52. Grokipedia (2025)
Friday, 17 July 2026
Every Elon Musk Product
Every Elon Musk Product. From The Data of Everything.
1. Blastar (1984)
2. Zip2 (1995)
3. X. com (1999)
4. Tesla Roadster (2006)
5. Falcon 1 (2006)
6. Tesla Model S (2009)
7. Falcon 9 (2010)
8. Giga Fremont (2010)
9. Dragon 1 (2010)
10. Supercharging Network (2012)
11. Starship (2012)
12. Hyperloop (2013)
13. Dragon 2 (2014)
14. Tesla Model X (2015)
15. New Spacesuits (2015)
16. Starlink (2015)
17. Powerwall 1 (2015)
18. Giga Nevada (2016)
19. Tesla Model 3 (2016)
20. Powerwall 2 (2016)
21. Tesla Solar Roof (2016)
22. FSD (Full Self-Driving) (2016)
23. Tesla Semi (2017)
24. Tesla Roadster 2.0 (2017)
25. Tesla Solar Panels (2017)
26. Giga New York (2017)
27. Neuralink (2017)
28. Not-a-Flamethrower (2018)
29. Falcon Heavy (2018)
30. Giga Shanghai (2019)
31. Tesla Cybertruck (2019)
32. Tesla Cyberquad (2019)
33. Tesla Model Y (2019)
34. Tesla Megapack (2019)
35. Tesla Insurance (2019)
36. 4680 Cells (2020)
37. Short Shorts (2020)
38. Tesla Optimus (2021)
39. Giga Berlin (2022)
40. Prufrock II (2022)
41. Burnt Hair Perfume (2022)
42. Giga Texas (2022)
43. Powerwall 3 (2023)
44. Tesla Dojo (2023)
45. Giga Mexico (2023)
46. Grok (2023)
47. Cybercab (2024)
48. Robovan (2024)
49. Tesla Diner (2025)
50. Grok 4 (2025)
51. Grok Imagine (2025)
Thursday, 16 July 2026
The Dawning of a New Age. In the foothills of Singularity | Demis Hassabis
A Framework for Frontier AI and the Dawning of a New Age
This is a pivotal moment in human history. Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), a system that exhibits all the cognitive capabilities the brain has, is probably only a few short years away. When we look back on this time in the decades to come, I think we will realise we were standing in the foothills of the singularity - nothing less than the dawning of a new age for humanity. [Link to the Article at X]
Why Elon Musk bought Twitter | Seth Dillon
"We [The Babylon Bee] have a refusal to treat silliness seriously"-- Seth Dillon
Towards the end: Free Speech isn't enough. It's the start. The news media, social media, commenters, news reporters all have a responsibility to get it right. To report the Truth. There is such a thing. Not "your" truth, or "my" truth. But THE truth.
The Babylon Bee is the new -- and better -- The Onion, which has gone off because it went Woke.
They're a bunch of practicing Christians at the Babylon Bee. But, atheist me, I don't mind. They make nice jokes.
A 2018 headline: "CNN Purchases Industrial-Sized Washing Machine To Spin News Before Publication."
This specific headline became highly famous after the fact-checking website Snopes officially rated the satirical article as "false". Fact-checked! Yikes!
Wednesday, 15 July 2026
How the madness began | Paul Marshall
The 100 year history of Woke in 20 minutes.
Sir Paul Marshall starts with a quote:
“My views are pretty much those of a Democrat circa 2010. But I have been demonised relentlessly”. [*]
Those are the words of Elon Musk. He didn’t leave the Democrat party. The Party left him. Other prominent ex-Democrats feel the same. Cable host Bill Maher, politician Tulsi Gabbard, Environmental campaigner Robert Kennedy.
Most Dems today don’t consider Bill Clinton a Democrat! He’s grise without the eminence.
A good summary by Marshall of how we got here. The Woke Era.
More detail? “America’s Cultural Revolution” by Christopher Rufo. “Made in America” by China’s Cultural Revolution escapee Xi Van Fleet is also a good read on this.
[*] Musk posted this in X on 16 February 2016:
“The left calls people on the right “nazis” or “fascists” when they have not even physically harmed another human being, let alone advocated genocide or war.
My actual views are pretty much those of a Democrat circa 2010, but I’ve been demonised relentlessly with the above slurs.”
 |
| The Overton Window shifts Left. Thanks, Colin Wright |
Below the fold. What the most neutral (but still obsequious) AI says about this:
Tuesday, 14 July 2026
“How China’s aerospace vision differs from Elon Musk’s SpaceX” | SCMP
 |
| China’s “net system” captures return rocket |
Classic China Cope!
