Tesla protesters are planning their “biggest day of action” yet, aiming for 500 demonstrations at Tesla showrooms across the world on March 29th, organizers said during a mobilizing call Wednesday.
Technology
‘Tesla Takedown’ protesters planning ‘biggest day of action’
The protests started at a handful of Tesla locations in early February, and has grown to hundreds of locations across the world, as more people have come out to demonstrate against CEO Elon Musk’s dismantling of the federal government. Waving signs and chanting slogans, the so-called Tesla Takedown protesters have become a flashpoint for opposition to Musk’s actions to eliminate federal aid programs and fire tens of thousands of government employees as the head of DOGE, or the Department of Government Efficiency.
There have also been an uptick in incidents of arson, vandalism, and violence against Tesla showrooms that, while unrelated to the protests, have led to Musk and President Donald Trump labeling them “domestic terrorism.” Other members of the Trump administration have signaled the protesters could come under scrutiny as well. Attorney General Pam Bondi promised “severe consequences on those involved in these attacks, including those operating behind the scenes to coordinate and fund these crimes.”
The hour-long call, which included actors, filmmakers, members of Congress, federal workers, academics, and journalists, tried to steer clear of Trump’s talk of “terrorism,” keeping the focus on Musk and the effort to tank the company’s stock price. Tesla’s stock has lost nearly 40 percent of its value since the beginning of the year, as poor sales and rising competition in the US and overseas have fueled growing pessimism about the company’s future.
“There is no conspiracy, there is no well-funded cabal,” said actor and filmmaker Alex Winter, who helped promote the protests early on on BlueSky. “It’s just Elon Musk who has taken Tesla down.”
Alice Hu, executive director of Planet Over Profit, said that protesters were aiming for 500 events across the world on March 29th, with demonstrations at all 277 Tesla showrooms in the US, as well as hundreds more overseas. Protesters should even feel free to demonstrate at Supercharger stations, she said.
“There is no conspiracy, there is no well-funded cabal.”
“We need to show Elon that he can throw a tantrum online because his stocks are tainting,” Hu said. “He can get Trump to put on a humiliating used car show in front of the White House. These wannabe authoritarians can try to intimidate us from exercising our First Amendment rights, but they can’t stop us from fighting back.”
Organizers were adamant that their movement was peaceful, often going out of their way to stress the nonviolent nature of the demonstrations.
“The things that we’re fighting for, we are fighting for our country,” Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Tex.) said. “We’re fighting for democracy. We’re fighting for our freedoms. And when I say fighting, I’m saying that figuratively. Obviously, everything that I am promoting is nonviolent.”
With Trump promising domestic terrorism charges for violence against Tesla, organizers advised that protesters consult attorneys to better understand the laws in their states. Some states have statutes that could be used to intimidate protesters, so its worthwhile to know what you’re up against, said Lauren Regan, executive director and senior staff attorney at the Civil Liberties Defense Center. She said in her experience, states are often hesitant to prosecute activists because there’s a strong likelihood those statutes will be found unconstitutional.
“Their goal is to just pluck a few individuals out and scare the rest of us into submission and apathy,” Regan said. “There are going to be some areas of the country that are very conservative and are gonna be hard on dissidents or activists, no matter what the timing.”
The sharp decrease in Tesla’s stock in recent weeks has clearly invigorated the protests. Several speakers spoke of Tesla’s collapse as not only possible, but likely. Micah Lee, an investigative journalist who was among a group of Twitter users to have their accounts banned by Musk shortly after his acquisition of the social platform, said that going after Tesla’s value was a “solid strategy.”
“If we kill the Tesla brand, if we drive down the stock price low enough, we can force him to sell his stock to pay back the billions of dollars of debt that he took on to buy Twitter,” Lee said. “This will drive Tesla’s stock into a death spiral.”
Musk’s status as the richest man in the world is largely thanks to Tesla’s stock price. He owns 13 percent of the company, making him the single largest shareholder. As of today, the company is worth $739 billion — down from 1.08 trillion earlier this year, meaning Musk’s stake is worth about $96 billion. And Tesla’s board of directors is composed of close friends and relatives, raising concerns about its independence from the controversial CEO. Several board members, including chair Robyn Denholm and James Murdoch, have sold over $100 million in Tesla stock in recent weeks.
“This will drive Tesla’s stock into a death spiral.”
But it’s not clear that hurting Tesla will actually matter much to Musk. He remains in Trump’s good graces, and is wielding vast amounts of control within the federal government. Even if these protests can seriously affect Tesla, Musk has consolidated so much political power that, after a certain point, it’s not clear whether market forces still apply as strongly.
Musk’s love of memes — he recently quipped “I am become meme” at CPAC — is a sign that the world’s richest man is living in a different reality than most people, which could be an advantage, said Joan Donovan,
an assistant professor of journalism and emerging media studies at Boston University who studies media manipulation, disinformation, and online political movements.
“He thinks of himself as this black hat hacker that’s broken into the government and socially engineered his way into the Treasury and he’s gonna abscond with all the data, it’s an obvious data heist,” Donovan said. “But he believes he’s living in a meme, and so we need to be very clear about what our demands are, about what our bright lines are, and that we’re not gonna stop until Tesla is done with Musk.”
Someone has responded to YouTuber Mark Rober’s Tesla fake wall test with a video that also tries to address the question of whether the company’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) features would detect a Wile E. Coyote-style road obstruction in the real world. Creator Kyle Paul posted his video Thursday and included two Teslas with FSD: a Model Y equipped with a HW3 computer and a Cybertruck that comes with the latest HW4 / AI4 system and cameras, Not a Tesla App reports.
