Tesla and McDonald's team up to create a 'Cyber Spoon'
Not a Tesla App
Amidst the McFlurry of Cybertruck anticipation, a seemingly playful but perplexing partner unfolded on Tuesday evening on X. A post from Sawyer Merritt claimed that Tesla China was starting a unique partnership with McDonald's. A limited edition "Cyber Spoon" will be available for $4. It'll be a limited production run with only 50,000 units manufactured.
The real twist came when Elon Musk reacted with a mixture of emojis and skepticism, labeling it as "Fake news afaik (as far as I know)."
Cyber Spoon Mystery
Merritt, standing firm on his statement, responded by pointing out that Tesla's official Weibo account was indeed promoting this mysterious spoon. His tweet led to a flurry of social media investigations, with X.com lighting up with similar posts on McDonald's Weibo and Xiaohongshu accounts - platforms that cater to millions of users.
"Introducing a unique newcomer, a collaboration between McDonald's and Tesla, focusing on an innovative experience. From September 17th to 26th, participating McDonald's outlets will have a limited offer. To our valued McDonald's members, during the activity, lucky draws will feature McFlurry coupons, Tesla merchandise, and an electric 'Cyber Spoon.' Which prize do you wish to win?"
A spirited Musk later responded, saying, "In that case, I will definitely have some!"
Tesla Advertising?
Now, if you're wondering how a spoon, even one with "cyber" in its name, fits into the Tesla universe, you're in good company. Assuming it is legitimate, this collaboration marks an unusual turn for Tesla, a company known for not advertising and not having partners outside the technology, automotive or energy sector.
So, what can we make of this? On one side, there's undeniable evidence of promotional material. On the other, the playful, ever-ambiguous comments from Elon Musk himself. The CEO said the company would test advertising during its last investor meeting. Is this part of the rollout?
The cyber spoon would already be a collectible item, but without Tesla's big boss knowing about it, it is even more of a must-have - just like the Cyberwhistle! Perhaps the real purpose behind this collaboration, beyond the $4 spoons, is to create buzz and anticipation for the Cybertruck. Not that any more anticipation is needed.
It turns out that the big undocumented change in Tesla update 2024.32 that disables the 12V power and USB ports while Sentry Mode is active is not a bug but an intentional change.
A fan contacted Tesla Service to see if the change was intentional and what the reason behind the change was. Surprisingly, they received a response pretty quickly.
No 12V Power Access
Tesla has decided to restrict 12V power access for safety reasons—namely, to “reduce the likelihood of thermal events” when third-party devices are left powered on without users present. Tesla reached out to the fan in question by phone, and they seemed to be sticking to that line.
It seems that Tesla is resolute that it was due to safety reasons and that the change would not be “fixed” or allowed in a future software update – as this was an intentional change for safety reasons.
Other sources have reported that the change was due to potential misuse of the 12V power access, with people wiring 1200w microwaves and kettles or jury-rigging 240v to 120v adapters, which had apparently been the cause of multiple fires in Tesla vehicles within China.
Workarounds
Thankfully, for those who camp or need to keep their sub-trunk fridges powered while still having security in their vehicles, there is a simple, although inconvenient, workaround. You can enable Camp Mode, then manually lock your car (since Camp Mode turns off walk-away door locking) and turn off climate controls from the app.
While Sentry will NOT be active with this workaround, the car's power sockets remain powered. While this workaround is fine to use occasionally, it’ll be tiresome for those who use a fridge regularly.
We’re still hoping Tesla considers bringing the Cybertruck’s Power Control menu to the rest of its vehicles and is somehow able to limit the max draw from these outlets to prevent dangerous situations.
With the Robotaxi event just a day away, we thought it would be a fun idea to run a contest to predict what Tesla will announce tomorrow evening.
We’ve outlined a list of questions below; simply answer them on our forums or social media (X or Threads), and be entered for a chance to win some great prizes.
The individuals who have the most correct answers will win one of five prizes mentioned below. If more than five people get them all right, a random drawing will be held from the pool of winners.
We’ll reach out to the winners either by email or by DM on social media.
The Questions
Will Tesla let attendees experience Robotaxi at the event?
Will Tesla first start the network with human supervision (ridesharing), or with Robotaxis only?
What year will the network start? When will it become fully autonomous? (if announced)
When will Robotaxi production begin? (if announced)
Will it be Robotaxi or Cybercab?
Which of these Robotaxi Concepts will be the closest to the one announced?
Will Robotaxi include:
Front-facing camera?
Stainless-steel body?
Steer-by-Wire or No Steering Wheel? (if announced)
Which current Tesla model has the most similar door-opening mechanism?
How many seats will the robotaxi have?
Will the robotaxi include AI5/Hardware 5, HW4 or something completely different?
Where will Tesla’s first Rideshare/Robotaxi location be established?
Will customers be able to purchase a Robotaxi?
Requirements
Please use the template below to answer the questions on social media or in our forums. You can post your answer as a comment to our forums, to our X post, or to our Threads post.
Once you do that, repost or quote post your favorite article from us.
1. Yes
2. Ridesharing
3. 2025/2027
4. 2025
5. Cybercab
6. Dominic's
7. Yes, Yes, SBW, No, 2
8. HW5
9. LA
10. Yes
Prizes
Prizes are generously provided by Enhance and Jowua, makers of some of the best Tesla accessories and amazing Tesla community members. Prizes will be mailed out directly by them. Winners will get to choose their prize from the list below. First place will have the first pick and so on. There will be five winners in total.
S3XY Buttons (including a commander and wiring)
S3XY Knob for Model 3/Y
Tesla Gaming Controller - Multi-Device Wireless Controller (Wireless Charging)
Tesla Gaming Controller - Multi-Device Wireless Controller (Wireless Charging)
Tesla Gaming Controller - Multi-Device Wireless Controller (Wireless Charging)
Disclaimer
This is a Tesla event, and Tesla normally likes to hold their cards close to their chest. If an answer is ambiguous, we’ll go with the best choice decided by our staff. We’ll do our best to be fair. This
With all that said, we wish our entrants the best of luck, and we’ll announce the winners at the end of the week.