Tesla didn’t say a word about Tesla Semi being equipped with Autopilot/Self-Driving
At the unveiling of the production version of the Tesla Semi, the automaker announced a lot of things about the electric truck, but it didn’t say a word about it being equipped with Autopilot/Full Self-Driving technology.
That’s despite being equipped with the needed hardware.
When Tesla first announced the Tesla Semi in 2017, the automaker was still early in its Autopilot and Full Self-Driving efforts, but the automaker had already announced that all production vehicles going forward will eventually be capable of self-driving with future software updates.
The automaker didn’t go as far as talking about self-driving when it comes to the Tesla Semi, but the company did announce at the time that it will be equipped with Enhanced Autopilot.
That was the slide from the original presentation to unveil the electric truck:
Along with the safety features that Autopilot can enable, Tesla had also announced that Tesla Semi would be able to achieve a sort of convoy mode where you can get several semi trucks to follow each other closely autonomously on the highway.
Here’s the quick video demo of the feature that it released at the time:
5 years later and now that the production version of the Tesla Semi has been unveiled, Tesla has removed all mention of the electric truck being equipped with Autopilot or this convoy mode from its website.
Tesla also didn’t mention anything related to advanced driver-assist features during its presentation about the production version of the Tesla Semi.
While Tesla didn’t mention anything about it, it looks like the hardware is there to make it happen. Minimal Duck posted a video on Youtube giving a close look at the Tesla Semi trucks at the event and they were equipped with a wide array of cameras.
First off, there are 3 cameras on each side mirror:
One of them is used to feed the side views inside the vehicle and we expect that Tesla’s goal is to eventually be able to remove the mirror part of the side mirror to only use the camera feed and improve the aerodynamic performance.
Here you can see the side camera feeds inside the Tesla Semi cockpit:
As for the other two cameras on the side mirrors, they look like they are the equivalent of the fender and B pillar cameras in the Autopilot sensor suite found on Tesla’s passenger vehicles.
Tesla also appears to have integrated the same 3-camera array found at the top of the windshield of passenger vehicles in the Tesla Semi:
Therefore, it looks like Tesla has recreated its suite of Autopilot/FSD cameras in its passenger cars in the new electric truck.
Tesla also appears to have added a camera in the front bumper of the Tesla Semi:
In conclusion, it looks like Tesla has integrated its Autopilot/FSD hardware suite into the Tesla Semi, but it is not talking about enabling self-driving capacity like it is in its passenger vehicles.
Electrek’s Take
I might have an idea why Tesla doesn’t want to talk too much about Autopilot or self-driving when it comes to Tesla Semi since right now, and likely for the foreseeable future, it is going to need truck drivers to get on board with the vehicle.
That might be more difficult to achieve if you talk about eventually replacing them with features already existing inside the electric truck.
That’s not really transparent, but it’s business.
Either way, I think truck drivers don’t have too much to worry about for a long time. Not only is Tesla’s Full Self-Driving clearly not ready to have no one behind the wheel, but truck drivers also do more than just drive. They have responsibilities where they get their load and where they deliver and in between that have yet to be automated.
I think that for years to come, truck drivers will see some tasks related to their job being automated, including driving to some degree, but they will still be needed for likely more than a decade in my opinon..
If anything, I see Tesla Semi making truck driving an even more fun job.
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EQORE, a distributed battery storage startup based in Somerville, Massachusetts, has raised $1.7 million in seed funding to help industrial buildings tackle rising electricity costs. The round was oversubscribed and includes backing from the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC), Henry Ford III of Ford Motor Company, and Jonathan Kraft of The Kraft Group.
The timing couldn’t be more relevant. Data centers are booming, and that demand is slamming an already stressed grid. Big, utility-scale batteries help at the grid level, but they can’t fix the bottlenecks happening on local distribution networks. That’s where onsite storage steps in — storing energy when demand is low and discharging it when demand spikes, which helps stabilize costs for both the grid and the businesses using it.
MassCEC’s head of investments, Susan Stewart, said, “What excites us the most about EQORE’s technology is the dual impact: grid support and customer savings.” She noted that commercial and industrial buildings are ideal hosts for battery storage, but haven’t gotten much attention until now. “EQORE is closing that gap.”
Investor Randolph Mann highlighted what makes the company stand out: “By uniting advanced controls with high‑resolution metering and true end‑to‑end service, EQORE finally makes commercial behind-the-meter storage effortless and financially compelling for businesses.”
EQORE comes out of MIT’s Sandbox program and delta v accelerator and is currently part of the Harvard Climate Entrepreneurs Circle incubator. CEO and cofounder Valeriia Tyshchenko, a third‑generation engineer from Ukraine and MIT graduate, said the new funding will help the company scale alongside its existing revenue.
With the seed round closed, EQORE plans to grow its team and ramp up battery deployments at energy-intensive manufacturing facilities. The company doesn’t just install batteries; it operates them. Its autonomous software shifts when a facility uses power based on market conditions and utility incentives, reshaping load in real-time without disrupting operations.
