A Look at Tesla's Holiday Updates

The Model 3 UI in 2018

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Tesla's Holiday Update has made the most wonderful time of year the hap-happiest season of all. Adding to the parties for hosting, marshmallows for toasting and caroling out in the snow have been significant advancements to the user interface, the apps and the farts. So, in the spirit of reflection, let's look back at the last five years of updates courtesy of Santa Musk and the Tesla Elves.

2018

The 2018 update was significant because it was the first to go to the Model 3. Yes, it's hard to believe the Model 3 was celebrating its first Christmas five years ago. This update brought the browser, calendar and energy app to the 3, plus much more to the rest of the lineup.

Navigate on Autopilot made its first appearance in Beta. It suggests lane changes and monitors surrounding traffic to make adjustments to ensure you don't get stuck behind slower traffic. Autosteer and Auto Lane Change were also combined in a beta feature. If you were around when these features were first introduced, you know exactly how far they've come. Plus, Blindspot Warning was introduced. You can see how these are now utilized with today's vehicles, combining the technology as the company works towards Full Self Driving.

The Model 3 wipers control early on

CNET cars

Another significant advancement in how Tesla operates came with increased regenerative braking. Tesla continues to lead the EV market in regenerative braking, and this update allowed more kinetic energy to return power to the battery.

2019

There was more fun in 2019, with the addition of the Tesla Theater, a new arcade game (Cuphead) and more media options. But, first, carrying over from 2018, yet another piece in the Autopilot collection was unveiled with Smart Summon, allowing users to have their Tesla come to them.

The Model 3 UI has seen many changes over the last five years

BusinessInsider

The Theater brought Netflix into Tesla, of course, when in park, so those waiting for their spouse to finish Christmas shopping could sit back and binge-watch their favorite shows. Nothing to watch? Tesla has you covered with Caraoke. This road trip favorite was also launched in 2019 alongside the inclusion of Spotify in the US market.

2020

In 2020, Tesla stuffed three new games down the chimney and into cars worldwide. The games were Cat Quest, the Battle of Polytopia and Solitaire. Is anyone else happy Steam was added in 2022?

While the entertainment addition wasn't at the same level as the previous year, made several UI improvements with driver visualization improvements, scheduled departure upgrades, Boombox and improvements to Emissions Testing Mode and Text messaging.

2021

2021 was a magical year allowing users access to the side camera to act as a blind spot camera. This welcome improvement caught Tesla up to the legacy automakers in that regard. From a usability standpoint, the company made the app launcher customizable and simplified controls so drivers can focus on navigation and primary controls, although there were some UI changes that needed to be gradually rolled back or reworked.

Three more video games were added, Sonic the Hedgehog, The Battle for Polytopia (Multiplayer) and Sudoku. Did I mention I'm happy Steam was introduced in 2022?

Since the update came out in December, its fitting cold weather improvements and automated seat heaters were included. Tesla also introduced the ability for seat heaters to be automated based on the desired cabin temperature. The Car Wash Mode was added, and perhaps one of the most used features, Sentry Mode Live Camera Access.

2022

That brings us to 2022. The year Steam was put inside the newer Model S and Model X cars, giving users the ability to access more than 50,000 high-end, high-resolution games. Apple Music, MyQ garage door opener, and Zoom were also wrapped up and put under the tree.

Tesla's incredibly generous gifting continues to have hearts glowing over the holidays. Just 12 months until the next big update. Let us know what's on your wishlist and be sure to stay on the nice list!

A Look Back at the Model 3's Interface

Take a look at the Model 3's interface and its early reviews back in 2018.

Tesla Increases Price of Model S; Starts Offering Free Lifetime Supercharging

Not a Tesla App

For the first time in quite a while, Tesla has increased the price of one of its vehicle offerings. The Model S Long Range and the Model S Plaid have both received a hefty price increase. However, not all is bad - as Tesla also added a new benefit for buyers.

