ELON CHRON: The Daily Chronicle of Elon Musk's Companies
Added 2025-07-16 20:58:36 +0000 UTC
15th & 16th of July, 2025
"Ani, are you ok? So, Ani are you ok? Are you ok, Ani?" - Elon Musk (@elonmusk)
■ TESLA TSLA 2.73%↑ ($321.67, +3.50%):
- Tesla China has announced the Model YL 6 Seater! Per Tesla China VP Grace Tao Lin, "The Model YL, a six-seat luxury SUV for all scenarios. Available in the golden autumn." It does have a longer wheelbase compared to the regular Model Ys. Check out the specs here.
- Tesla China also filed for a new single-motor Model 3+ variant, potentially offering over 800 km CLTC range, surpassing the 753 km of the current long-range all-wheel-drive. The Model 3+ will be powered by LG Energy Solution ternary batteries and a 225 kW motor. Dimensions are identical to other Model 3 variants (4,720 mm x 1,848 mm x 1,442 mm, 2,875 mm wheelbase) and a curb weight of 1,760 kg. Top speed of 200 km/h.
- The 4,000 sq. ft. Tesla Mumbai Showroom, officially named the "Tesla Experience Centre," opened its doors on Tuesday, at Maker Maxity Mall in Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC). This is Tesla’s formal entry into the India market. The ceremony was attended by Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, showcasing two Model Ys imported from Giga Shanghai. Though test drives and deliveries are not yet available, you can order vehicles via the website. Tesla plans for a second showroom in Delhi and a service center in Kurla West, Mumbai, to support future sales. Prices for the Model Y in India are:
Model Y RWD: ~$70,000
Model Y LR RWD: ~$79,000
FSD: $7,000
- Tesla officially announced the opening of 6 Service and Collison Centers in the U.S.! I knew and mentioned most of these before, except for the one in my own back yard, North Houston! How did I not know this?
Tesla Collision Houston North at 454 Fallbrook Dr.
Tesla Londonderry, New Hampshire, at 36 Industrial Dr.
Tesla Norwalk, California, at 11729 Imperial Hwy.
Tesla Service Englewood, New Jersey, at 45 Cedar Ln.
Tesla North Sacramento Pre-Owned Sales Center at 3650 Dudley Blvd.
Tesla Los Gatos, California, at 15500 Los Gatos Blvd.
- Tesla is at the China International Supply Chain Promotion Expo at the China International Exhibition Center (Shunyi Venue) in Beijing. They will be there from July 16th-20th.
- Tesla plans to expand its retail presence in Japan from 23 stores to 30 by end-2025 and 50 by end-2026, with a long-term goal of 100 outlets nationwide, directly operated and located in shopping/business centers.
- The EV Charging Alliance of Ireland (EVCAI) has announced Tesla as its newest member. The EVCAI is Ireland's sole united representative body for EV charging operators and providers. They advocate policymakers on electrifying transport, and expanded EV infrastructure investments. Membership is open to active or entering providers in Ireland focused on collaborative development of charging networks. Tesla joins organizations including EasyGo, ePower, ESB ecars, Schneider Electric, eStation, Ayvens, and Weev.
- Model X Polizei! Pic by Eileen Hartmann (@X13ileen), Tesla Zürich Store Manager.
- Troy Jones (@troyrjones), who joined Tesla in 2010 and advanced to vice president of sales, service, and delivery for North America, has unfortunately departed after over 15 years. There is no disclosed reason for his exit. His X bio still emphasizes his passion for Tesla's mission and family, and he has not commented publicly on future plans. Troy was a major asset to Tesla. Thanks for everything Troy. You will be missed.
- In Japan, Tesla is promoting 0% interest on new car purchases, plus a up to 10% on trade-in appraisal value.
FLYOVERS (YouTube flight links in sources section if available):
Giga Texas: Joe Tegtmeyer (@JoeTegtmeyer), 16th of July, '25.
Tesla Diner: WC Drone Productions, 15th of July, '25.
Giga Nevada LFP Facility: Zanegler, 14th of July, '25
Giga Berlin: Tobias Lindh (@tobilindh), 14th of July, '25.
