Tesla has made changes to its Premium Connectivity offerings in Europe, Australia, and North America. The company will no longer include ad-free music streaming through the “Streaming” app, now called LiveOne. Similarly, in Europe, Tesla used to offer a free Spotify Premium account in the vehicle, but now this account will be limited as well. We initially covered this rumor last week, thanks to an insider’s tip.
These changes will be made as of December 1st, 2024, and users who previously used Tesla’s Premium Connectivity to avail themselves of either Slacker (Now LiveOne) or Spotify Premium will now be relegated to the free versions of those services.
North America – Streaming/LiveOne/Slacker
In North America, Tesla offered a free Premium subscription to LiveOne (previously known as Slacker) Radio through the “Streaming” app with the orange icon. This subscription wasn’t cheap—$10 USD a month. It offered unlimited song skipping and improved audio quality.
This feature has now been removed, and users will be prompted to sign into LiveOne when they open the Streaming/LiveOne app in their Teslas. Users can either continue to use a free version of LiveOne or sign up for LiveOne Premium to continue using it.
LiveOne Premium will cost $3 USD a month (a discounted price) for Tesla-specific use going forward.
Europe – Spotify Premium
In Europe and Australia, Tesla offered a free Premium subscription to Spotify instead, as part of its Premium Connectivity package. This subscription was actually fairly expensive in comparison to the North American equivalent - $10 USD a month and offered unlimited song skipping and improved audio quality as well.
Just like in North America, this has been removed. Users will have to sign into a Spotify account to continue using Spotify, or they can now use the basic tier of Spotify, which includes ads, limited skips, and some other limitations. A Premium account will be required to use the Premium functionality.
Not a Tesla App
Lifetime Premium Connectivity
However, these changes do not affect everyone. Tesla used to offer lifetime Premium Connectivity for free with every Tesla purchase before Premium Connectivity was introduced in July 2018. Tesla also offers a lifetime subscription to Cybertruck Foundation owners. These owners will still receive the benefits of either LiveOne or Spotify Premium in their respective regions. These Lifetime plans are guaranteed until the vehicle changes hands – at which point Tesla will also wash its hands of the ongoing cost of paying for that vehicle’s Premium Connectivity.
This set of changes is somewhat disappointing, as it has been a core part of Tesla’s Premium Connectivity for many years. The good news is that users will be able to continue using the same service but with some limited functionality and ads. We’re not sure if Tesla will be bringing a new set of features to make up for this gap or if they’ll be reducing the price of Premium Connectivity to match the reduction in service, but in all likelihood, Tesla just wanted to reduce costs.
There are plenty of competing apps that people use, especially with Tesla recently introducing YouTube Music, Apple Music, and Amazon Music in recent updates. Amazon Prime subscribers can enjoy Amazon Music for free since it’s included with their membership.
Did you miss Tesla’s biggest event since its inception? No worries, we have you covered.
We’ve got a straightforward and easy-to-digest recap below, split and organized by sections. Of course, we’ll dive into some of the bigger subjects in detail over the upcoming days, so stay tuned!
Event Info
· Tesla’s We, Robot event was centered on the future of autonomy
· 5 “neighbourhoods” were created.
· Westworld offered Texas BBQ and the stage for the event
· Metropolis had arcade games, and the ability to take a swing at Cybertruck!
· TSLA Theater had pizza and desserts, as well as a movie on a gigantic screen.
· New York brought a block party with live music and street performers, as well as street snacks.
· Finally, the last area was Merch – which, surprise – offered Tesla Merch, including gear, apparel, posters, and more.
· Elon Musk arrived in style in a Robotaxi to kick off the event.
Master Plan Part 4 Reference Poster
Jowua on X
General/Master Plan Part 4
· The event made multiple references to Master Plan Part 4, but we haven’t seen the official document yet.
· Today’s transportation infrastructure is too expensive, not safe, and not sustainable.
· 10 hours a week of use of consumer vehicles out of 168 hours a week.
· Unsupervised Full Self Driving – Fall asleep and wake up at your destination.
· Increased free time for humans
· Goal is to remove parking lots, as less will be needed in the future of autonomous vehicles.
· Create green space in the cities we live in.
AI Poster
Jowua on X
Robotaxi/Cybercab
· The Cybercab has 2 doors, 2 seats, and is a 4-wheeler, as expected.
