Allegations that Tesla mishandled hazardous waste point to a systemic failure at the company’s California facilities. This was no simple accident or one-off event.
Technology
How bad is Tesla’s hazardous waste problem in California?
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/11423503/acastro_180524_1777_tesla_0001.jpg?ssl=1 "How bad is Tesla’s hazardous waste problem in California?")
No less than 25 counties sued Tesla this week for allegedly illegally disposing of hazardous waste. Within a couple days, the Elon Musk-led company agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle the suit that says the company “intentionally” and “negligently” disposed of materials that should have been handled with care.
Waste management experts tell The Verge that a large company like Tesla should have known better. On top of the trouble it’s facing in California, the company might even have run afoul of federal regulations for handling hazardous waste.
“That’s pretty egregious in my book.”
The California counties accuse Tesla of violating state health and safety codes by disposing or “caus[ing] the disposal of” hazardous waste at places that aren’t actually authorized to accept the materials. The suit alleges that the company tossed some of it in dumpsters or compactors; the waste could then wind up in a landfill not permitted to take in hazardous substances. It also says Tesla “failed to determine” if waste generated at its facilities was hazardous, “failed to properly mark, label, and store” hazardous waste at its facilities, and didn’t comply with record-keeping requirements or properly train employees on how to handle the materials.
“That’s pretty egregious in my book,” says Christopher Kohler, an adjunct instructor at Indiana University who is an expert on hazardous waste, environmental remediation, and chemical hygiene. “These rules and regulations have been around for gosh… almost 50 years, and they should know better by now.”
The complaint names 101 facilities across California that generated hazardous waste including: used lubricating oils, brake fluids, lead acid batteries, aerosols, antifreeze, waste solvents, paint, e-waste, and other “contaminated debris.”
These are pretty common types of waste, according to Kohler. Nevertheless, their disposal is regulated because of the risks these substances can pose when mishandled. Lead and chlorinated solvents are toxic, oils are flammable, and acids are corrosive, Kohler points out.
Investigators with the San Francisco District Attorney’s office started “undercover inspections” of trash containers at Tesla’s car service centers in 2018. They found “the illegal disposal of numerous used hazardous automotive components (i.e., lubricating oils, brake cleaners, lead acid and other batteries, aerosols, antifreeze, waste solvents and other cleaners, electronic waste, waste paint, and debris contaminated with the above),” according to the DA’s office. After that, investigators from other counties also started rifling through Tesla’s trash and found similar “unlawful disposals.” At Tesla’s Fremont factory, investigators also found welding spatter waste, waste paint mix cups, and wipes / debris contaminated with primer unlawfully chucked into the trash.
Lead and chlorinated solvents are toxic, oils are flammable, and acids are corrosive
“I have no idea of the motives or reason for the incorrect disposal. It would seem like a breakdown in a hazardous waste management plan,” Treavor Boyer, environmental engineering program chair at Arizona State University, writes to The Verge in an email.
Big companies typically have a waste professional on hand to determine how to handle these kinds of substances at their facilities, Kohler tells The Verge. He says it seems like Tesla lacked this and neglected to put proper company policies and procedures in place at its service centers.
Take lead acid batteries from motor vehicles, for instance, made up of primarily — you guessed it — lead and acid. It’s illegal in most states to dump them in the trash. They might corrode and release lead, which can escape a landfill and go on to pollute the surrounding environment and even drinking water sources, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Leaking batteries can also pose risks to workers at landfills, incinerators, and transfer stations. Incinerating the batteries might even release lead into the air. Lead is a known neurotoxin that’s especially dangerous to children.
Lead acid batteries in particular are supposed to be recycled, and the lead can be reused in new batteries. Other materials might need to be sent to a hazardous waste landfill that has double the plastic lining in place as a typical sanitary landfill in order to protect groundwater from anything that might otherwise leach into it. Moreover, materials need to be treated and show characteristics of being “non-hazardous” before they can even head to a hazardous waste landfill. It takes extra work to make these kinds of arrangements, which can be more expensive than handling less risky refuse.
When it comes to Tesla’s handling of these kinds of materials in California, “The situation seems to be a violation of RCRA [short for the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act] which is the federal regulation for managing hazardous waste,” Boyer writes. However, California mandates are more stringent than federal waste regulation.
The Verge reached out to the EPA to ask whether it is investigating Tesla for violating the law and, if so, whether the company might face any federal penalties. A spokesperson for the EPA said in an email that, “Due to ongoing litigation, EPA cannot comment on this case.”
Tesla didn’t respond to a request for comment from The Verge; it didn’t acknowledge any wrongdoing on its part in the settlement.
