Tesla is turning to things besides solar in order to comply with its employment requirements at Gigafactory Buffalo in New York as part of a deal between SolarCity and the state.
Tesla Gigafactory New York
Tesla inherited Gigafactory New York as a result of its acquisition of SolarCity, and with it comes a deal with the state to create a certain number of jobs and maintain a level of investment in the region.
In exchange, the state invested $950 million in the project.
The deal has been somewhat hard to fulfill for Tesla after several changes of plan for the factory, which was first supposed to produce solar panels.
That plan originally failed and was replaced with a deal with Panasonic to produce solar modules for Tesla at the factory, but that deal also ended last year.
Tesla has since focused on building solar roof tiles at the location and Supercharger stations at the factory.
Tesla moves to more non-solar activities
In order to ramp up hiring at the location and comply with the state requirements, Tesla has been bringing more activities to Tesla Gigafactory New York that have nothing to do with solar.
In a new report about the progress to meet the state employment requirements, Tesla confirmed that its efforts have been slowed down by the pandemic, but it has now hired over 250 people to work on its Autopilot and full self-driving efforts, like data labelers.
Yaron Klein, Tesla treasurer, commented in a letter to the state:
Despite these headwinds, Tesla has been steadily ramping back up GFNY and expanding and diversifying the facility’s operations. Tesla has continued to expand the portfolio of the Power Electronics and vehicle charging equipment manufactured in Buffalo, and we recently onboarded over 250 new positions at the facility to support training Tesla’s autonomous vehicle and full self-driving capabilities.
250 people is significant considering Tesla reports now employing 1,058 people at Gigafactory New York as of the end of April.
Tesla is also turning to power electronics production in order to accelerate hiring at the plant.
While Tesla has achieved its investment requirements for the project, it is still about 30% off its employment goal.
Tesla received an extension from the state to achieve the requirement by the end of the year, and the company is confident that it will achieve the goal:
In sum, Tesla remains committed to expanding our business throughout the State of New York and further building the GFNY facility in Buffalo into a world-class advanced manufacturing center. As we have already exceeded two of our obligations under the Agreement, Tesla anticipates it will continue to recover from the pandemic-related impacts and expects it will meet and exceed all of the Agreement’s Year Two requirements by the end of the 2021.
In the report, Tesla also complained about the state’s direct sale laws that are still limiting the automaker to only five stores and service centers in the state.
It’s preventing Tesla from hiring more people in the state, but a new bill is currently being proposed, and if it passes, it would enable Tesla to open more locations in New York.
Hollywood’s biggest stars have begun arriving at the Oscars in Los Angeles.
Demi Moore, Timothee Chalamet, Ariana Grande, Zoe Saldana and Kieran Culkin are among the A-list nominees, with the race to win this year’s top prizes wide open.
The race has been utterly chaotic and unpredictable so far – so what can we expect from the night itself?
Image: Pic: Reuters
When and where?
The 97th Academy Awards will be held today at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
The red carpet will begin at 3.30pm Eastern time, which is 8.30pm UK time, followed by the ceremony at 7pm Eastern time, which is midnight in the UK. It will be a late night for the UK’s movie lovers, but worth staying up to see who takes home a gong on the night.
Traditionally the last awards ceremony of awards season, this year’s Oscar ceremony follows the devastating wildfires which tore through Los Angeles in early January.
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The Academy twice extended their voting period, postponing the announcement of nominations, but remained steadfast on the 2 March ceremony, arguing that the show must go on as a symbol of resilience.
Accordingly, this year’s Oscar theme is “celebration of connection”, and will aim to unite the global film community following scenes of destruction so close to home.
Image: Conan O’Brien. Pic: AP
Who’s hosting?
Comedian and late-night show host Conan O’Brien will present for the first time.
Previous stints writing for The Simpsons and Saturday Night Live stand him in good stead, and while he’s unlikely to roast any of the esteemed A-listers in attendance, his irreverential style offers scope for some potential off-the-cuff fun.