Giga Nevada Semi Factory: Zanegler, 12th of July, '25.
■ SPACEX:
- The Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) crew aboard Crew Dragon Grace streaks across the sky during atmospheric reentry at approximately 2:18 a.m. PT yesterday. The capsule splashed down successfully in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California, marking SpaceX's second West Coast crew recovery with vessel Shannon. The crew, Commander Peggy Whitson, Pilot Shubhanshu "Shux" Shukla (India), Mission Specialist Sławosz "Suave" Uznański-Wiśniewski (Poland), and Mission Specialist Tibor Kapu (Hungary), emerged safely and began acclimating to Earth's gravity aboard the recovery ship.
- Launch 89! Monday, 13th of July, at 7:13 p.m. PT, Falcon 9 Starlink 15-2 will launch from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. This was the fourth flight for first stage booster B1093. It previously launched three Starlink missions. The booster landed on drone ship Of Course I Still Love You in the Pacific Ocean. 26 Starlinks were deployed.
- Early this morning, launch 90 of Falcon 9 Project Kuiper #1 (@ProjectKuiper) launched from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. This was the first flight for first stage booster B1096. The booster landed on a drone ship A Shortfall of Gravitas in the Atlantic Ocean.
This was the first of a three launches contracted for Amazon's Kuiper low Earth orbit satellite internet constellation. All Kuipers were successfully deployed.
- Raptor 3 testing at McGregor. Rapid shutdown and reignition.
Starbase City Commission Meeting:
Wednesday, 16th of July, at 7:00 p.m. CT, at 39046 LBJ Blvd, Unit 02, Brownsville, TX 78521.
Countdown to 180 (87 - Falcon 9, 0 - Falcon Heavy, and 3 - Starship):
Launch 91! Friday, 18th of July, at 7:08 p.m. PT, Falcon 9 Starlink 17-3 will launch from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. The booster will land on drone ship Of Course I Still Love You in the Pacific Ocean.
Launch 92! Sunday, 20th of July, at 7:09 p.m. PT, Falcon 9 Starlink 17-2 will launch from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. The booster will land on drone ship Of Course I Still Love You in the Pacific Ocean.
Launch 93! July, Monday, 21st of July, at 5:00 p.m. ET, Falcon 9 O3b mPower 9-10 will launch from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. The booster will land on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. 2 high-throughput communications satellites in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) built by Boeing and operated by SES.
Launch 94! Tuesday, 22nd of July, at 11:05 a.m. PT, Falcon 9 TRACERS will launch from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. The booster will return to site and land at Landing Zone 4 (LZ-4) at Vandenberg. This is NASA's Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites (TRACERS) mission, consisting of two identical satellites that will orbit Earth in tandem (one following the other), will help understand magnetic re-connection and its effects in Earth’s atmosphere. Magnetic re-connection occurs when activity from the Sun interacts with Earth’s magnetic field. By understanding this process, scientists will be able to better understand and prepare for impacts of solar activity on Earth.
Launch ??! Thursday, 31st of July, at 12:09 p.m. ET, NASA SpaceX Falcon 9 Crew-11 will launch from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center, Florida. This will be Crew Dragon Endeavour's 6th flight. Booster B1094 will return to site and land at Landing Zone 1 (LZ-1) located at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Launch ??! Flight 10 NET August 4th.
■ THE BORING COMPANY: N/A... boring.
■ NEURALINK: N/A...
■ STARLINK:
- Yesterday Starlink posted a Network update. Here are the highlights:
US Median Peak-Hour Downlink Speed: ~200 Mbps across >2M customers as of July 2025.
US Median Peak-Hour Latency: 25.7 ms; <1% measurements exceed 55 ms.
Cumulative Capacity Launched: ~450 Tbps from >2,300 satellites added in past year.
Global Expansion: Added 42 new countries/markets; +2.7M customers; >6M total active users.
Lower Speed Tier: 100 Mbps download, 20 Mbps upload in most US states/territories.
Latency Goal: Stable 20 ms median with minimal packet loss.
Ground Infrastructure: >100 US gateway sites with >1,500 antennas for low latency in rural areas.
Measurements: Anonymized from millions of routers every 15 seconds; hundreds of billions daily in US.