· It has a front and rear lightbar, similar to Cybertruck.
· No paint, Cybertruck style finish.
· No rear or top glass.
· No steering wheel or pedals.
· Butterfly doors.
· Large center screen.
· Has large, hatch-like trunk
· 20 vehicles produced and ready at the event, with 30 additional Model Ys.
· Autonomous vehicles will be 10x safer than humans.
· Low cost for autonomous transit; $1/mi for buses, Cybercab around $0.2/mi ($0.4 after taxes and fees)
· Will be available for purchase
· Will cost below $30,000 USD.
· One person will be able to take care of a small fleet easily.
· Cybercab production begins before 2027.
· Comes with inductive charging.
· Tesla Social Media mentioned Fleet Management software.
· Tesla showed off an automated cleaning system in the video, vacuuming the vehicle, wiping the seats and screens.
· CyberCab will still be Vision-only, no need for radar or lidar.
· Call it once, and its available for you all day, for either quick trips or long trips.
Elon Musk Poster
Sawyer Merrit on X
RoboVan
· Tesla showed off a fully automous RoboVan with no front window.
· Up to 20 people or can be setup for goods transport.
· RoboVan has a Cyber aesthetic as well.
· Large glass sliding doors.
· Tesla seems to be going all-in on this aesthetic for its future vehicles.
· RoboVan can be adapted to school bus or RV use.
· RoboVan can also be adapted to personal use – this suggests it could be outfitted with a steering wheel and pedals.
The CyberVan arriving
Not a Tesla App
AI and Hardware
· Unsupervised FSD in Texas and California in 2025, with Model 3 and Model Y.
· Unsupervised FSD for S, X, and CT in the future.
· AI has lived “a million lives” so it’s been trained on numerous odd situations.
· Always pays attention and is always fully aware of its surroundings.
· 10-30x safer than humans.
· Focus on Tesla Vision – full autonomy, unsupervised for S, 3, X, Y, and CT.
· Cybercab will have AI5, will have oversized compute compared to what’s required.
· Distributed inference compute brought up again.
· No news on inductive charging for other vehicles.
The Optimus Poster
Jowua on X
Optimus
· Optimus was brought out on stage again, walked alongside employees.
· Attendees were allowed to interact with Optimus robots, they walked around with them.
· Optimus robots served drinks at the bar.
· Expected to cost $20K-$30K USD.
· Will be an autonomous robotic assistant that can help with household tasks.
· It can also be a humanoid friend, teacher, babysitter, etc.,
· Elon mentioned the risks of AI Super Intelligence, and having to address it.
· People were able to talk and interact with the Optimus units on the ground at the event. They could converse, dance, pour rinks, play rock paper scissors (and win!)
· Guests were not allowed to touch the Optimus units in the crowd, as they were still being escorted by employees, likely for safety reasons.
Another poster referencing Master Plan IV.
Jowua on X
If you missed the event, you can also see the entire thing on YouTube!
Tesla’s Robotaxi event is coming up later today, and there’s lots of hype. It’s absolutely going to be a must-see event, so we’ve outlined how you can watch it tonight.
If you weren’t one of the lucky lottery winners who managed to snag a ticket, there are a few ways to watch the Robotaxi event.
When
Tesla says the event will start at 10 PM EST or 7 PM PST. However, expect it to start fashionably late as usual. The agenda Tesla has provided is below.
Watch Live
The event is expected to be available on X, YouTube, and Tesla’s website. The links for X and YouTube are below. We’ll update this as the day goes along and Tesla adds additional sources.
This is the agenda Tesla has provided. All times are PST.
3:00 PM: Parking Lot Opens
5:00 PM: Doors Open
5:30 PM: Check-In Begins
7:00 PM: Remarks
Watch in Tesla Showrooms
Tesla is also running events at its local showrooms worldwide. Many of these pop-up events have been organized by the Tesla showrooms or in conjunction with local Tesla Owner’s Club groups.
You can go to Tesla’s Events Page here and see if there are any showrooms open in your region. These events are in-person, and a good way to hang out with local Tesla fans and owners to watch one of the biggest events in Tesla’s history. If you don’t see an event listed, try calling your local Tesla showroom or contacting your local Owner’s Club. Other events may be running locally that you could attend.