Rumours of Elon Musk’s Tesla company making a smartphone have been doing the rounds for a few years now – supposedly called the Model Pi.
A company already trading under the Tesla name making phones such as the Explr9 and Series 3, as well as various other tech products like TVs, complicates matters from the off, though they are not high-end as you might expect Elon to make, or available in the UK or US – the company is mainly active in Eastern Europe.
The firm’s FAQ for ‘Do you make cars?’ states “Nope. This is Tesla Inc., which offers solar power, energy storage, charging, and automobiles as part of its mission to accelerate global energy transition. We produce and distribute household appliances and consumer electronics based on Nikola Tesla’s concept that technology should be available to everyone. So, is there any truth that Elon’s Tesla Inc. will be adding mobile devices to its, well, larger mobile devices? Here’s all we know so far.
Has Tesla already launched a phone?
You may have recently seen a lot of videos on YouTube and TikTok about Tesla releasing a $100 phone that “broke the internet.” However, there is no proof that these devices are real, and the likelihood is that they are just clickbait from sites powered by AI trying to make money. You can see that it is not new by searching for “Tesla phone” on YouTube, which returns a lot of results saying “it has just been released!” style videos all discuss something that never took place. Simply put, it’s fake news, and they keep popping up to make money. In more recent comments by Musk, it has been reported by The Standard that while out on the political campaign for Trump, he spoke about his thoughts regarding Tesla and a phone.
“That takes a lot of effort. The idea of making a phone makes me want to die,” Elon said. “But if we have to, we will make a phone, but we will strive not to.” So, not exactly a resounding recommendation. This is in line with another quote from a New York Times event in November 2023 that was mentioned in The Standard report. In it, Musk said, “If there’s an essential need to make a phone, I’ll make a phone, but I’ve got a lot of fish to fry.” On a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, Musk said that they didn’t want to make a phone, but that “if Apple and Google Android started doing really bad things, like censoring apps or acting as gatekeepers in a harmful way, then I guess we would make a phone.” These sentiments were reiterated. Elon Musk does not appear particularly enthusiastic about raising marketing hype, despite the fact that it is not out of the realm of possibility for Tesla to suddenly announce a handset. What specifications and features might the Tesla Model Pi have? Ok. Hold onto your hats for this.
With the Tesla ‘Model Pi’ being something of an urban legend at the moment, the rumour mill has gone into quite strange territory when it comes to the kind of features Tesla could introduce with its debut phone.
Design
Concept artist Antonio De Rosa has created some lovely images that show off the potential design choices Tesla could make, although of course this is entirely conceptual and not based on any hard schematic evidence.
Solar power
Probably the most realistic of all the rumours is that of Tesla incorporating solar panels into the device to allow recharging without the need for an electrical power source. This makes sense, as it would fit with the ecologically minded Tesla brand, while also making use of the solar technology already developed by the company.
Whether solar charging tech is ready to keep a phone topped up all day, especially when the phone itself spends most of its time in your pocket or bag, is another matter entirely of course.
Additionally, there are plausible claims that the Model Pi will closely integrate with Tesla automobiles, giving users enhanced mobility control over settings and features. Starlink support
Moving on to the more improbable scenario, numerous reports assert that Musk’s SpaceX company’s Starlink service will be utilized by the Model Pi. This is essentially satellite-based fast broadband that should provide coverage in many areas where 5G fears to tread.
Satellite connectivity began to appear back in mainstream phones like the iPhone 14 series, Huawei Mate 50 Pro and well as subsequent models, but the implementation has been basic, and primarily intended for simple emergency communications at times when regular signal is unavailable.
A more sophisticated Starlink integration is desired by fans. Neuralink
Do you recall the Neuralink technology that we talked about earlier? Well, plenty of fans are hoping that the Model Pi will be compatible with the Brain-Machine-Interface (BMI) chips that would allow users to control their devices by thought.
While this sounds incredibly interesting, if trying to get Siri to call the right person or Alexa to select the correct music track is anything to go by, the idea of a mind-control phone could be the stuff of nightmares.
Mars Attacks!
Finally, the most bonkers of all the popular rumours we’ve seen is that the Starlink technology will allow the Model Pi to work on Mars. Yep, Mars.
Frankly, we’d be more impressed if Tesla could fix it so that we got a decent signal in the local coffee shop rather than on Olympus Mons. That would be a significant advance. How much would the Model Pi from Tesla cost? That is a mystery to all. There is no real evidence of a phone, so any price would be pure speculation even if it had half of the features that fans speculated it would have. However, there is a good chance that it would be at the top end of the market if it had half of the features. You can ignore those YouTube videos saying it costs $100.
New Tesla phone isn’t the real deal: Is Elon Musk’s Tesla Inc launching a phone?