Read more: Battery boom: 5.6 GW of US energy storage added in Q2
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![Check out Hyundai's cool new off-road electric SUV concept [Images]](https://i0.wp.com/electrek.co/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/11/Hyundai-off-road-SUV.jpeg?resize=1200,628&quality=82&strip=all&ssl=1)
Hyundai took the sheets of its new off-road electric SUV, the Crater Concept, at the LA Auto Show. Here’s our first look at the compact off-roader.
Meet Hyundai’s new off-road SUV, the Crater Concept
We knew it was coming after Hyundai teased the off-road SUV earlier this week, hidden under a drape. Hyundai took the sheets off the Crater Concept at the LA Auto Show on Thursday, giving us our first real look at the rugged off-roader.
Hyundai refers to it as a compact off-road SUV that’s inspired by extreme events. The concept was brought to life at the Hyundai America Technical Center in Irvine, California.
The off-road SUV draws design elements from Hyundai’s Extra Rugged Terrain (XRT) models, such as the IONIQ 5 XRT, Santa Cruz XRT, and the new Pallisade XRT Pro.
Although it’s a concept, Hyundai said the Crater Concept is a testament to its commitment to designing future XRT vehicles that are more functional, more capable, and more emotional.
“CRATER began with a question: ‘What does freedom look like?’ This vehicle stands as our answer,” Hyundai’s global design boss, SangYup Lee said.
The off-road SUV features Hyundai’s new Art of Steel design theme, first showcased on the THREE concept at the Munich Motor Show in September.
Hyundai said the design team was guided by one clear goal: To create a rugged and capable vehicle that’s designed to go anywhere. The Crater Concept embodies that vision with added wide skid plates, 33″ off-road tires, limb risers, rocker panels, and a roof platform.
Hyundai designed the interior for “tech-savvy adventure seekers,” with a singular design centered around a high-brow crash pad that stretches across the dashboard.
The concept also swaps the traditional infotainment setup for a head-up display that spans the entire front window, which Hyundai said includes a live rearview camera.
Hyundai’s off-roader includes a new Off-Road Controller for front and rear locking differentials, as well as a terrain selector with modes including Sand, Snow, and Mud. Other off-road features include downhill brake control, trailer brake control, a compass, and an altimeter.
Although Hyundai said it was electric, it didn’t reveal any further details about the powertrain. The off-road SUV could be a battery-electric or fuel-cell-electric vehicle.
Like the new Nexo, Hyundai’s hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, the concept features “HTWO” lamps exclusive to its FCEVs.
Earlier this week, the design team at Hyundai Design North America also introduced its new design and ideation studio codenamed “The Sandbox.” The creative design studio is set to serve as a global hub for future XRT vehicles and gear.
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OpenAI is partnering with Taiwan’s Foxconn, the world’s largest contract electronics manufacturer, to design and build artificial intelligence data center components in the U.S., the AI startup’s latest announcement tied to its massive infrastructure development plans.
While no financial terms were disclosed, OpenAI said in Thursday’s announcement that it will have early access to evaluate the systems Foxconn produces, and the option to purchase them. The companies said the goal is to accelerate the deployment of infrastructure while securing long-term U.S. capacity.
Under the agreement, OpenAI and Foxconn will co-develop multiple generations of AI servers in parallel, while manufacturing core components like power, networking, and cooling systems at Foxconn’s U.S. facilities. The company’s website says it has factories in Wisconsin, Ohio, Texas, Virginia and Indiana.
“This partnership is a step toward ensuring the core technologies of the AI era are built here,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in a statement, calling AI infrastructure a “generational opportunity to reindustrialize America.”
OpenAI has been on a dealmaking blitz of late with many of the world’s largest technology companies, and has announced spending commitments of roughly $1.4 trillion, raising concerns about whether the startup will ever generate enough profit to justify those investments. Altman said earlier this month that the company will hit $20 billion in annualized revenue by the end of this year and hundreds of billions by 2030.
Prior deals include a $100 billion announced — but unfinalized — agreement with Nvidia for the chipmaker to invest in OpenAI in phases as the company builds out infrastructure. OpenAI also has cloud partnerships with Microsoft, Google and Amazon and hefty compute buildout commitments with Oracle.
Foxconn adds a manufacturing layer, further localizing OpenAI’s supply chain and potentially speeding the pace of deployment. The company is best known for assembling Apple’s iPhones but has expanded into AI and automotive manufacturing. It builds server racks tailored for AI workloads and is a key global supplier to Nvidia, the dominant player in high-end AI chips.
“Foxconn is uniquely positioned to support OpenAI’s mission with trusted, scalable infrastructure,” said Chairman Young Liu.
But the company has a checkered history in the U.S. In 2018, Foxconn broke ground on what was supposed to be a massive factory in Wisconsin for making flat-panel displays. That project was a failure, and is now the site of an AI data center being built by Microsoft.
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