SpaceX was founded in 2002, China's space industry 46 years earlier.
SpaceX landed reusable rocket in 2015, eleven years earlier than China.
SpaceX launches more per year into space than all other space nations combined.
SpaceX, a public company, launches double what the country of China launches.
SpaceX cost per kg to space one-third of Chinas Long March rockets.
SpaceX created Starlink, revolutionary worldwide internet access....
But... China relanding a booster eleven years LATER than SpaceX shows "superiority of the State Owned Model". Right…
Remember? Chinese experts — experts all over the world — said landing rockets back on earth was “impossible”. Then when SpaceX did it, the cope continued: “Oh well, Elon didn’t do it as soon as he said he would”. (!)
Elon Musk being the guy who turns “impossible” into the merely “late”. (It’s happened with Tesla, too).
SpaceX will study what China has done, but won’t copy it. “Copying is not our style”. It sure is China’s style though. Baidu, WeChat, Alibaba, Taobao, even its EVs. All copied. Mind you, they do a damn fine job of it. They often improve the original. But it’s hard to come up with a single invention from China in the 21C that’s world-changing and a household name.
All recognising China’s bright history and world-changing innovations (the compass, gunpowder, paper) in its long and remarkable history. See: Joseph Needham “Science and Civilisation in China”.
Earlier: SpaceX launches more than Rest of World.
Monday, 13 July 2026
“All non-Muslims are the enemies of Allah” | British Muslim Preacher
At a major Islamic event attended by thousands in Britain, preacher Abdur Raheem Green openly declared that non-Muslims are the enemies of Allah.
He urged his followers to “hate” those living among them who don’t share their faith.
This isn’t spiritual guidance.
This is dangerous indoctrination, and it’s spreading openly in the West. [Link]
Openly, repeatedly, forcefully, unashamedly stated, by Imams in every mosque of the United Kingdom.
Channel 4 of the BBC did a doco on this “Undercover Mosque” decades ago. It showed how violent anti-west Islamist speech was rife through mosques in the U.K.. It was ignored.
They would not dare to make the same documentary today. Because Hate Speech laws, especially under Keir Starmer, means you get arrested for saying true things about The Religion of Peace. For whom “peace” means that everyone, everywhere, submits to the will of Allah.
Sunday, 12 July 2026
"We're not afraid of the pain of failure" : SpaceX and the price of success
Wonderful doco. Inspiring.
I say this thing, which is true:
SpaceX only exists because of Elon Musk.
Who single-handedly proves the "Great Man" thesis: without this man, it wouldn't have happened.
If you doubt it, read the details of how SpaceX came to be what it is today, in Walter Isaacson's Elon Musk.
Saturday, 11 July 2026
Compilation of Democrats defending Graham Platner
 |
| Short answer to The New Yorker. No, he can’t. He’s a Nepo Nazi. Funded by mummy to Maine’s most expensive private schools. A Vet-hating Vet. Then a wastrel and a fraudulent “Oyster Farmer”. And now… a failed Senatorial candidate |
He’s got a Nazi tattoo. Smack bang right there on his chest. Not just any old Nazi tattoo, but the Totenkopf. The “Death’s Head” tattoo of the S.S., Hitler’s most enthusiastic Jew-extinguishers. Then pretended (ie, lied) that he didn’t know what it was…
Dems: He’s a Nazi? No worries. He’s a lying Nazi? Even better!
Platner is a bogus “oyster farmer”. In reality shucks a few oysters for his Mum’s restaurant.
Dems: He’s a fraud? No worries. “We’re not hiring a priest”. “Give him grace”. I mean, who cares!
Platner is a member of the Marxist-Leninist DSA.
Dems: He’s a Communist? No worries. We love communism!
Platner: “All Cops are Bastards”.
Dems: No worries. We hate cops too!
Platner: “Rural Americans are racist and stupid”.
Dems: Right on, brother! As saint Hillary said, they’re all Deplorables!
Platner: Says Purple Heart veteran Terry Daniels “doesn’t deserve to live”.
Dems: No worries, bro. We hate vets too!
Platner: Calls for theft of private property.
Dems: He wants to impoverish America? No worries. He wants to steal stuff from Republicans? Fine, as long as it’s for us, no problem.
Platner: Calls for Open Borders.
Dems: You want to illegally import Democrat voters and steal working-class job? Great!
