HAWTHORNE, United States: Tesla introduced a new electric sports utility vehicle slightly bigger and more expensive than its Model 3, pitched as an electric car for the masses.
Tesla chief executive Elon Musk showed off the “Model Y” late Thursday at the company’s design studio in the southern California city of Hawthorne, and the company began taking orders online.
The all-electric Model Y has a starting price of $39,000 for a version with a 230-mile (370-kilometer) range. A long-range version of the SUV capable of traveling 300 miles (483 kilometers) on a single charge was priced at $47,000.
Deliveries were expected to begin late next year for the higher-priced Model Y vehicles, with the standard-range version likely get to buyers by spring of 2021, according to Tesla.
Musk said the Model Y has “the functionality of an SUV but it will ride like a sports car” accelerating from stand-still to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds.
Model Y featured a “panoramic glass roof” and could seat seven people, according to Musk.
Entry-level SUVs are a hot segment of the vehicle market.
“Even though the Model Y will debut with promises of grandeur, if there are any chinks in Tesla’s brand armor, this vehicle will expose them,” said Edmunds executive director of industry analysis Jessica Caldwell.
“Tesla is about to learn exactly what it means to go head-to-head with the German automakers.”
While Tesla has a devoted fan base, with people at the Thursday event shouting enthusiastically for Musk, the Model Y will be competing with attractive SUVs that titans such as BMW, Mercedes and Audi are bringing to market, according to Caldwell.
The latest addition to the Tesla line-up comes shortly after the California-based company rolled out its lowest-priced Model 3, an electric car designed for the masses, at a base price of $35,000, with deliveries promised in one month.
At that price, the Model 3 is less than half the cost of most Tesla on the road and may be eligible for tax incentives which could further lower ownership costs.
“If Tesla truly wants to be a mainstream brand, it’s going to have to figure out how to sell cars to people besides young men in California,” Caldwell said.
Tesla has a sound foundation for the Model Y to be a “turning point,” since it has an enviably young base of buyers for a luxury brand and the Model X has had strong appeal to women, according to Caldwell.
The new vehicles suggest Tesla has been able to overcome production bottlenecks to ramp up production to meet demand, and moving toward Musk’s goal of making electric vehicles widely available.
Tesla this week reversed course on its decision to move most of its sales online, saying it will keep many of its showrooms open — but will need to hike prices to do so.
Tesla made the announcement on February 28 that it would begin selling its mass-market Model 3 at the promised $35,000 price, and close most of its retail locations to cut costs.
But the company said that after review, it had decided to keep some of its showrooms, although the specifics were not disclosed.
Tesla said the price hikes would start on March 18 for “the more expensive variants of Model 3, as well as Model S and X.”
“To be clear, all sales worldwide will still be done online, in that potential Tesla owners coming in to stores will simply be shown how to order a Tesla on their phone in a few minutes,” the statement added.
Elon Musk’s Tesla adds ‘Model Y’ SUV to line-up
Elon Musk’s Tesla adds ‘Model Y’ SUV to line-up
- The all-electric Model Y has a starting price of $39,000 for a version with a 230-mile (370-kilometer) range
- Musk said the Model Y has “the functionality of an SUV but it will ride like a sports car”
Artificial intelligence is transitioning into a ‘digital employee’
- AI can be an effective tool, business leaders tell Arab News
- Not about jobs, but ‘convergence of human capital and AI’
RIYADH: Artificial intelligence is fundamentally reshaping the world of work, transitioning from a supporting tool to an active partner that is radically changing the nature of professions and productivity standards.
Amidst the current global transformations, an active regional digital environment is emerging.
This is being led by Saudi Arabia through Vision 2030 and massive investments in smart infrastructure, providing a living model for studying the implications of this partnership between humans and machines on the future of work in the region.
Arab News spoke to various business leaders about the emerging shape of the sector.
Salem Bagami, co-founder of Metatalent, said the ideal relationship between humans and machines at work should be complementary and collaborative.
Humans would bring creativity, emotional intelligence, and complex decision-making, while machines excel at processing big data and performing repetitive, precise tasks.
He believes that this type of balanced partnership would lead to unprecedented productivity and innovation.
Mohammad Al-Jallad, chief technologist and director at HPE, said AI has gone beyond being merely an executive tool to becoming a “digital employee” entrusted with automating routine tasks and providing insights based on data analysis.
He believes that the real opportunity lies not in the debate over job replacement, but in “the convergence of human capital and artificial intelligence.”
AI should augment human teams by taking on menial and routine tasks, enabling employees to focus on critical thinking, creativity, and ethical reasoning, significantly improving operational results.
Bagami also emphasized the complementary nature of this partnership. “The ideal relationship between humans and machines at work is one of collaboration, where each complements the others.”
He explained that humans bring creativity, emotional intelligence, and nuanced decision-making, while machines excel at processing big data and performing repetitive tasks efficiently, leading to increased productivity and innovation.
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Salem Alanazi, chairman of Jathwa Technology Co., notes a significant trend among Saudi Arabia companies toward using AI applications to provide faster services to customers at lower costs.
The emergence of the “virtual employee” available around the clock has eliminated the need for some traditional jobs in specific sectors.
Alanazi warns that some companies’ reluctance to adopt AI may expose them to real risks. “All those who hesitated to benefit from AI applications have a lack of understanding of these technologies.”
He said those who adopt these technologies will be able to offer lower-cost, higher-quality services, which will affect the market position of companies that lag behind.
Ali Aljumhour, CEO of VALUE Consultancy, said that the transition of AI into a partner has reshaped the list of most in-demand skills in the job market.
Skills such as “prompt engineering,” “human-machine integration,” and “digital ethics” are becoming increasingly important.
He added that AI has become an instantly available “technical knowledge base,” shifting the criteria for professional distinction toward those capable of smart interaction with these technologies.
In terms of ethics, transparency, and trust, Alanazi points to the complexities of global AI governance, where legislation overlaps and evolves rapidly to keep pace with potential risks, particularly in the areas of cybersecurity and privacy.
Al-Jallad emphasizes this crucial dimension, noting that providing responsible and reliable AI solutions that meet the highest standards of transparency is a key priority, especially in regulated sectors.
Bagami believes there should be basic standards for the ethical use of Al, emphasizing the need for transparency, accountability, and fairness, along with using diverse data sets to prevent bias and protect privacy.
He believes that building trust between humans and machines requires clear explanations of how systems work, giving users the opportunity to provide feedback and conducting periodic performance reviews.
On performance evaluation, Aljumhour said: “I expect radical changes in standards, shifting from measuring individual effort to evaluating the quality of the partnership between humans and machines.”
There should be a focus on the quality of inputs provided to intelligent systems, the accuracy of review and modification, and complex decision-making based on outputs.
He warns, however, of new risks that may arise, such as over-reliance on AI or difficulty in determining responsibility for mistakes.
In the employment sector, Aljumhour expects fundamental changes in standards.
There will be questions and tests focusing on measuring skills in dealing with AI, such as asking candidates about their experiences of collaborating with these systems, or testing their ability to formulate effective requests for complex tasks.
Aljumhour identifies significant human challenges in this transition, with “fear, loss of power, and exclusivity of knowledge” being the biggest concerns for experienced employees.
