Elon Musk has pulled back the curtain on Tesla’s new-gen computing powerhouse. Here’s the kicker: it won’t be called HW5 as everyone expected. Enter AI5, Tesla’s ambitious new chip that’s poised to shake up not just the automotive world, but the entire AI landscape.
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Elon, never one to mince words, dropped this nugget during a X posts: “Then HW5, which has been renamed to AI5, in the second half of next year. The Tesla AI5 computer has ~10X the capability of HW4 computer and Tesla makes the whole software stack.”
AI5 isn’t just about making your Tesla drive itself better (although it’ll certainly do that), gearing up to be the brains behind Optimus, Tesla’s humanoid robot project, and a cornerstone for large-scale inference compute.
Why the Name Game?
You might be wondering, “What’s in a name?” Well, when it comes to Tesla, apparently quite a lot. The shift from HW5 to AI5 isn’t just a cosmetic change—it’s a statement of intent. Tesla’s not just building better car computers; they’re positioning themselves as an AI powerhouse that just happens to make electric vehicles.
Now, before we get too carried away, let’s pump the brakes for a sec. Tesla’s current Full Self-Driving (FSD) capabilities are still running on HW3, (Elon: all FSD 12 training is for HW3, HW4 is currently running FSD 12 in emulation mode), and they haven’t even begun to tap into HW4’s potential. So why the rush to AI5 (HW5)? As Musk puts it, it’s all about staying ahead of the curve.
Here’s where things get really interesting. AI5 isn’t just about making your Tesla smarter on the road. It’s about creating a versatile computing platform that could power everything from advanced robotics to massive data centers. Imagine Optimus, Tesla’s ambitious humanoid robot project, powered by the same brain that’s navigating city streets. It’s a vision that’s equal parts exciting and, let’s face it, a little bit mind-bending.
According to Elon, we can expect to see AI5 hitting Tesla vehicles in the latter half of 2025. For Tesla owners and enthusiasts, this timeline raises some intriguing questions. Will current models be upgradeable? How will this affect the rollout of full self-driving capabilities? And perhaps most tantalizingly, what new features and capabilities might AI5 unlock that we haven’t even dreamed of yet?
As we look to the future, one thing’s clear: Tesla’s ambitions extend far beyond the automotive world. With AI5, they’re not just building a better car computer—they’re laying the groundwork for a new era of AI-powered innovation.