Latest news with #TeslaEngineering
Auto Express
24-07-2025
- Automotive
- Auto Express
New cheaper Tesla Model Y to battle Chinese upstarts
Tesla's long-rumoured cheaper model has been announced by the firm's CEO, Elon Musk but it turns out it'll be a more affordable version of the huge-popular Model Y SUV. Speaking at a Q2 investor conference, Musk replied to a question regarding an upcoming new model and what it would look like, stating 'it's just a Model Y'. Lars Moravy, Tesla's Vice President of Engineering had whet appetites earlier this year by saying "the models that come out in the next months will resemble in form and shape the cars that we currently make." During the call this week, Musk also reasoned why a cheaper Model Y version was important for the brand. "The desire to buy the car is very high. Just people don't have enough money in their bank account to buy it. Literally, that is the issue. Not a lack of desire, but a lack of ability. So the more affordable we can make the car, the better." Advertisement - Article continues below Here in the UK, the Model Y kicks off £44,990 - though the Model 3 starts at £39,990 so we'd expect a cheaper Model Y variant to sit between the two. As for what the new car will feature, we expect it could be similar to the cheaper Model 3 that was unveiled for the Mexican market last year that does without vegan leather upholstery (trading for cloth instead) and removes features such as ambient interior lighting and heating functionality for the seats and steering wheel. Production of the new Model Y variant is believed to have already started with Tesla claiming it has 'first builds of a more affordable model in June, with volume production planned for the second half of 2025.' The addition of a cheaper Model Y should help Tesla fight back against falling sales. The Model Y was the best-selling EV in the world last year, but this year Tesla's overall deliveries and profits have taken a hit with revenue dropping 12 per cent - the firm's biggest drop in a decade. Tesla also confirmed that both the autonomous Cybercab already in limited operation in Austin, Texas, and the big Semi truck, will enter volume production next year. Tell us which new car you're interested in and get the very best offers from our network of over 5,500 UK dealers to compare. Let's go…
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Someone hacked Silicon Valley crosswalks to spoof Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk
Whether in Ancient Greek parodies, Shakespeare's subtle jabs at the haughty upper class or Jon Stewart's takedowns of the latest Washington absurdities, humor can be a razor-edged weapon that shapes public opinion. Last weekend, we were reminded again of comedy's ability to strike at the rich and powerful when someone hacked Silicon Valley crosswalks to play synthetic voice impersonations of Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk. "Hi, this is Elon Musk," the voice impersonating the Trump ally and federal government dismantler said. "Welcome to Palo Alto, the home of Tesla Engineering. You know, they say money can't buy happiness. And… yeah, okay… I guess that's true. God knows I've tried. But it can buy a Cybertruck, and that's pretty sick, right? …Right?? Fuck, I'm so alone." "Hi, this is Mark Zuckerberg, but real ones call me the Zuck," the synthetic voice of Meta's CEO said over one crosswalk speaker. "It's normal to feel uncomfortable or even violated as we forcefully insert AI into every facet of your conscious experience. And I just want to assure you, you don't need to worry because there's absolutely nothing you can do to stop it. Anyway, see ya." The videos have accumulated over 100,000 likes on TikTok and nearly 400,000 views on X (ironically). Palo Alto Online reports (via TechCrunch) that they could be heard in downtown intersections in Redwood City, Menlo Park and Palo Alto but had been removed beginning on Saturday. "Hi, this is Elon Musk," another crosswalk speaker emitted. "And I'd like to personally welcome you to Palo Alto. People keep saying cancer is bad, but have you tried being a cancer? It's fucking awesome." "Hey, it's Zuck here," another voice said. "I just wanted to tell you how very proud I am of everything we've been building together. From undermining democracy to cooking our grandparents' brains with AI slop to making the world less safe for trans people, nobody does it better than us. And I think that's pretty neat. Zuck out!" Finally, a Palo Alto speaker conducted armchair psychology on the Tesla CEO. "Hi, I'm Elon. Can we be friends? Will you be my friend? I'll give you a Cybertruck, I promise. Okay, look, you don't know the level of depravity I would stoop to just for a crumb of approval. I mean, let's be real. It's not like I had any moral convictions to begin with, right?"
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Yahoo
Hackers insert Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg's voices into crosswalk signals
Anonymous hackers in Silicon Valley reprogrammed crosswalk signals in various locations with the voices of tech billionaires Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg. Video circulated online showed the tongue-in-cheek, and apparently AI-generated prank messages being played at various locations after pedestrians pushed the buttons to cross the road. 'Hi, this is Mark Zuckerberg, but real ones call me the Zuck,' one crosswalk says. The voice then adds: 'You know, it's normal to feel uncomfortable or even violated, as we forcefully insert AI into every facet of your conscious experience, and I just want to assure you, you don't need to worry, because there's absolutely nothing you can do to stop it. Anyway, see ya.' Members of the public reported the hacking of crosswalks at locations in Redwood City, Menlo Park and Palo Alto, in the Bay Area. The AI-generated Musk can be heard asking if people will be his friend and promising to give them one of his Tesla Cybertrucks in return. "This is Elon Musk. Welcome to Palo Alto, the home of Tesla Engineering,' the voice says. 'They say money can't buy happiness. I guess that's true. God knows, I've tried, but it can buy a cyber truck, and that's pretty sick, right? F*** I'm so loaded.' In another video, the AI-generated Musk voice says: 'You don't know the level of depravity I would stoop to just for a crumb of approval… I mean, let's be real, it's not like I had any moral convictions to begin with.' City officials were quick to act, with all sound being shut off at the affected crosswalks by Saturday morning in Palo Alto. Spokesperson Meghan Horrigan-Taylor told local outlet Palo Alto Online that it had been determined that 12 downtown intersections had been impacted and subsequently had the voice feature disabled. 'Other traffic signals in the City were checked and the impact is isolated,' Horrigan-Taylor said. 'Signal operations are otherwise unaffected, and motorists are reminded to always exercise caution around pedestrians.' It is unclear what the motive behind the prank was.
