Tesla prepares to launch newest driver assistance setting — and it’s not related to FSD

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Tesla is preparing to launch its newest driver assistance setting — and it’s not related to the company’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) suite.

Tesla is constantly improving its vehicles through software updates. Nearly every download brings new features that enable more accessibility or a more pleasurable ownership experience for drivers, and they come at no additional cost.

The upcoming 2024.14.3 update is no different. Along with a bundle of other features, it appears Tesla is prepared to roll out a “Tesla Voice Assistant” in its vehicles, which will likely handle everything from changing the climate to switching to a specific song you have.

The new feature was spotted by Tesla hacker greentheonly in a recent X post, which shows the multitude of additions that are coming to vehicles within the company’s lineup:

According to the coding, Tesla’s Voice Assistant will be activated by a “wakeword,” which means it will always be listening. If you have Amazon Alexa, you know what this means. A simple “Hey Alexa” activates the device you’re speaking to, which then allows you to speak commands to it.

This differentiates from the current system by one key difference: Tesla’s current voice command feature requires the touch of a button on the steering wheel.

It also appears to already have a chosen tone or narration, as it will be the Jenny Neutral voice from Microsoft. This is an interesting Easter Egg with that specific voice being used.

Along with the new Tesla Voice Assistant, the automaker is planning to roll out several other features, which include Amazon Music playback support, new Track Mode windows, and more options available to the “Restricted Drivers” feature, which adds more safe gates than what is currently available.

Tesla also has two new wheel designs in the coding, called “Wishbone,” which will be available in 19″ and 20″ sizes.

I’d love to hear from you! If you have any comments, concerns, or questions, please email me at joey@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

Tesla prepares to launch newest driver assistance setting — and it’s not related to FSD





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Tesla’s Senior Director of HR leaves marking another executive departure

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Tesla has lost its Senior Director of Human Resources, marking yet another executive departure as the automaker prioritizes cost efficiencies.

Over the past month, as Tesla has looked to trim its employee headcount by at least ten percent, several executives have left.

They include Rohan Patel, Drew Baglino, Rebecca Tinucci, Daniel Ho, and Martin Viecha, who will leave in the coming weeks.

Two Tesla execs to leave amid Musk’s “hardcore” cost and workforce reduction: report

It appears the executive departures are not quite over, as Bloomberg is now reporting that Tesla’s Senior Director of HR, Allie Arebalo, has also left the company.

The report indicates it is not clear whether Arebalo, who directly reported to CEO Elon Musk, was a victim of the headcount reduction or left under her own terms.

According to her LinkedIn, Arebalo has been at Tesla for six years and one month and has been in her current position for one year and four months.

Tesla has reduced its headcount every few years to trim costs and make its team “lean and mean.” However, the employees let go have not usually been executives responsible for making crucial decisions for the company. This begs the question: Why are so many program heads, directors, and other executives leaving Tesla?

For the past month, Tesla has been focusing on cutting costs as it navigates the waves between two growth periods. These executives have the highest salaries in the company, and the best way to trim costs is to remove them from the payroll. However, this puts a tremendous amount of responsibility on those who remain, including Musk, who manages several other companies.

Based on what we have seen, this is likely not the last of the executive departures for Tesla. More employees are likely to lose their positions due to the cost-cutting measures.

I’d love to hear from you! If you have any comments, concerns, or questions, please email me at joey@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

Tesla’s Senior Director of HR leaves marking another executive departure





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Tesla FSD makes a believer of Xiaomi co-founder after test ride

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Xiaomi and Tesla China may have become direct rivals since the launch of the Xiaomi SU7, a challenger to the Tesla Model 3, but the Chinese tech giant’s executives are still supportive of the American EV maker’s innovations. 

This was highlighted recently when Xiaomi co-founder and vice chairman Lin Bin posted a message on Chinese social media praising Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system. Lin shared his thoughts about Tesla’s advanced driver-assist suite after experiencing FSD (Supervised) V12 in a test ride. 

Following Lin’s thoughts about FSD (Supervised) V12 after his test ride. 

“I just went to the Tesla store to experience FSD V12 autonomous driving. I came out of the parking lot, got on the highway, merged with the vehicle, got off the highway, walked through the city, and finally returned to the parking lot. It took more than ten minutes and covered 10 kilometers. Although there are not many vehicles, there is no need for high-precision maps and no LIDAR. It is completely based on pure visual modeling. I’m very impressed,” the Xiaomi executive wrote. 

In a later comment, Lin also stated that “FSD feels like a human driver” and that he is “looking forward to going for a test drive in a more crowded place.”

The Xiaomi executive is not the only Tesla competitor that has shown excitement for FSD. In recent comments, electric vehicle maker Xpeng CEO He Xiaopeng also noted that he is looking forward to the rollout of FSD to China. The Xpeng CEO noted in a post on social media that products like Tesla’s FSD could help usher in the era of smart cars. 

“I especially welcome Tesla FSD to enter China… Tesla has very good self-driving technology and brand. Only when more good products and technologies enter can the entire market and customers have more good experiences, and the market develop and accelerate in a more healthy direction. Moreover, China is now vigorously promoting openness + new quality productivity. I think whether it is Tesla’s FSD, Xpeng’s NGP, or friends’ NOA, these are one of the representatives of new quality productivity and should be supported to let a hundred flowers bloom,” the executive wrote. 

Tesla China has maintained that  “there is currently no timetable for FSD to enter China,” though Elon Musk’s recent visit to the county and a deal between Tesla and internet giant Baidu for mapping and navigation data has triggered speculations that the advanced driver-assist system is about to be rolled out in the country. Tesla also cleared data security and processing requirements in China, as per the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. 

Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.

Tesla FSD makes a believer of Xiaomi co-founder after test ride





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