ELON CHRON: Your 24hr Musk Companies Update (Patreon)

28th of April, 2025

"The difference in power is massive..." - Elon Musk (@elonmusk)

■ TESLA $TSLA ($285.88, +0.33 %):

- I visited the Brookshire, Texas, Megafactory site this Saturday. Check out the video above. More ground leveling for the End of Line and Outbound Lot distribution center. Perimeter wall sections have started for a structure, and ground piers cover the entire area. You can see that the elevation has been raised considerably. There is a massive photo thread for subscribers.

- John (@teslaownersSV) and Zane (@HinrichsZane) at Giga Nevada this past Friday. John was able to tour the facility with Tesla's Rahul. John posted tons of videos and pics. Go check them out.

- New York State Senator Patricia Fahy, a Democrat from Albany who previously supported Tesla’s ability to sell directly to consumers in New York, is now pushing to revoke the waiver granting Tesla that right. Citing Tesla’s exemption as an unfair advantage, Fahy’s proposal would require Tesla to surrender its five direct-sales licenses by 2026, redistributing them to competing electric vehicle makers like Rivian, Lucid, and Volkswagen’s Scout Motors, which also use direct-to-consumer sales models.

- Installation of Tesla Megapacks by Hokkai Electrical Construction Co in Sapporo, Japan, for the 50MW Helios 2 hour Grid Scale BESS project. Helios is one of the earliest BESS installations in Japan, one of the largest power markets in the world.

- Tesla is rumored to begin production of a three-row Model Y with an extended wheelbase at its Shanghai factory in May 2025, following China's Labor Day holiday (May 1-5), with a one-week production pause in late April to prepare.

- Free Supercharging for Earth Day in Santa Monica in Saturday. Pics by Tony Chung (@chonytung).

- All Croatian Superchargers will be open to non-Teslas as soon as the ministry approvals, permits, and utility upgrades for new Superchargers are received.

- Tesla's new Popup Store at Uxbridge Shopping Center, in Chimes, UK. Shopping. You can test drive a Model Y and 3 at this location. Pics by Tesla's Matthieu Aubrey.

- To reflect the tariffs imposed by the Trump Administration, the Model Y's price in the U.S. has increased by up to 15% and in Canada by up to 21%. Existing new inventory pricing hasn’t changed.

■ SPACEX:

- Last night, launch 51 of Falcon 9 Starlink 12-23 took place from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. This was the 20th flight for first stage booster B1077. It previously launched Crew-5, GPS III Space Vehicle 06, Inmarsat I6-F2, CRS-28, Intelsat G-37, NG-20, TD7, and 12 Starlink missions. The booster landed on drone ship Just Read the Instructions in the Atlantic Ocean. 23 Starlinks were deployed, including 13 Direct-to-Cells. This was SpaceX's 250th dedicated Starlink launch.

- At Starbase, Starship 36 was moved to Massey's and immediately began its cryo testing. Pics by Base Camp Zero (@clwphoto1, Carlos the Starbase Surfer (@cnunezimages), and NSF's (@NASASpaceflight) live feed.

- At the Kennedy Space Center the roadway to LC-39A is be widened for Starship transportation operations. The Tower continues to to have its stubby Chopsticked upgraded. Pic by Joe Tegtmeyer (@JoeTegtmeyer).

- This weekend, SpaceX's Haley Esparza (@haleykesparza) celebrated the Axiom-4 crew on completing their final training week in Hawthorne. The Ax-4 crew consists of Commander Peggy Whitson, Pilot Shubhanshu Shukla, Mission Specialist Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski, and Mission Specialist Tibor Kapu.

Countdown to 180 (48 - Falcon 9, 0 - Falcon Heavy, and 2 - Starship):

• Launch 50! Monday, 28th of April, at 1:39 p.m. PT, Falcon 9 Starlink 11-9 will launch from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. The booster will land on drone ship Of Course I Still Love You in the Pacific Ocean.

• Launch 52! Monday, 28th of April, at 9:51 p.m. ET, Falcon 9 Starlink 12-10 will launch from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at Kennedy Space Center, Florida. The booster will land on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean.

• Launch 53! Wednesday, 30th of April, at 10:17 p.m. ET, Falcon 9 Starlink 6-75 will launch from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. The booster will land on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean.