He follows in the footsteps of Jimmy Kimmel, three-for-one trio Regina Hall, Amy Schumer and Wanda Sykes and several years of hostless Oscar ceremonies.
Image: Cynthia Erivo (L) and Ariana Grande at the Golden Globes. Pic: AP
Who’s performing?
Usually, the best original song nominees perform on the night – but not this year.
The Academy have said they wanted to “move away from live performances”, and instead focus on songwriters.
Others have suggested criticism around the clunkiness of some Emilia Perez lyrics (two of the narco-musical’s numbers have made it into the category) may have led to a performance re-think.
Plus, the songs from Wicked weren’t even eligible for best song because they were inherited from the Broadway musical and so not original to the movie.
Image: Flying the flag for the UK, Raye. Pic: AP
But while there’s a little confusion around the choice, there’s one thing everyone agrees on: It would be criminal to have Wicked stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande in the house and not having them belt out a number – so they’re scheduled to sing on the night.
Other performances include singer Doja Cat, Blackpink and White Lotus star Lisa, rapper Queen Latifah and British singer Raye.
There will also be a musical tribute to late producer and composer Quincy Jones and a special appearance by the Los Angeles Master Chorale.
Image: (R-L): Cillian Murphy, Emma Stone, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Robert Downey Jr. Pic: Reuters
What awards are given out?
There are 23 categories to award during the three-hour ceremony (this will go up to 24 next year when a casting category is added).
No wonder winners are encouraged to keep to 45 seconds in their acceptance speeches, after which point music is played to subtly encourage them off-stage.
Image: Rachel Zegler will present an award. Pic: Retuters
Who’s presenting?
The latest stars to be announced as presenters include Dave Bautista, Harrison Ford, Gal Gadot, Andrew Garfield, Samuel L Jackson, Margaret Qualley, Alba Rohrwacher, Zoe Saldana and Rachel Zegler.
Last year’s four best actor category winners Robert Downey Jr, Cillian Murphy, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Emma Stone will return to hand out awards.
Previously announced presenters include Joe Alwyn, Halle Berry, Sterling K Brown, Penelope Cruz, Willem Dafoe, Ana de Armas, Lily-Rose Depp, Elle Fanning, Whoopi Goldberg, Selena Gomez, Goldie Hawn, Scarlett Johansson, John Lithgow, Connie Nielsen, Amy Poehler, June Squibb, Ben Stiller, Oprah Winfrey and Bowen Yang.
Image: Pic: Neon
Who do we reckon will win?
It’s one of the most hotly contested competitions in years, and clear front-runners few and far between.
Many feel the best supporting actor categories are the closest to being locked in, with Kieran Culkin the favourite to take best supporting actor and Zoe Saldana the most likely Emilia Perez star to take home a gong following the movie’s self-destructing campaign.
Best actor is largely seen as a fight between Adrien Brody for The Brutalist (it would be his second Oscar win) and Ralph Fiennes for his turn as an affable cardinal in Conclave.
Best actress is expected to be a battle between Demi Moore for The Substance and Mikey Madison for Anora.
Best director could well be handed to Anora’s Sean Baker or The Brutalist’s Brady Corbet, while the most prestigious gong of the night – best picture – is expected to go to Anora or Conclave.
Image: Fernanda Torres stars in I’m Still Here. Pic: Altitude
Any surprises on the cards?
In best actor, Timothee Chalamet, in his ongoing pursuit for greatness, could swoop in and take the prize over Brody and Fiennes. At 29 he’d become the youngest ever winner.
In best actress, Brazilian star Fernanda Torres – despite being previously pretty much unknown in the US – has become the name on everyone’s lips for her lead role in I’m Still Here.
With many voters not watching the film until late in the day, it’s likely to have been fresh in their minds come voting week, and as a word-of-mouth hit might have swayed voters in their final hours.