The settlement includes a five-year injunction during which Tesla will have to comply with measures including annual third-party waste audits and mandatory training for employees. The San Francisco DA’s office says Tesla “cooperated” with its investigation and “took steps to improve its compliance with the environmental protection laws brought to its attention by the prosecutors. After Tesla was notified of the issues, they began quarantining and screening trash containers for hazardous waste at all of its service centers before trash was brought to the landfill.”
Other automakers have terrible track records with hazardous waste
In 2022, Tesla agreed to pay $275,000 in a settlement with the EPA over violations of the Clean Air Act at its Fremont factory. Tesla also had to pay a $31,000 penalty as part of a settlement with the agency in 2019 for storing hazardous waste at its Fremont factory without a required permit.
The EPA also found that Tesla didn’t maintain enough aisle space for the safe movement of personnel through the main area where it stored hazardous waste, and violated air emission standards for three leaking transmission lines. It also spotted two open 55-gallon containers of hazardous waste with “no gasket or locking mechanism,” and that the company failed to “promptly clean up” flammable paint and solvent mixtures that leaked from transmission lines or pumps.
Other automakers have terrible track records with hazardous waste. GM agreed to pay a $773 million settlement in 2010 with the US, 14 states, and the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe over “environmental liabilities” including hazardous waste at its properties. In 2022, New Jersey sued Ford for dumping toxic paint sludge and contaminating “hundreds of acres of soil, water, wetlands” and state-recognized tribal lands of the Ramapough Lenape Nation.
“Today’s settlement against Tesla, Inc. serves to provide a cleaner environment for citizens throughout the state by preventing the contamination of our precious natural resources when hazardous waste is mismanaged and unlawfully disposed,” San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said in a Thursday press release.
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Microsoft Edge is adding a new feature that will allow its Copilot AI chatbot to gather information from all of your open tabs. When you start a conversation with Copilot, you can ask the chatbot questions about what’s in your tabs, compare the products you’re looking at, summarize your open articles, and more.
In its announcement, Microsoft says you can “select which experiences you want or leave off the ones you don’t.” The company is retiring Copilot Mode as well, which could similarly draw information from your tabs but offered some agentic features, like the ability to book a reservation on your behalf. Microsoft has since folded these agentic capabilities into its “Browse with Copilot” tool.
Several other AI features are coming to Edge, including an AI-powered “Study and Learn” mode that can turn the article you’re looking at into a study session or interactive quiz. There’s a new tool that turns your tabs into AI-powered podcasts as well, similar to what you’d find on NotebookLM, and an AI writing assistant that will pop up when you start entering text on a webpage.
You can also give Copilot permission to access your browsing history to provide more “relevant, high-quality answers,” according to Microsoft. Copilot in Edge on desktop and mobile will come with “long-term memory” as well, which can tailor its responses based on your previous conversations. And, when you open up a new tab, you’ll see a redesigned page that combines chat, search, and web navigation, along with the Journeys feature, which uses AI to organize your browsing history into categories that you can revisit.
Meanwhile, an update to Edge’s mobile app will allow you to share your screen with Copilot and talk through the questions about what you’re seeing. Microsoft says you’ll see “clear visual cues” when Copilot is active, “so you know when it’s taking an action, helping, listening, or viewing.”
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If you bought a newer iPhone because Apple made Siri sound like it was about to become your personal artificial intelligence sidekick, you may want to pay attention.
Apple has agreed to pay $250 million to settle a class-action lawsuit over claims that it misled customers about new Apple Intelligence and Siri features. The case centers on the iPhone 16 launch and certain iPhone 15 models that were marketed as ready for Apple’s next wave of AI. The settlement still needs court approval, and Apple denies wrongdoing.
The lawsuit argues that Apple promoted a smarter, more personal Siri before those features were actually available. For some buyers, that was a big deal. A new iPhone can cost hundreds of dollars, and many people upgrade only when they think they are getting something meaningfully new.
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WHY IPHONE USERS ARE THE NEW PRIME SCAM TARGETS
U.S. buyers of certain iPhone 16 and iPhone 15 Pro models may qualify for payments if a judge approves Apple’s proposed settlement. (Getty Images)
What Apple is accused of promising
Apple introduced Apple Intelligence in June 2024 and promoted it as a major step forward for iPhone, iPad and Mac. A key part of that pitch was a more personalized Siri that could understand context, work across apps and help with everyday tasks in a more useful way.
The lawsuit claims Apple’s marketing made consumers believe those advanced Siri features would arrive with the iPhone 16 or soon after. Instead, buyers received phones that had some Apple Intelligence tools, but not the full Siri overhaul that many expected.
That gap is the heart of the case. Plaintiffs say customers bought or upgraded devices based on AI features that were not ready. Apple says it has rolled out many Apple Intelligence features and settled the case, so it can stay focused on its products.
How much money could iPhone owners get?