• Launch 54! Thursday, 1st of May, at 11:40 a.m. PT, Falcon 9 Starlink 15-3 will launch from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. The booster will land on drone ship Of Course I Still Love You in the Pacific Ocean.

If you would like to have access to the ELON CHRON daily, just Subscribe for only $4/month. That's less than .18¢/daily.

■ THE BORING COMPANY:

- Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA)is promoting the Vegas Loop Station and how the new stations enhance the SEMA Show experience! "The Boring Company has unveiled the Encore Station, the third public station connecting directly to the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC). Located above ground near Encore Las Vegas' North Valet, this station links to the new surface-level Central Plaza Station at LVCC. From there, attendees can easily access the Central Underground Station and the rest of the LVCC campus. Riders using public Vegas Loop stations, including Encore, will need to purchase tickets. However, once at the LVCC, all five Loop stations—South, Central Underground, Central Plaza, West, and Riviera—are free to use.​"

■ NEURALINK:

- Meet Brad Smith (@ALScyborg), Neuralink's 3rd patient. Using telepathy, Brad posted an introduction of himself and family yesterday. It is a moving video that explains his life and dealing with ALS has changed since he was linked. One very cool aspect is that Grok is helping him by suggesting what to say during conversations and texting. Brad encourages everyone to ask him questions in the replies of the his post. Btw, Brad edited the video entirely on his own with his Neuralink.

I asked Brad, "What new applications or functionalities would you like to see developed for the Telepathy device to further improve your quality of life? Have you talked about Convoy and using linked prosthetics?"

Brad replied, "I have talked to Alex about the robot arm. I don't know if it will work for me, because I don't eat or move, so I am not a great person for it. I'm more excited about driving my wheelchair myself, which Neuralink is working on with the FDA. I think AI can help with that too!"

Per Elon, "Robots will surpass good human surgeons within a few years and the best human surgeons within ~5 years. Neuralink had to use a robot for the brain-computer electrode insertion, as it was impossible for a human to achieve the required speed and precision."

Per Neuralink's DJ Seo (@djseo_), "Our vision is to make the procedure LASIK-like: one button click to get a Neuralink. It won't replace the human surgeon, but will make them more capable—just as LASIK did for ophthalmologists. We’re working on a 3k electrodes system that can read and write on every channel, aiming to be in humans by the end of the year."

The 3k electrodes across 96 threads will be the same base electronics as the 1k with some new Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC).

■ STARLINK:

- SpaceX has installed 2 new Starlink Gateways Spain. This one in the pic is in La de Santa Olalla, Toledo. The second one is in Gelida, Barcelona. Pic by Joshua.

- Today, Bangladesh Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus approved a license for Starlink for SpaceX. The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) already issued Non-Geostationary Orbit (NGSO) guidelines on the 25th of March. Starlink launch is set for June.

- SpaceX is set to launch Starlink in South Korea in Q4 of this year, after receiving regulatory approval from the Ministry of Science and ICT. The service will be operated under Starlink South Korea Co., Ltd.

- The Starlink launch in India and Pakistan have both been delayed due to state requirements not yet met.

- The České dráhy ČD (Czech Railways) announced they will test Starlink on an InterPanter train starting this summer. They aim to provide reliable Wi-Fi independent of external mobile signals. ČD is one of the first three globally to trial Starlink.

- SpaceX has leased a 200k sqft warehouse in Woodinville, Washington, for Starlink operations.

- Today, the FCC voted to review its decades-old spectrum sharing rules for satellites. They will consider loosening power flux-density limits for Starlink satellites, allowing increased signal strength for improved rural broadband and in-flight connectivity.

■ X:

- CEO Linda Yaccarino (@lindayaX) at Happy Hour on the rooftop at X.

- According to Elon, X is working on a Grok-powered algorithm that will be put in play soon. "Should help a lot."

- The Grok name in the Grok tab on iOS has been removed.

■ xAI:

- xAI is in talks to raise $20 billion with investments from tech-focused family offices and sovereign wealth funds. This will potentially value the company at $100 billion. This makes it the second-largest startup funding round ever.

- Swak (@swak_12), via the Android 10.95.0-beta.1, has given us the first look at Grok translation for Android. "Apart from posts & bio, Grok will be able to translate community notes and polls.

