Elon Musk unveils Tesla’s new ‘Cortex’ supercomputer, but it’s not ready quite yet
Elon Musk has unveiled Tesla’s new ‘Cortex’ supercomputer, which could become one of the biggest in the world, but it’s not ready quite yet.
This project has been described as critical to Tesla by CEO Elon Musk, who has shifted the automaker’s focus to artificial intelligence in the last few years.
AI needs computing power.
Earlier this year, we reported that Tesla was having issues building a new expansion at Gigafactory Texas to house a new giant supercomputer to train Tesla’s AI.
At the time, we heard that Tesla was aiming for a 100 MW cluster to be ready by August to match the later delayed unveiling of its robotaxi. Musk canceled other projects at Tesla to focus construction resources on the expansion.
Later, Musk revealed that Tesla plans to eventually grow the cluster to over 500 MW and use half NVIDIA processors and half of its own AI hardware. Tesla plans to use this computing power to train its neural nets to deliver its long-promised self-driving capability.
Now, at the end of August, Musk has released a video showing off the supercomputer cluster, now called ‘Cortex’ (sound warning: the video is loud):
The video only shows a small section of the cluster, which has yet to be completed and running properly.
Sources familiar with the matter told Electrek that it is currently running on a temporary cooling system and that it won’t be fully operational until the chiller plant is completed.
Furthermore, Tesla needs more network feeders. Some believed that the new cluster won’t be ready until October, which is when the new unveiling of the Tesla Robotaxi has been pushed.
Electrek’s Take
Delays or no, it’s hard for me to get too excited about this new computing power because Elon said last year that Tesla is no longer compute-constrained when it comes to training neural nets.
We saw very few improvements despite that announcement, which is why I’m skeptical about the impact of Tesla adding over 100 MW of extra power to its training capacity. Sure, it won’t hurt, but how much closer is it going to get us to self-driving?
Even with delays aside, this supercomputer cluster is not without controversy.
Tesla shareholders are suing Musk for multiple breaches of fiduciary duty, including diverting a shipment of NVIDIA processors meant for Tesla to his private company, xAI.
Musk confirmed the shipment was diverted, but he used the excuse that Tesla “didn’t have anywhere to put the processors” – meaning that this expansion at Gigafactory Texas and server room for the cluster weren’t ready.
However, as part of the lawsuit, Musk is going to have to explain why Tesla, which ordered the processors, which he himself agreed are expensive and hard to get, was not ready to receive them but his private startup was.
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Environment
U.S. crude oil falls below $60 a barrel to lowest since 2021 on tariff-fueled recession fears
A view shows disused oil pump jacks at the Airankol oil field operated by Caspiy Neft in the Atyrau Region, Kazakhstan April 2, 2025.
Pavel Mikheyev | Reuters
U.S. oil prices dropped below $60 a barrel on Sunday on fears President Donald Trump’s global tariffs would push the U.S., and maybe the world, into a recession.
Futures tied to U.S. West Texas intermediate crude fell more than 3% to $59.74 on Sunday night. The move comes after back-to-back 6% declines last week. WTI is now at the lowest since April 2021.
Worries are mounting that tariffs could lead to higher prices for businesses, which could lead to a slowdown in economic activity that would ultimately hurt demand for oil.
Oil futures, 5 years
The tariffs, which are set to take effect this week, “would likely push the U.S. and possibly global economy into recession this year,” according to JPMorgan. The firm on Thursday raised its odds of a recession this year to 60% following the tariff rollout, up from 40%.
Fueled by incentives from the Illinois EPA and the state’s largest utility company, new EV registrations nearly quadrupled the 12% first-quarter increase in EV registrations nationally – and there are no signs the state is slowing down.
Despite the dramatic slowdown of Tesla’s US deliveries, sales of electric vehicles overall have perked up in recent months, with Illinois’ EV adoption rate well above the Q1 uptick nationally. Crain’s Chicago Business reports that the number of new EVs registered across the state totaled 9,821 January through March, compared with “just” 6,535 EVs registered in the state during the same period in 2024.
Those numbers represent more than 50% growth in EV registrations – far beyond the expected 12% first-quarter increase nationally being projected by Cox Automotive. (!)
What’s going on in Illinois?
While President Trump and Elmo were running for re-election, they campaigned on the threat promise of canceling the $7,500 federal tax credit for EVs. Along with California Governor Gavin Newsom, Illinois’ Governor JB Pritzker made countermoves – launching a $4,000 rebate for new electric cars and up to $1,500 for the purchase of a new electric motorcycle.
At the same time, the state’s largest utility, ComEd, launched a $90 million EV incentive program featuring a new Point of Purchase initiative to deliver instant discounts to qualifying business and public sector customers who make the switch to electric vehicles. That program has driven a surge in Class 3-6 medium duty commercial EVs, which are eligible fro $20-30,000 in utility rebates on top of federal tax credits and other incentives (Class 1-2 EVs are eligible for up to $7,500).
We covered the launch of those incentives when the program was announced at Chicago Drives Electric last year, but the message here is simple: incentives work.
SOURCES: Chicago Business, Ray Cunningham; featured image by the author.
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The electric construction equipment experts at XCMG just released a new, 25 ton electric crawler excavator ahead of bauma 2025 – and they have their eye on the global urban construction, mine operations, and logistical material handling markets.
Powered by a high-capacity 400 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery capable of delivering up to 8 hours of continuous operation, the XE215EV electric excavator promises uninterrupted operation at a lower cost of ownership and with even less downtime than its diesel counterparts.
XCMG is delivering on part of that reduced downtime promise with the lower maintenance and easier repair needs of electric equipment, and delivering on the rest of it with lickety-quick DC fast charging that can recharge the machine’s massive battery in 1.5-2 hours … but that’s not the slick bit. The XCMG XE125EV can be powered up without leaving the job site thanks to its BYD battery swap technology.
We first covered XCMG and its battery swap technology back in January, and covered similar battery-swap tech being developed by MOOG Construction offshoot ZQUIP, as well – but while XCMG’s battery tech has been in production for several years, it’s still not widely known about in the West (even within the industry).
XCMG showed off its latest electric equipment at the December 2024 bauma China, including an updated version of its of its 85-ton autonomous electric mining truck that features a fully cab-less design – meaning there isn’t even a place for an operator to sit, let alone operate. And that’s too bad, because what operator wouldn’t want to experience an electric truck putting down 1070 hp more than 16,000 lb-ft of torque!?
Easy in, easy out
The best part? All of the company’s heavy equipment assets – from excavators to terminal tractors to dump trucks and wheel loaders – all use the same 400 kWh BYD battery packs, Milwaukee tool style. That means an equipment fleet can utilize x number of vehicles with a fraction of the total battery capacity and material needs of other asset brands. That’s not just a smart use of limited materials, it’s a smarter use of energy.
You can check out all the XE215EV’s specs at this tear sheet, and get an in-person look at the Chinese company’s latest electric excavator this week in Munich, Germany.
SOURCE | IMAGES: XCMG.
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