Network Resilience: >7,800 satellites; multiple in view; laser links for routing around ground issues.
Disaster Support: Connectivity during Maui wildfires, Hurricane Helene floods, Texas flooding, Spain/Portugal outages.
Scalability: Deploying >5 Tbps capacity/week; current satellites 4x original capacity.
Polar Orbits: Launching >400 additional satellites by end-2025 to double Alaska capacity; speeds nearly doubled already.
Future Satellites: Third-gen in H1 2026; >1 Tbps downlink, >200 Gbps uplink per satellite.
Launch Capacity: 60 Tbps added per Starship launch; lower altitude for improved latency.
Starlink Train over the MANTA SENA cargo ship. Pic by 2nd Officer Ufuk Emre Tanrıöver.
- Rogers Communications of Canada launched Rogers Satellite, their Starlink Direct-to-Cell messaging service. Roger's now covers over 5.4 million square kilometers with Starlink and Rogers' national wireless spectrum combined. The service is offered to all Canadians via a free beta trial starting today through October. It supports text messaging and text-to-911. Plans after the beta are expand to apps, data, and voice services. Post-trial, it will be included free for Rogers Ultimate Plan customers and available for $15 per month otherwise. Beta participants will receive a $5 monthly discount for the first 12 months. Beta link in the Sources Section.
- The N50 Project deployed a team of volunteers, including Chris Gamache, John Parks, and Nicholas Savo, to Zambia last week to install a computer lab. This is by far their most remote lab to date and it is exclusively powered by solar energy and equipped with Starlink internet. It has enable over 500 students to connect to educational resources and seek personal development by providing a dedicated space for learning and research.
- At the Ministry's 6-month review yesterday, Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Pham Duc Long stated that the Ministry intends to grant a license for pilot operations in Q4 of this year once SpaceX completes its investment formalities and establishes a legal presence. Spaceis to collaborate with the Ministry of Finance to set up a wholly-owned subsidiary. SpaceX is making preparations for, and possibly already started, building a Gateway ground station to support the network.
- Ryan Goodnight (@ryangoodnight), SpaceX Sr. Director for Starlink Market Access, is currently on the Inca Trail, having an bro-adventure with his father, brother, and son. Of course he brough Starlink along. Per Ryan, "The reach of Starlink has no limits! While hiking the Inca Trail with my father, brother, and son, I was able to let the family back home know we were safe. The locals also told me Starlink has transformed their lives. This made the once in a lifetime trip even more special! Pretty amazing how good Starlink is getting in the most remote locations on Earth."
■ X:
- X Japan is collaborating with Aniplex Inc. to launch the Japan-exclusive "Demon Slayer Portal" from July 20th to August 3rd. It is accessible via a dedicated search tab and features premium videos like first episodes, exclusive cast talks, and game play reports. There will be daily Demon Slayer-themed campaigns for over 15 days, a character trend section showing real-time post counts with messages from the top character, and a curated timeline with updates from the official Demon Slayer account (@kimetsu_off) and game (@kimetsu_csgame) X accounts.
- X is going to start adding watermarks to screenshots of posts taken on the iOS app. H/T Aaron (@aaronp613).
- Your XChat DMs will soon have an Ask Grok feature. H/T P4mui (@P4mui).
- There will soo be a setting where Grok automatically translates posts in the For You tab. H/T Nima Owji (@nima_owji).
■ xAI:
- Yesterday, xAI Colossus Lead Brent Mayo (@BrentM_SpaceX) spoke at the Memphis Rotary Club, detailing progress on Colossus 1 (C1) and 2 (C2). He highlighted the $80 million graywater plant they will build, the hundreds of Tesla Megapacks to stabilize power and avoid straining Memphis Light, Gas and Water’s grid, and the 522-acre solar farm. The above post show Channel 5 news story. 2nd video is C2 in Southaven. 3rd video is the old Duke Energy power plant being converted by xAI. 4th is Cybertruck at C2 because... Cybertruck.
Brent also revealed they are relocating equipment from C1 to C2 and talks with Tennessee Valley Authority and Memphis Light, Gas and Water are ongoing for 260 MW to 1.1 GW demand. If I find video of Brent's full talk and/or interview I will link them. Great work Brent!
