Musk: Fight with ‘Zuck’ to be streamed on X
Musk says that his fight with Zuckerberg will be streamed on X. He tweets:
Zuck v Musk fight will be live-streamed on 𝕏. All proceeds will go to charity for veterans.
Zuck v Musk fight will be live-streamed on 𝕏.
All proceeds will go to charity for veterans.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 6, 2023
Musk: X will never launch crypto coin
Musk says that Twitter/X will never launch a crypto coin. In a tweet, user @DogeDesigner stated:
Elon Musk and 𝕏 never launched a crypto token
to which Musk replied:
And we never will.
Elon Musk and 𝕏 never launched a crypto token. Be careful of such articles. ⚠️ pic.twitter.com/tZqfwMMm2X
— DogeDesigner (@cb_doge) August 5, 2023
X takes @music handle from user
X takes “@music” handle from a user who ran the account for 16 years and will be using it for its own business purposes. The company sent him an email stating that they will change the name to @musicfan.
16 years ago, I created @music and have been running it ever since. Just now, Twitter / X just ripped it away. Super pissed
16 years ago, I created @music and have been running it ever since. Just now, Twitter / X just ripped it away.
Super pissed pic.twitter.com/ctacWKY9js— Jeremy Vaught (@jeremyvaught) August 3, 2023
X lets subscribers hide blue ticks
X adds a feature that allows paid subscribers to hide their verification badge from other users.
As a subscriber, you can choose to hide your checkmark on your account. The checkmark will be hidden on your profile and posts. The checkmark may still appear in some places and some features could still reveal you have an active subscription. Some features may not be available while your checkmark is hidden. We will continue to evolve this feature to make it better for you.
Musk accuses South African party of pushing for white genocide
In response to footage of a football stadium of Economic Freedom Fighters Party loyalists singing “Kill the Boer,” Musk accuses the party of pushing for genocide of white people, tagging President Ramaphosa for a response:
They are openly pushing for genocide of white people in South Africa. @CyrilRamaphosa, why do you say nothing?
They are openly pushing for genocide of white people in South Africa. @CyrilRamaphosa, why do you say nothing?
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 31, 2023
Musk takes over @x username without paying
Musk takes over the @x Twitter account without paying its owner as part of the app’s ongoing rebrand. The user. a photographer in San Franscisco, said he had been offered some X merchandise and a meeting with the company’s management, but was not offered any financial incentive. He stated:
They just took it essentially – kinda what I thought might happen. They did send an email saying it is the property of ‘x’ essentially.
Dies aged 56
O’Connor dies at the age of 56. The cause of death is not made public. Family statement:
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinéad. Her family and friends are devastated and have requested privacy at this very difficult time.
Police: O’Connor’s death not suspicious
London police say O’Connor‘s death is not being treated as suspicious. The statement did not name O’Connor in line with U.K. police protocols:
A 56-year-old woman is pronounced dead at the scene and a file will be prepared for the Coroner.
Musk wants to give amputees robotic limbs powered by brain implants
While updating investors on Tesla’s second-quarter performance, Musk says he wants to help amputees by combining advanced robotics from Tesla with brain-implant technology from Neuralink. Musk says the combination could give amputees…
a robot arm or leg that is as good, maybe better long term, than a biological one…We believe we can give, basically, a cyborg body that is incredibly capable.
Starship Super Heavy booster moved to launch pad
SpaceX says the Starship Super Heavy booster is being moved to the launch pad and will be undergoing testing leading up to its next test flight.
Starship Super Heavy Booster 9 transported to the orbital launch pad at Starbase for testing ahead of flight
Starship Super Heavy Booster 9 transported to the orbital launch pad at Starbase for testing ahead of flight pic.twitter.com/fF6U13thzs
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 20, 2023
Malaysia issues Starlink license
Malaysia issues a license to Starlink to provide Internet services in the country, particularly in remote areas. The communications minister said in a Facebook post that Starlink would begin by providing its services to schools and higher education institutions. The government was also prepared to work with satellite communications firms, including Starlink, to ensure 100% internet coverage in populated areas. Around 3% of populated areas in Malaysia face issues with internet access, due to geographical and infrastructure challenges.
Warren urges SEC to investigate Tesla over Twitter ties
Warren sends a letter to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, urging them to investigate Tesla over possible conflicts of interest, misappropriation of corporate assets, and other negative impacts to Tesla shareholders related to Musk’s Twitter takeover. Warren says the Tesla board’s “apparent lack of independence” from Musk raises questions about possible violations of security laws and exchange rules which fall under SEC’s jurisdiction.
Musk: Tesla may cut prices in ‘turbulent times’
On an analysts’ call, Musk says that he will cut prices again on Tesla’s vehicles due to “turbulent times”:
One day it seems like the world economy is falling apart, next day it’s fine. I don’t know what the hell is going on. We’re in, I would call it, turbulent times.
Tesla shares fall nearly 5% after Musk’s comments.
Tesla builds first Cybertruck
Tesla builds its first Cybertruck for customers at its Giga Texas manufacturing facility in Austin, Texas, four years after the vehicle was announced in November 2019. In a tweet, more than 100 Telsa staff in hard hats and high-vis vests surround the vehicle after it comes of the production line.
First Cybertruck built at Giga Texas!
First Cybertruck built at Giga Texas! 🤠 pic.twitter.com/ODRhHVsd0t
— Tesla (@Tesla) July 15, 2023
SpaceX breaks reusable rocket launch record
SpaceX breaks its own record, after successfully completing a 16th mission with a reusable rocket. The company launches 22 Starlink satellites aboard the Falcon 9 rocket from the Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida. It is the 16th launch and landing for the B1058 Falcon 9 rocket booster. SpaceX says it hopes the booster can be used a further four times before finally being scrapped. There are now more than 4,000 active Starlink satellites in orbit around Earth, delivering high-speed internet to users. After the satellites are deployed, Musk writes on Twitter:
Looks like we can increase Raptor thrust by ~20 per cent to reach 9,000 tons (20 million lbs) of force at sea level… And deliver over 200 tons of payload to a useful orbit with full and rapid reusability. Fifty rockets flying every three days on average enables over a megaton of payload to orbit per year – enough to build a self-sustaining city on Mars.
Twitter threatens legal action over Threads
Twitter threatens to take legal action over Threads, with an attorney from Twitter describing it as a “copycat” and claiming that it is developed by former Twitter employees using the company’s trade secrets. The attorney writes:
Twitter has serious concerns that Meta Platforms has engaged in systemic, willful, and unlawful misappropriation of Twitter’s trade secrets and other intellectual property. The company plans to strictly enforce its intellectual property rights.
Meta declines to comment on the letter, but director Andy Stone responds on Threads:
No one on the Threads engineering team is a former Twitter employee — that’s just not a thing.
Zuckerberg: Thirty million users join Threads
Zuckerberg says thirty million users have signed up for Meta’s newly launched Threads app on its first day, The app allows users to post up to 500 characters, and has many features similar to Twitter. When asked on Threads whether the app will be “bigger than Twitter”, Zuckerberg said:
It’ll take some time, but I think there should be a public conversations app with 1 billion+ people on it. Twitter has had the opportunity to do this but hasn’t nailed it. Hopefully we will.
Twitter: Rate limits are to eleminate bots
Twitter says recent rate limits on Twitter are implemented to detect and eleminate bots and only a small percentage of users are affected:
To ensure the authenticity of our user base we must take extreme measures to remove spam and bots from our platform. Any advance notice on these actions would have allowed bad actors to alter their behavior to evade detection.
The company says these actions intend to prevent data scraping from users and state that the restrictions are temporary:
Currently, the restrictions affect a small percentage of people using the platform, and we will provide an update when the work is complete. As it relates to our customers, effects on advertising have been minimal.
Tesla delivers record number of cars after price cuts
Tesla says it delivered a record number of vehicles for the three months from April to June, delivering 466,140 vehicles, 80% higher than last year. The company says it lowered prices in markets including the US, UK and China to compete with rival manufacturers. The company is due to report its financial results for the second quarter on 19 July. Musk,
We’re not ‘starting a price war’, we’re just lowering prices to enable affordability at scale.
Musk’s mother disapproves of Zuckerberg cage fight
Maye Musk disapproves her son’s proposed cage fight with Zuckerberg and asks Musk’s followers to stop encouraging this match. On a tweet showcasing Musk training for the fight, she replied:
Sorry, I can’t click a like on this
Sorry, I can’t click a like on this.🫣🧐 https://t.co/iYzs9ub2Yb
— Maye Musk (@mayemusk) June 28, 2023