Tesla, airlines and robotaxi rivals feature in week’s business headlines

  • Tesla faced Cybercab scrutiny, lower delivery forecasts, litigation and renewed discussion of a possible SpaceX merger.
  • Goldman Sachs cut Tesla’s Q3 delivery forecast to 435,000 vehicles from 490,000.
  • United and American Airlines signaled possible capacity cuts as fuel costs rose during the war in Iran.

Tesla Inc. and CEO Elon Musk remained central to a week of business news that also covered airline capacity, autonomous vehicles and U.S. trade policy. Musk said Tesla’s high-performance Roadster will be unveiled on October 1, while Tesla and Space Exploration Technologies Corp., commonly known as SpaceX, sued Illinois nanotechnology company TERA-print LLC over the Terafab name planned for their $16.8 billion AI chip complex in Texas. Goldman Sachs lowered its third-quarter Tesla delivery forecast to 435,000 vehicles from 490,000; the new estimate is below the 456,000 Visible Alpha consensus, while prediction-market estimates in earlier coverage were centered around 480,000. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ordered Tesla to answer 21 questions under oath about the self-certification and federal safety compliance of its Cybercab robotaxi by September 30. Separate coverage cited a rider’s claim that a Cybercab held him hostage for an hour and turned a short Austin trip into a 70-minute detour. Musk also suggested Tesla and SpaceX could eventually merge, and investor Ron Baron said he would support Musk’s decision. United Airlines Holdings Inc. and American Airlines Group Inc. signaled that elevated fuel costs linked to the war in Iran could prompt capacity cuts; United CFO Michael Leskinen discussed the company’s readiness to adapt at Morgan Stanley’s Laguna Conference. Alphabet Inc.-backed Waymo is expanding its robotaxi service in Las Vegas and plans a 2027 rollout in Tokyo, with most of its Las Vegas fleet expected to consist of Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd.-backed Zeekr’s co-developed Ojai robotaxis. President Donald Trump dismissed reports of a framework allowing Chinese automakers into the U.S. market but said he might accept them building vehicles in the country.

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