Platner. Accused of sexual misconduct.
Dems: No! That’s beyond the pale. Resign buddy!
So he has. He’s now resigned. He steps down from the race in the crucial state of Maine. Crucial to the Dems obsession with taking back the Senate this coming mid-term.
The link here is to a compilation of Dems in complete lock-step about just a wonderful candidate Platner was. Until he wasn’t.
Sure, anyone can make a mistake supporting a candidate who turns out to be flawed. But the Dems seem to have a particular genius for picking weird heroes. Think of Lenin, Stalin, Mao. More prosaically: think how they drooled over Michael Avenatti… as a presidential candidate! Whoopi and the ladies of The View loved him! He’s now in jail. Couldn’t they see that at the time? The View? Jimmy Kimmel? All the late-nighters? I mean, even I could see it, sitting here in Hong Kong.
Then there’s James Talarico in Texas. The lads of the Ruthless pod take that apart. Here.
Friday, 10 July 2026
Trump Trolls FIFA
Trump: "I know sports very well."Also Trump: "What's a Red Card?"
The funny stuff on Trump is around 6:30.
Bridget Phetasy with her glorious, funny, unique take on the U.S. being bundled out of the World Cup by Belgium. (4-1, not even close... ).
This World Cup has been good for Football (the Soccer kind), good for America and good for the World. And it's not finished yet. E.G.:
With the U.S. and Australia out, for me it's "Go Norway!".
My pick for the finals FWIW, for someone who knows nothing about the game:
Finals on 20th July:
a. What I'd love: Norway v. Spain and Norway wins.
b. More likely: Spain v. Argentina and Spain wins.
c. The odds choose: France v Spain, and France wins.
For the record, as of today, the Odds from Paddy Power betting are:
- France 2-1
- Spain 4-1
- Argentina 4-1
- England 5-1
- Norway 15-1
Mind: Norway has this amazing Striker, Erling Haaland. He could single-footedly win for Norway.
Norway fans go crazy, (in a nice way), do Viking Row, after beating Brazil.
Thursday, 9 July 2026
Clitoral Conniptions
Which clip was all about the clitoris.
Yes, this little baby, this clit, that sometimes elusive (to men) part of the female anatomy, was the subject of mirth in Berlin’s Bundestag. Who says the Germans don't have a sense of humour?
Not that the article said anything about the substance of the parliamentary debate that led to this clitoral humour. This chucklesome clitoris. This curiously charming clitoral comedy.
So I went in search of it.
Basically, the debate was about "violence against women and girls in Germany".
A serious subject. Treated to German mirth, thusly:
Why Islam is not compatible with the West
 |
| The Short is here. |
By Benedict Beckeld.
Shorter Beckeld: Islam is both a proselytising religion, AND a political religion. In that, it’s unique amongst the Abrahamic religions.
Christianity is proselytising, but not political. (Give unto Caesar what his Caesar's and unto God what is God's)
Judaism is political, but not proselytising. It's super-hard to convert to Judaism.
Islam is both proselytising AND political. It's a totalitarian system of life. It's super-easy to convert to Islam. Once you're a Muslim you have a whole swathe of stuff you have to do, because you're Muslim. One of those is to try to convert those around you. If necessary, by war, by Jihad.
THAT's why Islam is incompatible with western societies. Which make a clear and clean distinction between the Church and the State. Between what’s private between you and whatever god you believe in; and your public duties, rights and obligations.
Wednesday, 8 July 2026
“The machine that goes Ping!” and other spinal stenosis notes
[The 3:40 version of the above clip, here]
Notes from my recent back operation at Hong Kong's Canossa Caritas hospital, 1 Stubbs Road. Where happens our son was born in August 1997, just after HK's handover to China.
Mise en scene: me, on one of those mobile trolley bed things they have in hospitals, to move the patient around. Dressed in operating gowns. Slightly dosed with relaxing drugs, I'm feeling pretty chill as we head to the Operation Theatre.
I'm feeling chill because I trust them. All the staff, the nurses, the doctors, the support staff, I trust them all. They are all super friendly, super supportive, super kind, super "give confidence" type people. I know that they have all been trained to the top international levels. I know all the equipment is the latest, world class stuff.
So, here goes. [It's kind of AI-assisted slop, but if I don't post it now, I never will. It's been sitting in my pending tray since the op last December]
The fluorescent lights of the operating theatre in Hong Kong’s Canossa hospital hummed like a lazy orchestra as the pre-op sedation wrapped my nerves in warm cotton wool. I lay on the narrow table, leads stuck to my chest, watching the monitors blink and beep. One small machine kept up a steady, almost cheeky *ping* every few seconds.
“Ah,” I slurred “I see you have… the machine that goes ping.”
Tuesday, 7 July 2026
Monday, 6 July 2026
The Universe … from Lake Forsythe
 |
| “Night sky from a lonely beach in New Zealand”. Milky Way with the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds |
Via a New Zealand sailing mate, the above photo of the Milky Way, with the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds… those smudges just off to its right.
Taken by Ekant Veer, professor at University of Canterbury, New Zealand.
Taken by Ekant Veer, professor at University of Canterbury, New Zealand.
It’s taken from Birdlings Flat, near Lake Forsythe (!) located right at the base of the Banks Peninsula just south of Christchurch.
Places my ancestors came to in the mid 19th century.
The Magellanic “Clouds” — actually galaxies — are two of our closest galactic neighbours in our Local Group of galaxies. In about a billion years they’ll merge into our own Milky Way, to become part of our spiral arms and add to the 400 billion or so Stars we already have.
I’ve looked at this very same night sky, the Milky Way, the Magellanic Clouds, from offshore East Coast Australia, in a racing yacht, Sydney-Hobart. The southern night skies are glorious.
Are we alone? Are we, mammals on Earth, alone in this vast universe? I used to think “certainly not”. We are not alone. It’s not possible. Star numbers: at least 8 x 10 with 23 zeros. And more Planets than even this vast number of Stars. What are the odds? Surely there must be life, intelligent life, elsewhere! Surely….
But maybe not. The very-very-very odd combination of random events that led to Homo Sapiens on Planet Earth may well be too random for even such a vast number of Stars and Planets to guarantee another civilisation. We may well be alone. Even if not alone, we’ll never be able to communicate with an intelligent alien species. The distances are simply too vast. The physics too brutal.
We, Homo Sapiens, are the consciousness of the universe. We are the only one we know, so far. We may very possibly the only one. Better care for it. Better nurture “the light of consciousness”.
Happy Birthday, America!
Massive Celebrations on America's 250th.
Some people and some states didn't take part because they hate Trump so much. Which doesn't make sense to me. By all means hate on Trump. But hate on your country? Because you hate one man? Weird.
What I saw recently somewhere on the socials. The distinction between Patriotism and Nationalism. Not exact, not perfect. But handy:
Patriotism: loving and supporting your country, its people and customs.
Nationalism: loving and supporting a particular regime of your country.
Seems to me those who are not celebrating America's 250th because of Trump, are confusing these two.
For China: I can love the country, the language, its food and people. Its culture. While not loving at all the Chinese Communist Party. I make the distinction. Love the country; hate the government.
That's a report above from NBC. Which used to be Trump Deranged. But is, perhaps, no longer. Or at least makes the distinction between Trump and the United States. Lots of sailing! Yay! Three cheers to the Red, White and Blue...
Happy Birthday, America!
Happy semiquincentennial, America!
Sunday, 5 July 2026
Should we be scared of AI?
Well, not of AI. As in “Artificial Intelligence”. I’m not saying we should be scared of that.
But Artificial Super Intelligence? Perhaps we need not be literally “scared”. But concerned? Yes. We ought be concerned. We ought to consider, very seriously indeed, its potential dangers.
I’m not talking Luddite stuff. Tolpuddle Martyrs stuff. I’m not talking “AI will take away my job” stuff.
I’m talking existential. As in: life threatening. As in: a threat to the survival of humanity itself.
This is not being a “retard”. Plenty of super smart people worry about it. Chief amongst them Elon Musk, himself a major owner of AI. His concern about the existential threat led to his funding OpenAI, to be public, open to public scrutiny, of understanding its dangers. But which was hijacked by Sam Altman, litigated… but that’s another story.
I’m reposting the above video I posted in February. I rewatched it last night. It’s a good summary of the issues, in short film format.
There’s a follow up to “Writing Doom”, by Suzy Shepherd: Seat at the Table
And for a deeper dive, there’s Roman Yampolskiy talking to Steven Bartlett about AI Safety: Only 5 Jobs left in 2030
There’s a non-zero chance ASI could wipe out Homo Sapiens. Perhaps a non-trivial chance.
Surely we should look at it? Discuss it? Without worrying that we’re becoming EU-apparatchik worrywarts?
Saturday, 4 July 2026
Happy Birthday, America!