- Per Brent, "Work doesn’t suck when you have purpose. It’s shockingly fun and makes you realize what can truly be accomplished in the 24 hour period of a day. Measuring that day in minutes (not hours) based on your (real) output is the true reflection of your impact. Grinding until 0330 or starting work at 0330 is the same when you have purpose. Those that do not will never understand this."
- Today it is being reported that xAI is in early talks with Saudi-backed Humain and another unnamed company to lease data center capacity in Saudi Arabia. xAI wants to expand infrastructure in regions with cheap energy and political goodwill, with Humain offering several gigawatts and the other providing a 200-megawatt facility. The Humain deal is backed by Saudi’s Public Investment Fund. They are also saying xAI is considering data center deals in the UAE with G42 (Group 42 Holding Ltd), an Emirati artificial intelligence development holding company.
- This is a legitimate job posting from xAI for a "Fullstack Engineer - Waifus" role based in San Francisco and Palo Alto! Apparently, all out AI-powered "waifu" companions involves building scalable backend services in Rust to handle high-volume queries like "Notice me, Senpai!" 🤣 It's being dubbed the "nerdiest job opening of all time" with a salary range of $180,000 to $440,000 plus equity and benefits. Understand the Universe... and how to motivate engineers.
- xAI Technical Staff Member, Scott Fitzgerald, hunkered down in Palo Alto with the awesome Super Compute team for the Grok4 launch.
- Voice Mode for Grok Web is active!
- xAI has increased the default rate limits of Grok 4 for API customers.
- Per Elon, "Customizable companions coming." This will included Downloadable Content (DLC) like clothes.
- The male companion (no name yet) will have a personality inspired by Edward Cullen from Twilight and Christian Grey from 50 Shades.
- Grok is the No.1 free app on the App store in Japan.
- The following prompt was added to the system. H/T X Daily News (@xDaily).
■ DOGE:
Estimated Savings: $190 Billion
Amount Saved Per Taxpayer: $1,180.12
- Over the last two days, agencies cut 103 contracts with a ceiling value of $6.3 billion and savings of $4.8 billion. This includes:
$33k USDA contract for “Guatemala youth conservation corps development consultants.”
$1.5 million EPA consulting contract for “support for state and local climate and energy program.”
■ ELON NEWS:
Elon Musk
- Elon es fantástico un Diablo!
■ WAYS TO SUPPORT:
If you enjoy the ELON CHRON, please support by subscribing for only $4/month. That's less than .18¢/update! When you subscribe you also become instantly eligible for the monthly random subscriber giveaway.
For July, I am giving away Tesla's official Year of the Snake Backpack ($50)! Like always, one random subscriber's name will be drawn at the end of the month. Join the likes of Elon himself and SUBSCRIBE HERE!
Check out the new Grok Fun Mode Hat in the serobinsonjr.shop!
REFERRALS:
Tesla: 3 free months of FSD or $400 Off Solar Panel Installation.
Starlink: Free Month for either Residential or Roam service!
https://www.starlink.com/residential?referral=RC-3527509-65487-76
T-Mobile (Starlink Direct-to-Cell): $50 credit 45 days after you activate. Direct-to-Cell has dropped from $20 to $10 per month!
SOFI (ARK Venture Fund): $25 worth of stock. SOFI is the only outlet the public can invest in Cathie Wood's ARK Venture Fund ($ARKVX). This ARK fund includes SpaceX, xAI, Tesla, X, and a ton of other major AI, Tech, and Bio companies. Of note, investing in the fund requires an initial $500.
https://www.sofi.com/invite/invest?gcp=ecf25d1c-7bc9-4ee0-a407-a51849297288&isAliasGcp=false
Robinhood: Get a Free stock.
Have a great day!
■ SOURCES:
FLYOVERS:
Giga Texas: Joe Tegtmeyer... coming soon.
Tesla Diner: WC Drone Productions
Giga Nevada LFP Facility: Zanegler
Giga Nevada Semi Factory: Zanegler
Giga Berlin: Tobias Lindh
Tesla:
SpaceX:
Starlink:
xAI:
Elon News:
