Tesla plans to raise additional funds later this year and offer an updated version of its Autopilot system that has been the center of controversy for the California-based electric vehicle manufacturer.
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Tesla has been working hard at overhauling Autopilot with a series of improvements in v8.0. However, the company noted it could turn to the option of a debt offering or dilute its stock to amass the cash it needs.
Musk wealth tumbled by $779 million, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, due in part to drops in Tesla Motors and SolarCity stock prices, and Wednesday’s filing showing he has ponied up $489 million of his Tesla and SolarCity fusion.
After a fatal May crash in which a driver of a Tesla Model S was killed when his vehicle failed to implement a brake system, it seemed unclear in the aftermath how Elon Musk’s company would address increased scrutiny over the safety of its beta system.
However, deals such as this one require the approval of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the antitrust regulators, and per Fortune, Tesla Motors has already won the approval of the US antitrust, so it’s already a done deal between the two companies. Tesla dubbed Autopilot a “beta feature” after launch, and Musk has repeated that it’s labelled a “beta specifically so people do not become complacent”, adding that the disclaimers provided to drivers are “written in super plain language”.
Musk made the comment in a colorful company-wide memo dated August 29.
However in his Wednesday Tweet, Mr. Musk stated that software improvements to Autopilot will be delivered wirelessly to owner’s vehicle.
The planned release of the Tesla Model 3 has been pushed back from this year to the end of 2017.
The goal of the new restriction appears to be to encourage Tesla owners to respond to the visual alert and not to ignore them.
With a new update almost here (the v8.0 update), what will we get this time?
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Tesla states that these funds would “be used primarily for tooling, production equipment and construction of the Tesla’s Model 3 production lines, equipment to support cell production at Tesla’s Gigafactory, as well as new Tesla retail locations, service centers and Supercharger locations”.
