What We’re Reading

• Tesla says it will build new ‘1st of its kind’ data centers (Electrek, August 14, 2023)

  In an apparent effort to compete with the likes of Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and Meta in the estimated $250 billion data market, Tesla is reportedly hiring staff in preparation for building and equipping “‘1st of its kind’ Data Centers.” This comes on the heels of a report several months ago that Tesla was taking over data centers in Sacramento abandoned by Twitter.

  These announcements are far from surprising, given Tesla’s increasing need for more data storage to house information gleaned from its growing fleet of connected vehicles, as well as its burgeoning connectivity features business. On the energy side, for example, Tesla also has immense storage data needs associated with the operation of its virtual power plant and distributed energy assets, like Autobidder and Powerhub.

• ‘Complete meltdown’: Driverless cars in San Francisco stall causing a traffic jam (CNN Business, August 14, 2023)

  Last week, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved petitions from Cruise and Waymo to operate their robotaxis 24/7 and charge for fares throughout San Francisco. This week, residents took to social media with reports that at least ten Cruise vehicles had stopped dead with their hazard lights blinking, causing a traffic jam near a music festival in the city’s North Beach neighborhood. Cruise apologized but blamed the issue on the music festival, explaining that it “posed wireless bandwidth constraints causing delayed connectivity to” the robotaxis, and committing to investigate “solutions to prevent this from happening again.”

  The incident reignited concerns that stalled robotaxis could keep fire and police departments from responding to emergencies, and prompted some municipal officials to call for a repeal of the CPUC’s decision. “The San Francisco Fire Department has recorded 55 incidents of driverless vehicles interfering with their emergency responses in 2023 as of last week, the department confirmed to CNN.”

  For more in-depth coverage of the first responder concerns surrounding robotaxis, listen to “Why police and firefighters in San Francisco are complaining about driverless cars,” which aired on NPR’s Morning Edition on August 10, 2023.

• Mitchell: EVs remain more expensive, time consuming to repair (Repairer Driven News, August 10, 2023)

  Amidst the ongoing debate over vehicle electrification, this report interestingly notes that EVs continue to cost more in terms of both initial purchase price and repair costs than comparable ICE vehicles. “When we looked at EVs compared to ICE vehicles, they’re significantly more expensive,” Ryan Mandell, Mitchell’s claim performance director, told Repairer Driven News.

  The report also notes that EVs continue to take significantly more time to repair than ICE vehicles. “When we start thinking about the EV—its engineering, the way it’s designed, and the fact that you have to manage the high-voltage battery during the course of the repair, which involves additional labor—all these things will add additional costs beyond just the fact that this is a newer more expensive vehicle,” Mandell added.

  Mitchell’s report also notes that Tesla’s market share of repairable vehicles dropped from Q1 to Q2, likely signaling that “the number of available EV models is affecting the types of vehicles repaired in collision facilities.”