tweet, it's no harm, no foul.

And these stricter protocols were put in place by the R's, and the fact that Musk said they were making sure to avoid certain intersections as being "problematic" I think was the wording, was hilarious.

I'm going to guess that it won't happen in June.  Or July.

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Posted
On 6/17/2025 at 9:09 PM, Captain Ron said:

 

Elon's drug habit?

But seriously - given how he throws money around, them burning through that kind of cash is not that crazy. I mean that crazy big data center powered by portable generators. The fact that he probably is paying the hell out of his team, even if they are substandard (see Meta offering $100 Million to Open AI employees)
https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/sam-altman-says-meta-offered-013520184.html

 

Them lighting cash on fire wouldn't shock me in the least.

seems like they need Big Ballz to doge Tesla and his other companies.

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Posted

For those of you not in the Austin area, Waymo is all over west campus and up and down Lamar.  I used to see 1-2 per day but it's now up to 7-10 per day.  A few days ago, I was stopped at a light on 29th st behind two Waymos, and a Waymo passed us going the other direction.  Unlike human drivers in Austin, the Waymo goes when the light turns green because the robot is not doing the Wordle while waiting at the red light.

It's a great solution for students that don't have a car, but need transportation a few times per week.  It's integrated with Uber so that you don't know if you are getting a human or a robot when you order Uber.  You opt-in to Waymo in the Uber app and if one is available It just shows up.

It's very impressive technology.  I think Tesla's Robotaxi has about a year to catch up before Waymo becomes the Kleenex/Xerox of the self-driving taxi industry.  I will be very surprised if Tesla does it.  I expect Elon to abandon the effort in a year or two and say "we are focusing on robots" or something like that. 

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Posted

gotta say, NASASpaceflight on youtube got a GREAT shot with their telephoto camera in starbase. The crazy thing - it detonated like this WHILE FUELING! It wasn't even firing any engines!

The video has some really pretty explosion porn though. Slo-motion and everything

 

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Posted

Say, I'd bet the environmental impact on those protected wetlands is pretty fucking bad from getting covered with pulverized rocket part bits. Powderized silica from the heat tiles is a wonderful way to spread cancer over a region

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Posted
27 minutes ago, Captainant said:

gotta say, NASASpaceflight on youtube got a GREAT shot with their telephoto camera in starbase. The crazy thing - it detonated like this WHILE FUELING! It wasn't even firing any engines!

The video has some really pretty explosion porn though. Slo-motion and everything

 

Reminds me of the time as an 11 year old when I tried to make a warhead out of the nose cone of an Estes model rocket with potassium nitrate and black powder.

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Posted
8 minutes ago, HenryJames said:

What if we think of SpaceX as a fireworks company?

Kind of a short presentation. 

we’re gonna have to upgrade tariffs on all the Chinese fireworks even more to get this American manufacturer a level playing field. 

Posted
1 hour ago, blacklab said:

Has Elmo come out and said the test was a success yet?

48 minutes ago, Surly Bevo said:

“We learned a lot today”

It was an anomaly.

With Starship blowing up yesterday, and Robotaxi coming Sunday, it's got to be a little bit stressful for Leon.  Wonder if there's anything he can turn to, to help with that. 

Posted
5 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

It was an anomaly.

With Starship blowing up yesterday, and Robotaxi coming Sunday, it's got to be a little bit stressful for Leon.  Wonder if there's anything he can turn to, to help with that. 

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Posted
Reminds me of the time as an 11 year old when I tried to make a warhead out of the nose cone of an Estes model rocket with potassium nitrate and black powder.

Sounds awesome!
Posted
2 minutes ago, Chad Fuck said:


Sounds awesome!

Not really.  There was a construction attempt, but my older brother (lets call him "Chet") kept calling it the "Polish Nuke" then told on me before I could launch and I got a parental beat down.  Chet probably saved a few of my digits, tho.

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Posted
10 minutes ago, Goredho said:

Not really.  There was a construction attempt, but my older brother (lets call him "Chet") kept calling it the "Polish Nuke" then told on me before I could launch and I got a parental beat down.  Chet probably saved a few of my digits, tho.

c15c5380-4ab4-454d-9be3-3d64ececb6ca_tex

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Posted
2 hours ago, Goredho said:

Not really.  There was a construction attempt, but my older brother (lets call him "Chet") kept calling it the "Polish Nuke" then told on me before I could launch and I got a parental beat down.  Chet probably saved a few of my digits, tho.

Fuck Chet. Snitches get stitches. 

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Posted
6 hours ago, Texas Jeff said:

For those of you not in the Austin area, Waymo is all over west campus and up and down Lamar.  I used to see 1-2 per day but it's now up to 7-10 per day.  A few days ago, I was stopped at a light on 29th st behind two Waymos, and a Waymo passed us going the other direction.  Unlike human drivers in Austin, the Waymo goes when the light turns green because the robot is not doing the Wordle while waiting at the red light.

The hell? Who does Wordle at a red light? If you're not doing it while driving, you're doing it wrong. Just like Snake in the old days.

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Posted
2 hours ago, Goredho said:

Not really.  There was a construction attempt, but my older brother (lets call him "Chet") kept calling it the "Polish Nuke" then told on me before I could launch and I got a parental beat down.  Chet probably saved a few of my digits, tho.

Weird Science Chet GIF by LosVagosNFT

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