“America is already great!” Gushes the Great, the Gorgeous, the patriotess, the one and only Bridget Phetasy.
Happy Birthday America! 🇺🇸 🥳
ADDED: It’s true what Bridget says. People are tuning out of politics. And so am I.
There’s too much: too much… info…confusion…uncertainty…what’s real what’s not… what’s AI what’s human….
I’ve been watching sailing videos, vids about trimarans and catamarans. About building them and sailing them. Thinking if I’m 20 years younger I’m looking to get one or the other, a Cat or a Tri. The Cat’s for comfort, the Tri’s for speed. And how much fun it would be to do all the exploration and research, to go out on sea trials of both. To do an ocean crossing, or a South China Sea crossing, on both to test them… Whoopi do!
All of that. And also watching vids on log cabin builds, on homesteading, on carpentry.
While the very smart young Coleman Hughes tells Americans: don’t listen to the Progressives, don’t hate America. It’s a wonderful country. As so many Football World Cup fans are finding out. I don’t go as far as “America is the greatest country in the world… in the history of mankind” vibe, but hyperbole aside, I sure do love America and what it stands for. We need, the west needs, America. We need it to prosper and lead.
“Celebrate Amoerica! Don’t listen to the Progressives” says Coleman. Celebrate 🥳!
Friday, 3 July 2026
Huge Worldwide Poverty Reductions
Everywhere in the world that things go better, where the poor get richer, where the rich also get richer, in every single case it’s down to capitalism. ,
“But isn’t China socialist?”. “Didn’t China have huge growth since 1980?”. Yes to both. But but…. The growth wasn’t down to socialism. It was and is, very simply, because the Communist Party allowed the market to expand. It was market expansion, aka capitalism, that grew the growth.
China has been economically successful to the exact extent that it has allowed market forces to operate.
I saw that with my own eyes on the ground in China, from the 1970s to now.
Whenever China shifts back to more Party control, growth stops or slows. We’ve seen it. I’ve seen it, lived it, experienced it.
That’s the reality of the world in the last century. Capitalism works.. Socialism doesn’t.
It’s Capitalism all the time, all the way.
Thursday, 2 July 2026
SpaceX > R.O.W.
For the Year to June 2026:
SpaceX launches: 76. Successful: 100%
Rest of World (ROW) launches: 49. Successful: 88%.
Elon Musk has done what was unthinkable, even “impossible” a decade ago. A private individual launching rockets… then a private individual launching and retrieving rockets… then a privately individual launching more rockets than the ROW combined. At 100% success. And retrieving, reusing them.
But… you know, “Elon bad”. Because he thinks, as I do, that the Democratic Party in America has gone lala-loopy crazy left, full-on Socialist. Anti-democratic hard-authoritarian Left. Not me saying this: they, the Dems, say it themselves, loud and proud.
Meanwhile. You have something you need to put in space? How do you like your odds if you don’t use SpaceX? Because you don’t like Elon. How do you like the 12% chance of losing your precious cargo…?
Wednesday, 1 July 2026
Happy "Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day"
By the way, I prefer “Happy Reunion Day”. Much simpler and just as correct. The headline phrase is typical apparatchik jargon…
From my post last year:
Happy "Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day". A Hong Kong holiday.
28 29 years ago that Hong Kong was handed over to the Chinese government, by the UK government.
In Chinese it's 回归, Hui Gui, which is much simpler and much more descriptive. It means "the return of Hong Kong to our beloved motherland".
28 29 years ago, last night, Jing and I sat in a Wanchai Bar, watching the proceedings. All the Chinese army waiting on the Shenzhen side, to cross over into Hong Kong on the stroke of midnight.
It was a very wet, rainy night. Prince Charles was here for the handover, and famously described the Chinese bureaucrats at the ceremony as "appalling old wax works". It would be good if he was as honest today about Islam in Britain as he was then about those appallling Chinese apparatchiks.
Jing was pregnant with John, who was born two weeks later.
The Chinese largely kept out of Hong Kong politics, until forced to do so by the riots of 2019. But even then, I think it's fair to say, they handled that with a light hand, given what they could have done and many people, including people here in Hong Kong, were calling for them to do.
One simple thing to note: unlike most post-colonial places, Beijing has not demanded the change of a single name of a single street or building in Hong Kong. It's still Victoria Harbour, Victoria Park, Queen Elizabeth street, Pottinger St, Des Voeux road, and so on. I'd guess there's been more renaming in Australia than here in Hong Kong.
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