In an unprecedented display of American manufacturing prowess, Tesla has carved out the top four positions in the 2023 edition of Cars.com's American-Made Index. A clear testament to Tesla's commitment to creating American jobs and stimulating the economy, the electric car manufacturer takes the lead for the third consecutive year.
Tesla's Clean Sweep: Model Y Leads the Pack
For the fourth time in the index's 18-year history and the third year in a row, Tesla stands firm at the top of the list. The automaker's Model Y, assembled at its Austin, Texas facility, leads the way for the second consecutive year. However, this year marks the first time that Tesla has dominated the index entirely, with its Model S, Model 3, and Model X completing the top four.
Tesla's Contribution to the US Workforce and Economy
A key factor contributing to Tesla's sweep of the top spots is the substantial year-over-year growth in employment at its Texas-based factory. The increase in the workforce, particularly for the production of the Model Y, not only aided all Tesla models in workforce calculations but also elevated the Model X and Model S to complete the sweep.
Tesla's new gigafactory in Texas will also build its upcoming Cybertruck this year
Cars.com
Usual American Made Suspects
The traditional giants of American automaking, General Motors, Ford, and Dodge, did not crack the top ten or even 15. General Motors saw the Chevrolet Corvette grab the number 19 position. The Ford F-150 Lightning, an electric variant of the classic truck, found itself at the 38th spot on the list. This position is also the highest spot for all of Ford's vehicles. The Dodge Durango slotted in at 21st position; yes, that is an internal combustible engine vehicle. However, the brand's parent company, Stellantis, is investing significantly in electric and hybrid technology, promising potential job growth in future years.
The Rise of American-Made Electric Vehicles
The 2023 index is a snapshot of the gradual shift towards electrification in the automotive industry. Electric and hybrid models now comprise 22% of the American-Made Index's vehicles, indicating a steady increase from 15% in 2022. This shift aligns with recent surveys by Cars.com that revealed nearly 50% of prospective car buyers would consider an EV or hybrid for their next purchase.
However, despite the increasing prevalence of electric vehicles, not all models made the index. Notably absent was Rivian, the manufacturer of the R1S SUV and R1T pickup truck. Due to the models exceeding the weight limit required by the American Automobile Labeling Act, Rivian did not qualify for the index.
An Evolving Industry
The automotive industry is in flux, navigating the gradual shift towards electrification and grappling with rules around weight limits. Despite these challenges, the American-Made Index offers valuable insight into manufacturers' commitment to domestic production and its impact on the US economy.
Tesla's achievement in the 2023 index is more than just a victory for the brand; it highlights the potential for American-made electric vehicles to stimulate job creation and economic growth. As the industry continues to evolve and grow, the hope is that more manufacturers will follow Tesla's lead, contributing to a vibrant, innovative, and sustainable American auto industry.
Tesla's dominance in the index underlines its ongoing contribution to job creation in the US, a critical factor in bolstering the country's economy. Furthermore, the ranking underscores the electric automaker's commitment to maintaining substantial domestic manufacturing operations, significantly contributing to the local economy.
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Tesla has been improving its FSD features since introducing it in 2016
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Previously, the Tesla X account shared a video where FSD V12 appeared to consider a pedestrian’s hand gestures when navigating. Elon Musk also confirmed on X that hand gesture recognition would be improved in V12.4, and even better by V12.5.
Tesla has had plans for gesture recognition for many years, with Musk mentioning hand gesture recognition in 2021. FSD is supposed to be able to adapt to new and unique circumstances in a safe manner, whether following instructions from a police officer, or understanding the hand signals from a cyclist.
Boris Johnson and FSD
Boris Johnson, the ex-Prime Minister of the UK, recently got to experience FSD V12 in the crowded streets of LA, with his wife and child in the backseat. Tesla provided a vehicle and assistant for his self-driven experience through 5-road intersections, heavy traffic, and pedestrians.
