đ Why this afternoonâs test matters so much for SpaceX
Musk Reads #240
Starship eyes history; Elon wonders about A.I. stand-up comics; and Tesla Semi hits the snooze button until 2022. Itâs the free edition of Musk Reads #240 â subscribe now to receive two more premium editions later this week.
Last week, Musk Reads+ subscribers heard from Jason Lassen. The Wisconsin man âwent viralâ for a video of a Tesla Solar Roof he installed atop his 4,900-square-foot house. This week, subscribers will remain in the Badger State: We are going to interview a beta tester for Starlink, the satellite internet company Musk is building. How does it work? What are its benefits? Why do privacy advocates want Starlink? Subscribe to find out.
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Musk quote of the week
âI wanna know when A.I. will be able to do stand-up comedy well!? We should be laughing our asses off if itâs so damn smart!â
Musk this past weekend, just after predicting A.I. will be able to match the human brain in a few years.
SpaceX
A public notice of road closures in Cameron County, Texas, between 12 and 5 p.m. local time (Central) was released on Monday morning in preparation for the flight of SN11.Â
If everything goes according to plan, today will be a massive day for SpaceX as it seeks to perfect a test flight for SN11, the prototype of the Starship rocket. (You can watch the live video of the launch on the SpaceX website here.)
The SpaceX Starship, Musk's two-stage-to-orbit heavy-lift launch vehicle, will attempt to reach 10 kilometers, or 33,000 feet/6.2 miles, during the flight test.Â
The rocket was scheduled to launch on Friday, and then on Sunday, but was scrubbed each time because âadditional checkouts are needed. Doing our best to land & fully recover,â Musk posted on his Twitter account.
That last part, as you might remember, is important. After all, you cannot âfully recoverâ a rocket if it belly flops, lands, and then explodes.
Programming note
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Tesla
It could be a year from now when development of the Tesla Semi â which already faces stiff competition â finally gains traction. Musk said Friday evening that Tesla is too âcell-constrainedâ right now when asked about its development.Â
It seems that, at Muskâs level anyway, the answer remains the same about the Tesla Semi truck: The battery cells are all going to other more in-demand Tesla vehicles, like the Model 3, right now.Â
âThe main reason weâve not accelerated new products is â like, for example, Tesla Semi â is that we simply donât have enough cells for it,â Musk told investment analysts during an earnings call in late January. âIf we were to make the Semi, like, right now, which we could easily go into production with the Semi, but we would not have enough cells for it right now. We will have enough cells for Semi when we are producing the Tesla 4680 in volume.â
While the technology exists for the Tesla Semi, the massive amount of battery cells it requires for long-hauls puts it lower in the pecking order when people presumably are lining up to spend their bitcoin on a new Tesla.
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In other Musk newsâŠ
Elon Musk sent (and deleted) a tweet at 1:20 in the morning. It's a lesson in emotional intelligence. Read the full article.
How to get a Tesla Solar Roof in your area. Read the full article.
Iron-powered electric vehicles are surging in China, but concerns remain about their range and cold-weather performance. Read the full article.
The ultra-fine print
This has been Musk Reads #240, the weekly rundown of essential reading about futurist and entrepreneur Elon Musk. Iâm Nick Lucchesi, editor-in-chief for Inverse and Mike Brownâs humble substitute while heâs off today.
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