- Grok web now has File Manager. H/T Tech Dev Notes (@techdevnotes).

- Grok 2 is no longer available.

- As reported last week, xAI Memphis is undergoing a slew of attacks via the left in the guise of environmental and racial attacks. It is all centered on the natural gas turbines being used to generate enough power to run Colossus. I have been following the situation in Memphis for a while and Tennessee Democrats from local, state, and federal levels are the ones leading this effort and it is mainly to undermine Elon. IMO, they are showing that they will completely sacrifice the success and future of their communities and constituents for political gain. If you leave in the Memphis area and support xAI and their mission I encourage you to contact the Shelby County Health Department and let them know. Here is their contact info:

• Call: (901) 222-9000

• Visit: 814 Jefferson Avenue Memphis, TN 38105

• Email: shelbytnhealth@shelbycountytn.gov

• Website: https://shelbytnhealth.com/281/Contact-Us

■ DOGE:

Estimated Savings: $160 Billion

Amount Saved Per Taxpayer: $993.79

- The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) canceled 701 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) grants, saving $203 million. This included a specific program titled "Building Racial Equity in Marine Science." This action contributed to a total of $325 million in savings over the past two weeks. DOGE emphasized that NSF grant awards will now prioritize merit, competition, equal opportunity, and excellence.

- DOGE announced the termination of 226 federal contracts with a ceiling value of $1.03 billion, saving $555 million. This included:

• $5.4 million IRS contract for "exploring emerging issues within the IRS."

• $20,000 NSF contract for "management development” training on “understanding bias to unleash potential."

■ ELON NEWS:

- Rumor is Elon has made plans to build 110 homes on a plot near the Ad Astra school in Bastrop, Texas. The housing development is called "Project Amazing." Nothing has been confirmed.

■ WAYS TO SUPPORT:

If you enjoy the ELON CHRON, know that you can get it every Monday thru Friday by subscribing for only $4/month. That's less than .18¢/update! When you subscribe you also get first access to any weekend articles and become instantly eligible for the random subscriber giveaway.

In 2 days, a lucky subscriber will get a new official Tesla Business Backpack ($90)! This is a Tesla China exclusive and only available in the APAC region. Subscribe here if you want a chance at winning.

Check out my linktree for all my socials and various ways to support: https://linktr.ee/serobinsonjr

REFERRALS:

• Tesla: 3 free months of FSD or $400 Off Solar Panel Installation. ts.la/stephen746292

• SOFI (ARK Venture Fund): $25 worth of stock. SOFI is the only outlet the public can invest in Cathie Wood's ARK Venture Fund ($ARKVX). This ARK fund includes SpaceX, xAI, Tesla, X, and a ton of other major AI, Tech, and Bio companies. Of note, investing in the fund requires an initial $500. https://www.sofi.com/invite/invest?gcp=ecf25d1c-7bc9-4ee0-a407-a51849297288&isAliasGcp=false

• T-Mobile (Starlink Direct-to-Cell): $50 credit 45 days after you activate. Direct-to-Cell has dropped from $20 to $10 per month! https://share.t-mobile.com/stephenr-3419

• Robinhood: Get a Free stock. https://join.robinhood.com/stepher-fcc938

Have a great day!

■ SOURCES:

Tesla:

• https://fortune.com/2025/04/28/elon-musk-tesla-sales-new-york-state-government/

SpaceX:

• Starlink Mission 12-23

Starlink:

• https://www.newagebd.net/post/country/263524/professor-yunus-approves-starlinks-license-to-operate-in-bangladesh#google_vignette

• https://www.pcmag.com/news/in-a-win-for-spacex-fcc-may-loosen-power-limits-for-starlink

• https://www.latestly.com/technology/starlink-expansion-elon-musk-owned-spacexs-satellite-internet-service-set-to-launch-in-south-korea-this-year-after-regulatory-approval-6811943.html

xAI:

• https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-04-26/elon-musk-s-xai-holdings-is-in-discussions-to-raise-20-billion?taid=680c384a3d26750001f467e8&utm_campaign=trueanthem&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&embedded-checkout=true

Elon News:

• Elon Quote: https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1916694738482483411