The proposed settlement creates a $250 million fund. Eligible customers who file approved claims are expected to receive at least $25 per eligible device. That amount could rise to as much as $95 per device, depending on how many people file claims and other settlement factors.
That means this will not be a huge payday for most people. Still, if you bought one of the covered phones, it may be worth watching for a claim notice. A few minutes of paperwork could put some money back in your pocket.
Which iPhones may qualify?
The proposed settlement covers U.S. buyers who purchased any iPhone 16 model, iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max between June 10, 2024, and March 29, 2025.
Covered iPhone 16 models include the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max and iPhone 16e. The settlement also includes the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, but not every iPhone 15 model.
The key details are the device model, the purchase date and whether the phone was bought in the United States.
HOW YOU CAN GET A SLICE OF APPLE’S $250M IPHONE SETTLEMENT
Apple has agreed to pay $250 million to settle claims it misled customers about Apple Intelligence and Siri features on newer iPhones. (Michael Nagle/Bloomberg)
How will you file a claim?
You do not need to do anything immediately. The settlement still needs a judge’s approval. Once the claims process opens, eligible customers are expected to receive a notice by email or mail with instructions on how to file through a settlement website.
That notice matters because scammers love moments like this. A real settlement notice should not ask for your Apple ID password, bank login or payment to claim your money. If you receive a message about this settlement, do not click blindly. Go slowly, check the sender and look for the official settlement administrator details once they are available.
Why this case matters beyond one Siri feature
This case hits a bigger nerve. Tech companies are racing to sell AI as the next must-have feature. That creates a problem for shoppers. You are often asked to buy now based on what a company says will arrive later.
That can be frustrating when the feature is the reason you upgraded. A smarter Siri sounds useful. A phone that can understand your personal context, search across apps and help with daily tasks could save time. But if those tools are delayed, limited or missing, the value of the upgrade changes.
This settlement also sends a message about AI marketing. Companies can talk about future features, but consumers need clear timing and plain explanations. “Coming soon” can mean very different things when you are spending $800, $1,000 or more.
We reached out to Apple for comment, but did not hear back before our deadline.
FIRST 15 THINGS TO DO OR TRY FIRST WHEN YOU GET A NEW IPHONE
Apple denies wrongdoing but agreed to settle claims tied to its marketing of Apple Intelligence and Siri features. (Qilai Shen/Bloomberg)
What this means to you
If you bought a covered iPhone during the settlement period, keep an eye on your email and regular mail. You may qualify for a payment if the court approves the deal.
You should also keep your receipt or proof of purchase if you have it. Your Apple purchase history, carrier account or retailer receipt may help if the claim process asks for details.
More broadly, this is a reminder to treat AI features like any other big tech promise. Before you upgrade, ask one simple question: Can the feature do what is being advertised today, or is the company asking me to wait?
That question can save you from buying a device for a future feature that may arrive much later than expected.
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Kurt’s key takeaways
Apple has built its brand on making technology feel polished, personal and easy to use. That is why this Siri settlement hits a nerve. People were buying phones they use every day for texts, photos, directions, reminders and everything in between. Many expected AI to make those everyday tasks easier, which is why the delay felt frustrating. The proposed payout may be modest, but the bigger issue is trust. When a company sells AI as a reason to upgrade, customers deserve to know what actually works now and what is still coming later.
Would you still buy a new phone for promised AI features, or would you wait until they actually show up? Let us know by writing to us at CyberGuy.com.
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Instagram is once again cribbing from competitors like Snapchat and BeReal with a new photo-sharing format it calls “Instants,” which are ephemeral photos that you can’t edit and that you can only share with your close friends or followers that follow you back. Instants are available globally beginning on Wednesday as a feature in the inbox in the Instagram app and as a separate app that’s now in testing in select countries.
To access Instants from the Instagram app, go to your DM inbox and look in the bottom-right corner for an icon or a stack of photos. After you post a photo, your friends can emoji react to it and send a reply to your DMs, but after they see it, the photo disappears for them. Instants also disappear after 24 hours, and they can’t be captured in screenshots or screen recordings.
However, your Instants will remain in an archive for you for up to a year, and you can reshare them as a recap to your Instagram Stories if you’d like. You can also undo sending an Instant right after you post it or delete it from your archive.
The Instants mobile app, which popped up in Italy and Spain in April, gives you “immediate access to the camera” and only requires an Instagram account, Instagram says. “Instants you share on the separate app will show up for friends on Instagram and vice versa. We’re trying this separate app out to see how our community uses it, and we’ll continue to evolve it as we learn more.”
Instagram, in its testing, has seen that people “tend to use Instants to share much more casual, much more authentic moments about their day,” according to Instagram boss Adam Mosseri. “And we know that this type of sharing of personal moments with friends is a core part of what makes Instagram Instagram, but we also know that a lot of people don’t really share a lot to their profile grids anymore.”
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