At the end of about 45 minutes I feel like a driving test examiner – except that I want to tell the car that it has passed, with flying colours. -Boris Johnson
Gestures coming soon
Johnson had a single experience with hand gestures in his drive – being waved at a hotel. While the car didn’t recognize the gesture – even on FSD V12.3.6 – the Tesla official in the vehicle confirmed that “‘It doesn’t yet recognise that gesture, but we are fixing it for the next iteration. It should be done next month.”.
It’s not immediately clear whether the Tesla employee is referring to FSD v12.4, which is expected to start rolling out to the public later this week, or Tesla’s next major FSD release, V12.5. According to Musk, V12.5 is expected to handle much more complicated situations and even start vehicle-to-fleet communication.
Yeah, I wouldn’t count on this in 12.3.x, but 12.4 is a big improvement and 12.5 might nail it
When you’re tackling a problem like FSD, which has never been solved before, you sometimes have to pivot and realize there’s a better approach. That’s what Tesla has done with FSD and AI. Just a few years ago where people thought cars would need to be able to read signs to achieve autonomy, but with the latest approach, there’s no need to. As long as the vehicle has seen a specific sign before and has enough examples, it’s already trained on what humans do when such a sign is found. The same will be true for hand gestures, the vehicle won’t need to know what each hand gesture means, it’ll just recognize that when a current gesture is made, this is how the vehicle should react.
Tesla does this by feeding it millions of examples of very specific situations and AI recognizes patterns. This is an example where Tesla leverages fleet data. They can easily capture millions of examples of hand gestures and how humans reacted, and feed that to their AI training model.
As Tesla processes more video, FSD will continue to improve. Tesla is expected to spend $10 billion on AI this year alone, most of it going toward improving FSD.
Coming to Rivian vehicles over a software update is Google Cast and YouTube support, which will allow for seamless, high-quality content streaming to Rivian vehicles.
This is a big step forward for Rivian’s software integration, especially compared to Tesla, which has yet to integrate native apps or release the long-rumored Tesla native app store.
Google Cast
Google Cast is Google’s version of Apple AirPlay which is supported in a variety of audio and video streaming apps such as Netflix, Disney+, YouTube, and more. By using a supported app, a user will be able to cast content directly to Rivian’s main 15.6” center screen.
Like Casting to a TV or Smart Device at home, this will allow you to play, pause, or skip back and forth using the vehicle’s touchscreen. Google Casting automatically pauses when the vehicle shifts into Drive.
Native YouTube App
Alongside Google Cast, Rivian is also bringing a native YouTube app to vehicles, enabling users to access YouTube’s video and music library from anywhere with a data connection. These features will be integrated right into Rivian’s vehicle operating system, which means they will receive regular software updates, and not be reliant on browser-based capabilities.
Similar to casting content, YouTube content will also automatically pause when the vehicle is shifted into Drive.
Tesla Equivalents
For the time being, there is no way to AirPlay or Cast video from a phone or tablet to Tesla’s front or rear screens. However, for some apps such as YouTube, you can send the video URL to the vehicle and have it open the YouTube app to that video.
To do this, open the YouTube app and find a video. Once you’d like to share it with the vehicle you can tap on share. You’ll then need to share it with the Tesla app which will then send it to your vehicle. On iPhones this requires you to scroll to the right and tap on More, which brings up the native sharing screen and has the Tesla app.
However, this is far more limited than including AirPlay or Google Cast support which will work for practically and video, even personal videos in your photo library.
Elon Musk mentioned back in 2016 that Tesla would add mirroring of phone apps to the center screen, but that has yet to materialize. More recently Musk mentioned a native X App coming to Tesla vehicles.
Tesla Theater
Tesla Theater allows users to stream videos from various platforms, including YouTube, but these are web-based applications, with no native applications available. This leaves some marked limitations on usability.
Tesla most recently announced in their 2024.14 update that the browser will be able to be expanded to full-screen mode when parked, enabling more access to streaming services on the web. Meanwhile, Google Cast and Apple Airplay continue to remain highly requested features.
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Tesla Android Project enables you to run Android apps in your Tesla. The platform is Open Source and you can deploy it on your own Raspberry Pi 4. Consider supporting the initiative by donating or purchasing the Compute Module 4 Bundle that delivers the best experience. Get $20 off by using the code: NotATeslaApp
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