Eric J. Mandela

Passionate about tech, finance, economics, environmentalism, philosophy, politics, freedom, running, skiing, the outdoors and making the world a better place.

[Eric J. Mandela @EricMandela]

Economic systems can tolerate a wide range of conditions but take time to adjust. I see zero wisdom in the Fed increasing rates quickly rather than slowly and deliberately. Shocking the markets and economy can cause avoidable damage by locking the economy up and causing panic.

[SpaceX @SpaceX]

Watch Starship's twelfth flight test https://t.co/caRB1thMlg

[SpaceX @SpaceX]

Watch Starship's twelfth flight test https://t.co/wxna6dy4Lh

[Hayley Arceneaux @ArceneauxHayley]

Little me fighting bone cancer would be so proud to know she’d one day touch the stars. Our space mission, Inspiration4, raised $250 million for childhood cancer research and treatment to help more kids grow up and live out their dreams 🎗️

[Elon Musk @elonmusk]

True currency is steadfast friendship

[Cisco @Cisco]

How do you build and govern #AI at a global scale—and what that means for you? TOMRROW Feb. 3, hear directly from visionary leaders from NVIDIA, OpenAI, and many more! Join the conversation with Cisco's @ChuckRobbins and @jpatel41 live and ungated ➡️ https://t.co/MdgzLZaw6B
#CiscoAISummit

[Max @MdeZegher]

I first met Wawa leadership back in 2015. I took them for a drive in a Model S P85+ at their headquarters in Pennsylvania. The touchscreen and acceleration showed them how exciting EVs can be, and why they were the future. Conversations were kind, direct, and fun.

Just like they added gas pumps to their dairy business in the mid-90s, they took a shot on Tesla to drive EV traffic. Wawa locations are great: hoagies, clean restrooms, easy highway access, and open 24/7. Fast forward 11 years and Wawa is now the host with the most Tesla Superchargers (223 sites, 2115 stalls). I never imagined we'd scale this fast and @TeslaCharging has many more Tesla Superchargers coming with them. We're still working with the same leaders, and yes they drive Teslas.

Today, I'm grateful Wawa is choosing Tesla again, this time for the first charging infrastructure that they wanted to own, price and brand. For this site, @TeslaCharging also handled the design, permitting, and build using Pre-assembled Supercharger Units. It's part of the Supercharger secret sauce keeping cost down.

Thank you @Wawa for the journey so far and congratulations on your first owned EV infrastructure!

[Eric J. Mandela @EricMandela]

This is absolutely brilliant! I originally thought that Tesla was ramping up its production of inverters for supply chain, logistics, and cost reasons, but these inverters are far more advanced and add additional stability and resilience to the grid.

[Tesla Megapack @Tesla_Megapack]

Megapack grid-forming inverters are key to enabling global grid stability and reliability

This technology allows Megapack to resist changes on the network by creating its own voltage signal, preventing blackouts and allowing more renewables to come online

[United Airlines @united]

Lightning-fast @Starlink Wi-Fi is now on board our first mainline aircraft. 🛰️

Stay connected from gate to gate on allllll your devices just like you’re at home. That means live streaming, live sports, live gaming, even live watching your pet cam. 😉

Starlink Wi-Fi is already available on more than half of our regional fleet, and it’s rolling out on more planes every day. Free for MileagePlus members.

[SpaceX @SpaceX]

Starship's eleventh flight test reached every objective, providing valuable data as we prepare the next generation of Starship and Super Heavy → https://t.co/YmvmGZTV8o

[SpaceX @SpaceX]

Watch Starship's eleventh flight test → https://t.co/YmvmGZTV8o
https://t.co/zIRMX5mh9K

[Eric J. Mandela @EricMandela]

@pduan I want to be able to independently control assertiveness and max speed. I want to also have it not do things like change lanes over a solid lane marking.

Even a quick way of changing from FSD to Basic Autopilot with minimize lane changes active would be great.

[Tesla Optimus @Tesla_Optimus]

Tried to start a fight at the Tron: Ares premiere

[Ceaser G @CeaserG33]

Just wrapped up a visit to Starbase, and the Cybertruck fleet is starting to arrive! Dozens are already on site, lined up to replace the old gas work trucks. SpaceX is aiming to swap out the entire fleet for these angular bad boys. It's a smart move for efficiency as we ramp up Starship production.
@NASASpaceflight

[Nic Cruz Patane @niccruzpatane]

Optimus casually doing Kung Fu in front of Jared Leto during a red carpet premiere 😂🔥

Tesla makes the only true human-like robot, and this isn’t even Gen 3.

[Sawyer Merritt @SawyerMerritt]

Morgan Stanley $TSLA analyst Adam Jonas says he just bought a brand new 2026 Tesla Model Y over the weekend to replace his 2021 Model Y.

"The improvements in the car's design, materials, finish, suspension/ride are very noticeable, as are the material improvements in FSD (v13.2.9) with HW4 (vs. my prior MY with HW3 which I already thought was great). But the biggest 'upgrade' for the car is hands down having Grok in the car with the long press of the microphone button on the wheel. I was already a Grok subscriber, but the in-car experience of X's virtual assistant is on another level. The boys and I love Grok the most. I just want to be friends with this dude."

"The end-of-month expiry of the $7,500 Federal EV tax credit (36 month lease) and the offer to carry over my FSD subscription to the new model is what compelled me. I filled out the 'paperwork' over the Tesla App and when I went to the Mount Kisco store to pick up the vehicle, the process took about 7 minutes. I walked in. They had my binder. Walked me to the car. Put the plates on & off I went. I forgot how easy the process of buying/leasing a Tesla is. It was easier than buying a bicycle," he said.

(via his new $TSLA note)

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

One month before a stroke, your body may give you these signs.

[Sawyer Merritt @SawyerMerritt]

Morgan Stanley's Adam Jonas says he recently competed a 1,400-mile round trip from New York to Michigan and back, and @Tesla's FSD drove 99% of the miles. “It's a game changer.”

“Having your hands off the wheel and feet off the pedals for nearly 12 hours of driving is a real game changer that is hard to appreciate without experiencing it for yourself. I have used FSD basically every time I have driven for the past 18 months,” he said.

“I am not exaggerating when I say that FSD did over 99% of the miles. Aside from two sudden torrential downpours—one on the Pennsylvania Turnpike & one in the suburbs of Detroit—and some minor maneuvering around McDonald’s and Arby’s parking lots, I really didn’t touch the wheel,” Adam added.

“FSD made no mistakes or close calls that I recall. The system handles highways very safely and confidently. I cannot imagine buying another EV without FSD. It's a game changer—the tech changes how I think about long-distance road travel.”

Adam drove his 2021 Model Y (HW3, FSD Supervised v12.6.4). He loved the Supercharging experience along the way. He finished saying that the $8k he paid for Tesla's FSD feels like a "bargain."

Adam's $TSLA price target: $410

[Tesla Charging @TeslaCharging]

The New Jersey Turnpike Authority ("NJTA") has chosen a sole third-party charging provider to serve the New Jersey Turnpike and is not allowing us to co-locate. As a result, NJTA requested 64 existing Supercharger stalls on the New Jersey Turnpike to not be renewed and be decommissioned. We have been preparing for 3 years for this potential outcome by building 116 stalls off the New Jersey Turnpike, ensuring no interruption for our customers. The map below outlines the existing replacement Superchargers, and Trip Planner will adjust automatically.

We offered the NJTA above-market commercial terms, including offering to build Superchargers at all New Jersey service plaza and with equipment upgrades, such as screens and NACS with CCS1 "magic docks". Tesla always advocates for more infrastructure and co-location with additional third-party charging providers. This drives down costs through optionality, and accelerates EV adoption by having sufficient capacity to shoulder peaks. We expect that ~30 times more fast-charging capacity is needed to get to full EV adoption. NJTA's decision to remove, rather than add, critical charging infrastructure is a setback for New Jersey's EV adoption goals of 100% Zero-Emission New Car Sales by 2035. It removes Turnpike access to the most reliable (99.9% uptime), least congested (<1% waiters) and cost-effective (~30% lower $/kWh) charging.

We are still willing to invest in New Jersey Turnpike sites if @NJTurnpike or @GovMurphy want to reverse this decision. Otherwise, we will continue to build out the best possible infrastructure off the Turnpike to serve @DelValTesla and the EV drivers of New Jersey.

[SpaceX @SpaceX]

Watch Starship's ninth flight test → https://t.co/Gufroc2kUz https://t.co/NYF0ZMyeGp

[Eric J. Mandela @EricMandela]

@garyblack00 @Rec1pr0city @RandyWKirk1 How will Uber be able to offer a lower cost per mile than a manufacturer like Tesla when Uber has to acquire the vehicles and also add margin? It is also not a foregone conclusion that other manufacturers will be able to produce autonomous vehicles for less than Tesla can.