Elon Musk's biography by Walter Isaacson is now available for pre-order
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Award-winning author Walter Isaacson is set to give us an intimate look into the life of one of the era's most defining innovators, Elon Musk with his latest biography now available for pre-order on Amazon.
Elon Musk, a figure synonymous with audacious innovation and the technological revolution of our time, will be featured in Isaacson's in-depth biography, exploring the aspects of his life that shaped him into the revolutionary figure he is today. Isaacson, renowned for his bestselling biographies, including the iconic Steve Jobs, promises an "astonishingly intimate story of the most fascinating and controversial innovator of our era."
Musk took to Twitter to react to the upcoming release, stating, "There’s probably some really embarrassing stuff in the book." However, he added a note of endorsement, praising Isaacson's thoroughness and recommending his other works.
From Childhood Struggles to Global Influence: Musk’s Story Unveiled
The pre-order page gives a revealing glimpse into the depth of Isaacson's exploration. It details Musk's early struggles, from facing bullies as a child in South Africa, to the lingering psychological scars from his father to his tumultuous journey as an entrepreneur. The narrative promises to examine Musk's unique character traits, his "high tolerance for risk, a craving for drama, an epic sense of mission, and a maniacal intensity."
The biography will not only recount Musk's noteworthy accomplishments, such as launching thirty-one rockets into orbit with SpaceX, selling a million cars with Tesla, and becoming the richest man on Earth, but also delve into his personal struggles and the mental toll of a perpetually crisis-driven mindset.
Two Years with Musk: Isaacson’s In-Depth Exploration
Isaacson's meticulous research entailed shadowing Musk for two years, attending his meetings, and interviewing family, friends, co-workers, and even adversaries to create an all-encompassing portrayal of this contemporary figure. The narrative will explore the paradoxical question: Are the very demons that drive Musk integral to his unique capacity to drive innovation and progress?
As readers, we will be given a seat in the front row of Musk's life, observing as he evolves from the bullied kid on the playground to the owner of the world's ultimate playground, Twitter. It will examine the intricate layers of Musk's persona, offering insights into the man who has helped lead the world into the era of electric vehicles, private space exploration, and artificial intelligence.
With the same lucidity and empathetic storytelling that marked his previous works, Isaacson's biography of Elon Musk is shaping up to be an unmissable read for those curious about the man behind the headlines and the inner machinations of one of today's most influential innovators.
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Rendering of what Tesla's license plate feature could look like
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Tesla update 2024.38 has started rolling out to several regions and vehicles. Thanks to Tesla hacker Greentheonly, we have a behind-the-scenes look at some new features coming to Teslas.
License Plate Display
According to Greentheonly, it looks like Tesla may soon let you display your actual license plate in the vehicle’s visualization on the screen. In our article, The Most Request Tesla Features, several readers suggested displaying the vehicle’s license plate in the visualization instead of a blank, white plate.
It looks like Tesla will be doing just that, at least in China. Green found references that appear to conclude that you’ll be able to display your vehicle’s plate on screen. This will likely be user input, so you could have it say anything you’d like, and it doesn’t have to be your actual license plate.
For many owners, who may find it difficult to remember their license plate, this could serve a practical purpose in addition to adding to the visualization's realism.
While Green was only able to say it’ll be available in China, we expect this is due to China’s software development team working on it and that it’ll eventually be released worldwide.
While code for this feature was found in update 2024.38, we may not be turned on in China yet. We suspect this feature may be a strong candidate for Tesla’s upcoming holiday update.
FSD Hardware Version Display
As part of the 2024.38 update, Tesla has now made it easy to determine whether your vehicle includes Hardware 3 or Hardware 4. You can now simply navigate to Controls > Software and tap Additional Vehicle Information. In addition to other hardware information about your vehicle, your Autopilot hardware version will now be listed as well.
You can see whether your vehicle has HW2.5, HW3, or AI4. This in-car display is useful, but if you don’t have access to the vehicle, you can always use our guide on how to determine the hardware version of a Tesla.
New Battery Health Test & Service Mode Improvements
Green found some additional things as well. There’s a new and improved Battery Health Test. The new test will show you how your car scores compared to similar vehicles in the Tesla fleet.
In addition, maintenance records can now be permanently stored “in the car.” It doesn’t appear that this feature is activated yet, but it’s likely in active development with some parts leaking out in the 2024.38 update.
Tesla has included various Service Mode improvements and new visualizations in this update.
Mr Li on X came across some covered-up Project Juniper vehicles recently and he managed to get various shots of the vehicle.
Juniper Images
This front image reveals what looks like two rows of lights, possibly confirming the front light bar for the Model Y refresh — similar to the one on the Cybercab.
The rear side has a lot of lights on it!
Mr Li on X
The rear side shows a ton of brake lights, but it’s not clear why. While it looks like the Model Y refresh will also feature a rear light bar similar to the Cybertruck, there isn’t strong evidence of that in this photo.
Mr Li on X
There's an obvious set of lights at the bottom, so it looks like the Model Y refresh will be similar to the new Model 3 where the bottom lights can operate as brake lights when the one-piece tail lights and trunk are up.
Mr Li on X
In the last photo, we see that the overall form factor of the refreshed Model Y will remain unchanged, and Tesla is focusing the changes on the front and rear ends of the vehicle, much like the Model 3 refresh. However, in this one shot, we can also see what appears to be red light leaking out of the rear camera cover opening, possibly due to the rear light bar.
The Model Y is not only Tesla’s best-selling vehicle but also the world’s best-selling car in 2023. This year, it’s expected to be the best-selling vehicle in the United States and again in the world, so this refresh will be huge for Tesla.
@DominicBRNKMN made another fantastic set of concepts based on these new images. Given he had the most accurate Model 3 Highland concept before the official launch, we’re pretty sure his latest work be close here as well.
@DominicBRNKMN
We’re super excited to see the eventual reveal of Project Juniper, which is expected in the first half of 2025. However, expect to see a few more leaks before production kicks off at Giga Shanghai.