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Tag: Tesla Roadster

  • Tesla delays reveal of production Roadster 2 to April Fools’ Day | TechCrunch

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    Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Thursday the company will reveal the production version of its second-generation Roadster supercar on April 1, 2026 — nearly nine years after he first revealed the project.

    Musk, who is famous for missing deadlines, said during Tesla’s annual shareholder meeting that he chose April Fools’ Day in part because it affords “some deniability.”

    “Like, I could say I was just kidding” if it happens to be later, he said.

    Revealing the production version of the new Roadster next year is in itself a delay. Just one week ago he appeared on Joe Rogan’s podcast and repeated his claim that he wanted to show off the car by year’s end.

    Musk stressed Thursday the car “will be very different from what was shown previously,” and again teased that the demo will be the “most exciting, whether it works or not, demo ever of any product” — a not-so-sly nod to the fact that he’s spent years trying to make the new Roadster fly in some fashion, possibly with SpaceX-built thrusters.

    Musk went on to say that he believes the second-generation Roadster won’t go into production until 12 to 18 months after the April reveal.

    During the Q&A portion of the meeting, one shareholder asked Musk if customers who preordered the “Founders Series” version of the new Roadsters could be invited to the reveal event. Those were the customers who plopped down $250,000 to secure special versions of the car in 2017.

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    “Sure, absolutely,” Musk answered. “It’s the least we can do for our long-suffering Roadster reservation holders.”

    OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was one of those long-time sufferers who recently attempted to cancel the reservation — and initially failed to get a refund — for the long-promised EV.

    Earlier this month, Altman posted on X a “tale in three acts,” which was comprised of several screenshots showing his initial reservation, a request for a refund of the $50,000 reservation fee, and his email bouncing back.

    “I really was excited for the car!” Altman wrote. “And I understand delays. But 7.5 years has felt like a long time to wait.”

    Musk, who has openly sparred with Altman for years, went on the attack. “And you forgot to mention act 4, where this issue was fixed and you received a refund within 24 hours,” Musk wrote. “But that is in your nature.”

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    Sean O’Kane

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  • Elon Musk teases a flying car on Joe Rogan’s show

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    Elon Musk has told Joe Rogan that he hopes to unveil a flying car “before the end of the year.” As Gizmodo has reported, Rogan asked Musk about about the long-delayed second-gen Tesla Roadster in his show, when the Tesla CEO suddenly started talking about wanting the vehicle to fly. If you’ll recall, Tesla unveiled a new Roadster in 2017 and had plans to start deliveries in 2020, but its production got delayed again and again. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently tweeted that he’d been having difficulties getting a refund on the $50,000 deposit he made for one way back in 2018. But instead of talking in depth about Roadster’s status, Musk talked about getting close to an “unforgettable” product demo of a prototype instead.

    He was giving Rogan vague answers in the interview, but he eventually said: “Well, you know, my friend Peter Thiel, once reflected that the future was supposed to have flying cars, but we don’t have flying cars. I mean, I think if Peter wants a flying car, we should be able to buy one” He didn’t want to divulge all the details in the show, but he claimed that the vehicle Tesla is supposedly working on contains “crazy, crazy technology.” Musk said he wasn’t sure it’s a car but that “it loos like a car.” He didn’t answer when Rogan asked if it had “retractable wings” or mentioned if the vehicle would be VTOL, or a Vertical Take-off and Landing, aircraft.

    Musk has been talking about developing flying cars as early as 2014, as Gizmodo notes. However, take note that the CEO is rather infamous for being overly optimistic and ambitious with his timelines, not just for the automaker but also for his other companies like SpaceX. Take for example, the aforementioned Roadster, which is yet to go into production, and the SpaceX Falcon Heavy whose first launch didn’t happen until five years later than he predicted. That said, it’s also possible for Tesla to unveil a prototype that would still have to go through massive changes and improvements if and when it becomes ready for production.

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    Mariella Moon

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