Price Increase

The price increase for the Model S is $5,000 - currently only in the United States. This price increase will likely impact other markets, including Canada, in the coming days.

The Model S Long Range now starts at $79,990, while the Model S Plaid now starts at $94,990. The Model S and Model X now have the same starting price. Interestingly, that’s also the same pricing point for the Cybertruck AWD and Cyberbeast Trimotor non-Foundation Series. 

The vehicle configuration does not appear to have changed, so the new pricing is simply an increase rather than the addition or removal of features. Tesla previously cut the price of the Model S and Model X by 15% in 2023, so this could simply be an adjustment to ensure that the vehicle pricing stays in line with inflation and other factors.

Free Lifetime Supercharging

For those on the fence about ordering a Model S, Tesla has brought back Free Lifetime Supercharging when you order a new Model S on or after December 13, 2024. As always, Free Lifetime Supercharging is restricted to the buyer’s Tesla account and to that specific vehicle. It cannot be transferred to another vehicle or another owner after ownership transfer. It’s worth noting, that it also doesn’t exclude the owner from receiving Supercharger idle fees or congestion fees. There is currently no end date for this promotion.

There are currently no changes to the Model X, neither a price increase nor the addition of Lifetime Superchargering. However, when Tesla makes changes to one of their premium vehicles, it usually affects the other one as well. So be on the lookout for potential changes to the Model X offering in the coming days.

We’ve seen Tesla value Lifetime Supercharging at $5,000, so this falls in line with the price increase we’re seeing. It’s possible that Tesla will begin to bring back Lifetime Supercharging as a perk for buying into their more premium Model S and Model X cars, or this could be another temporary promotion to get buyers who are on the fence to go ahead and make their purchase while this promotion lasts.

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Tesla’s Optimus Robot Learns to Walk Without Vision [VIDEO]

Optimus Falls - but catches itself!

Not a Tesla App

Tesla recently showed off a demo of Optimus, its humanoid robot, walking around in moderately challenging terrain—not on a flat surface but on dirt and slopes. These things can be difficult for a humanoid robot, especially during the training cycle.

Daily walks help clear your mind pic.twitter.com/dUsW58trS6

— Tesla Optimus (@Tesla_Optimus) December 9, 2024

A Look Behind the Curtain

Most interestingly, Milan Kovac, VP of Engineering for Optimus, clarified what it takes to get Optimus to this stage. Let’s break down what he said.

Optimus is Blind

Optimus is getting seriously good at walking now - it can keep its balance over uneven ground - even while walking blind. Tesla is currently using just the sensors, all powered by a neural net running on the embedded computer. 

Essentially, Tesla is building Optimus from the ground up, relying on as much additional data as possible while it trains vision. This is similar to how they train FSD on vehicles, using LiDAR rigs to validate the vision system’s accuracy. While Optimus doesn’t have LiDAR, it relies on all those other sensors on board, many of which will likely become simplified as vision takes over as the primary sensor.

Today, Optimus is walking blind, but it’s able to react almost instantly to changes in the terrain underneath it, even if it falls or slips. 

What’s Next?

Next up, Tesla AI will be adding vision to Optimus - helping complete the neural net. Remember, Optimus runs on the same overall AI stack as FSD - in fact, Optimus uses an FSD computer and an offshoot of the FSD stack for vision-based tasks.

Milan mentions they’re planning on adding vision to help the robot plan ahead and improve its walking gait. While the zombie shuffle is iconic and a little bit amusing, getting humanoid robots to walk like humans is actually difficult.

There’s plenty more, too - including better responsiveness to velocity and direction commands and learning to fall and stand back up. Falling while protecting yourself to minimize damage is something natural to humans - but not exactly natural to something like a robot. Training it to do so is essential in keeping the robot, the environment around it, and the people it is interacting with safe.

We’re excited to see what’s coming with Optimus next because it is already getting started in some fashion in Tesla’s factories.

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