The Independent
14-04-2025
- The Independent
Hackers insert Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg's voices into crosswalk signals
Anonymous hackers in Silicon Valley reprogrammed crosswalk signals in various locations with the voices of tech billionaires Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg. Video circulated online showed the tongue-in-cheek, and apparently AI-generated prank messages being played at various locations after pedestrians pushed the buttons to cross the road. 'Hi, this is Mark Zuckerberg, but real ones call me the Zuck,' one crosswalk says. The voice then adds: 'You know, it's normal to feel uncomfortable or even violated, as we forcefully insert AI into every facet of your conscious experience, and I just want to assure you, you don't need to worry, because there's absolutely nothing you can do to stop it. Anyway, see ya.' Members of the public reported the hacking of crosswalks at locations in Redwood City, Menlo Park and Palo Alto, in the Bay Area. The AI-generated Musk can be heard asking if people will be his friend and promising to give them one of his Tesla Cybertrucks in return. "This is Elon Musk. Welcome to Palo Alto, the home of Tesla Engineering,' the voice says. 'They say money can't buy happiness. I guess that's true. God knows, I've tried, but it can buy a cyber truck, and that's pretty sick, right? F*** I'm so loaded.' In another video, the AI-generated Musk voice says: 'You don't know the level of depravity I would stoop to just for a crumb of approval… I mean, let's be real, it's not like I had any moral convictions to begin with.' City officials were quick to act, with all sound being shut off at the affected crosswalks by Saturday morning in Palo Alto. Spokesperson Meghan Horrigan-Taylor told local outlet Palo Alto Online that it had been determined that 12 downtown intersections had been impacted and subsequently had the voice feature disabled. 'Other traffic signals in the City were checked and the impact is isolated,' Horrigan-Taylor said. 'Signal operations are otherwise unaffected, and motorists are reminded to always exercise caution around pedestrians.' It is unclear what the motive behind the prank was.
CBS News
14-04-2025
- CBS News
Bay Area crosswalk signals hacked with AI messages impersonating Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg
This weekend, crosswalk signals in several Peninsula cities were hacked. Instead of telling people to wait for the light to change colors, there were AI-generated messages impersonating Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Tesla CEO Elon Musk. There were reports of the AI messages in Menlo Park, Redwood City and Palo Alto. Bulou Varanisese was one of many people who saw the videos trending on social media, but she was skeptical that it was real. She decided to come down to University Avenue in Palo Alto and check it out herself. "It's a curious thing for me and I chased my curiosity. It never hurts to press a button, right?" Varanisese said. So she pressed it and heard an AI version of Elon Musk's voice say, "This is Elon Musk. Welcome to Palo Alto, the home of Tesla Engineering." She says she was shocked, then she thought it may have been intentionally put there. "I thought 'Oh, this is a newer way to advertise,'" Varanisese said. She first interpreted the message as a Tesla product plug. "You know they say, 'Money can't buy happiness' and yeah, OK, I guess that's true," said the AI voice of Musk. "God knows I've tried, but it can buy a Cybertruck, and that's pretty sick, right?" She said it made her laugh, but then she had a second thought. "After the amusement of it all I was like, 'Oh OK, it's definitely a security concern,'" Varanisese said. Retired FBI Agent Jeff Harp says people shouldn't be too concerned. That part of the crosswalk isn't that sophisticated of a system. Harp said this hack will result in the cities taking more safety precautions after a fairly mild inconvenience. "What this will do is it will bring it to the attention of the people who are putting these devices on the street, street lights, crosswalks and those sorts of things and they'll say, 'Hey wait a minute, we did need to install some anti-infiltration devices on them,'" Harp said. Harp said you'll never stop 100% of these types of hacks, but it is a reminder for everyone to protect their individual technological property. "The biggest takeaway from things like this is protect your passwords, don't open emails you don't recognize," he said. "All of these things." There were also some messages from an AI version of Mark Zuckerberg at some Palo Alto and Menlo Park locations. "Hi this is Mark Zuckerberg, but the real ones call me the Zuck," said one of the AI voices. It goes on to acknowledge this strange and slightly violating use of AI. "I just want to assure you there's no need to worry because there's absolutely nothing you can do to stop it," the voice said. But overall, Varanisese enjoyed the experience. "I think it did add a layer of fun back to Palo Alto in a weird way because it's been quite stiff here," Varanisese said. About a dozen intersections in Palo Alto were impacted, the audible feature will stay disabled until the city can finish repairing them.