If Torres were to win, she’d achieve a feat that evaded her mother, actress Fernanda Montenegro, who was up for the prize in 1999. Montenegro was pipped to the post by Gwyneth Paltrow, who famously sobbed her way through her emotional acceptance speech.
I’m Still Here could cause an upset in best picture too. Up for best international feature, best actress and best picture, if it took the latter prize – traditionally the biggest win of the night – it would be a Parasite-like surprise coup for the foreign language film, and only the second time a non-English language film has ever taken the gong following Bong Joon-ho’s shock win.
Sky News will be liveblogging the whole night – from red carpet arrivals through to the ceremony – and will follow up with a hosted livestream from the Vanity Fair and Sir Elton John after-party red carpets, catching the Oscar-winners as they party the night away.
The family of pop star Liam Payne has criticised the media for causing “indescribable, lasting damage” in the wake of his death.
The singer, 31, died in October last year, after falling from a hotel balcony in Argentina.
He was honoured with a video montage, played at Saturday night’s BRIT awards, celebrating his legacy – with clips including his time on X-Factor and during his time with One Direction. The band won seven BRIT awards before they split in 2016.
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In a statement, released to the media after the tribute was played, his family called the death an “unspeakable tragedy”.
The family also criticised the “attention and speculation” in the press that caused “indescribable, lasting damage on the family, particularly on Liam’s son, who is trying to process emotions which no seven-year-old should have to experience”.
It said the family accepted the Court of Appeal’s decision to drop all charges in relation to Payne’s death.
Image: One Direction pictured at the 2014 Brit Awards – the band won seven gongs during their time together. Pic: PA
Image: One Direction, pictured in 2011. Pic: AP
Charges were dropped against three defendants: Payne’s friend Roger Nores, who had accompanied him during his trip to Buenos Aires; Gilda Martin, the manager of the Casa Sur Palermo Hotel where Payne died; and Esteban Grassi, the hotel’s main receptionist.
Two others are still facing prosecution for allegedly supplying Payne with drugs. Supplying drugs in Argentina carries a sentence of up to 15 years in prison.
Toxicology tests revealed that before his death, he had traces of alcohol, cocaine, and a prescription antidepressant in his body. A postmortem ruled his cause of death as “polytrauma” from multiple injuries and internal and external bleeding.
The family’s statement in full
Liam’s death was an unspeakable tragedy. This is a time of tremendous grief and pain for those who knew and loved him.
“Liam ought to have had a long life ahead of him. Instead, Bear has lost his father, Geoff and Karen have lost their son, Ruth and Nicola have lost their brother and all of Liam’s friends and fans have lost someone they held very dear.
We understand that the investigation into Liam’s death was absolutely necessary and the family recognises the work done by the Argentinian authorities. However, the family accepts the Court of Appeal’s decision to drop all charges.
The constant media attention and speculation which has accompanied the process has exacted indescribable, lasting damage on the family, particularly on Liam’s son, who is trying to process emotions which no seven-year-old should have to experience.
The family has always wished for privacy to grieve and asks that they be given the space and time to do so.
This weekend, at the Brit Awards, Liam was remembered for his phenomenal contribution to British music and for his wider, positive impact on millions of adoring fans the world over.
We joined in that celebration of his life and will forever remember the joy that his music brought to the world.
Liam, you are so loved and missed.
‘Beautiful’ Brits tribute
After the video aired, Payne’s former band member Louis Tomlinson thanked the BRIT Awards and said: “Beautiful tribute. Miss you always, brother x.”
Awards host Jack Whitehall introduced the tribute to the singer and said: “He achieved so much in the short time that he was on this earth, and was not only a supremely gifted musician but an incredibly kind soul who touched the lives of everyone he came into contact with.
Image: Themed tributes for singer Liam Payne were seen outside St. Mary’s Church on the day of his funeral.
Pic: Reuters
Image: Fans sing One Direction around a candle-lit tribute for Liam Payne
“We have so many amazing memories with Liam here at The BRITs. So, tonight we celebrate his legacy and look back and remember, the remarkable Liam Payne.”