In the original video, Rober, an engineer who went viral after his package thief glitter bombs videos, tested whether Tesla’s camera-based Full Self-Driving (FSD) system can automatically stop before plowing through a wall painted as a road stretching into the horizon. It didn’t, people raised (many) questions, and we tried to answer a few of them.
In Paul’s video, the Tesla Model Y with confirmed FSD (in this case, version 12.5.4.2) didn’t fare better than Rober’s — he had to manually stop the vehicle before it crashed into the fake wall that, to my human eyes, doesn’t look quite as convincing. Not all is lost for Tesla, though, as Paul’s test of the Cybertruck with FSD version 13.2.8 had a better ending. It detected the wall and slowed down to a complete stop.
You can watch both videos for yourself, whether it’s to check the science or just to take note of how many people have the means to build real-world Looney Tunes ACME walls.
Voice notes are an incredibly convenient way to capture ideas, reminders or important information without needing to type or write. Whether you’re using an iPhone or an Android device, we’ll walk you through the steps to record voice notes effortlessly.
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A man recording voice notes on his phone (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Recording voice notes on your iPhone
Want to easily capture and organize voice notes on your iPhone? Here’s how you can do it in just a few simple steps using the Notes app. We captured the images below on an iPhone 15 Pro running iOS 18.3.1.
Step 1: Open the Notes app
- Swipe down from the top of your screen and type Notes in the search bar
- Tap on the Notes app to open it
Steps to record voice notes on your iPhone (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Step 2: Create a new note
- Tap the compose icon (a square with a pencil) at the bottom right corner to create a new note
Steps to record voice notes on your iPhone (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Step 3: Start recording
- With your note open, tap the paperclip icon above the keyboard
- From the menu that appears, select Record Audio
- Press the large red button to begin recording your voice
Steps to record voice notes on your iPhone (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Step 4: Stop and save your recording
- Tap the red button again to stop recording
- You can play back your recording using the play button
- To view a transcript, tap the speech bubble icon in the bottom left corner of your screen
Steps to record voice notes on your iPhone (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
- Words will be highlighted as they play, making it easy to review
Steps to record voice notes on your iPhone (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
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Step 5: Edit and share
- To rename your recording, tap the three-dot menu in the upper-right corner
- Select Rename
- Type a new name
Steps to record voice notes on your iPhone (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
- Next, click return
- Then, tap Done
- Share your recording by tapping the share icon
Steps to record voice notes on your iPhone (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
- Then, choose options like AirDrop, Messages or Mail to share it
Steps to record voice notes on your iPhone (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
This feature is especially useful for creating searchable transcripts directly within your notes, making it ideal for meetings or lectures.
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Recording voice notes on your Android
Want to quickly capture your thoughts or important moments on your Android? Here’s how you can easily record voice notes using a simple voice recorder app. We captured the images below on a Galaxy S24 Ultra.
Settings may vary depending on your Android phone’s manufacturer.
Step 1: Locate or install a Voice Recorder app
- Open your app drawer and search for Voice Recorder
- Or click the search bar and type Voice Recorder
- If it’s not pre-installed, download a voice recorder app from the Google Play Store
Steps to record voice notes on your Android (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Step 2: Start and stop recording
- Open the Voice Recorder app
- Tap the red record button at the bottom of your screen to begin recording
- Tap the stop button when you’re done speaking
Steps to record voice notes on your Android (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Step 3: Save your recording
- Then, next to the record button, tap the black square
- Type a name for your recording
- Tap Save
Steps to record voice notes on your Android (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Step 4: Playback
- Tap it from the list of saved recordings to listen to your recording
- Press play
Steps to record voice notes on your Android (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Step 5: Share
- To share it, tap on your recording
- Then select the three-dot menu in the upper-right corner
- Click the Share icon
- Choose your preferred method of sharing, such as Messages, Email or Google Drive
Steps to record voice notes on your Android (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
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Kurt’s key takeaways
Recording voice notes is a simple way to stay organized and capture ideas on the go. Whether you’re using an iPhone or an Android, these steps will ensure you never lose track of important thoughts. With just a few taps, you can save time and boost productivity while keeping all your notes easily accessible.
Do you prefer traditional written notes, or do you think voice notes are easier and more convenient for capturing ideas, reminders or important information on the go? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact.
For more of my tech tips and security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading to Cyberguy.com/Newsletter.
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Bigscreen has just revealed the Beyond 2, a custom-fit virtual-reality headset with a 116-degree field of view it claims is wider than the Meta Quest 3 and Valve Index. The wired headset weighs just 107 grams (~3.8 ounces) and starts at $1,019, but you’ll have to pay extra if you want eye-tracking capabilities.
The Bigscreen Beyond 2 is compatible with SteamVR base stations and comes with the same micro-OLED displays as its predecessor, offering a 5120 x 2560 resolution and up to 90Hz refresh rate. However, Bigscreen says the Beyond 2 has upgraded pancake optics offering “edge-to-edge clarity,” improved brightness, and less glare. It also lets you adjust the position of each lens separately, allowing it to match the distance between your pupils.
There’s also a Beyond 2e, which starts at $1,219 and tracks the movement of your eyes with “incredibly tiny camera sensors the size of a grain of sand.” This can come in handy if you want your virtual avatar in apps like VRChat to reflect your eye movement.
You can still use an iPhone XR or newer to create a 3D scan of your face, allowing Bigscreen to make a custom-fit face cushion. Alternatively, if you don’t have an iPhone, the Bigscreen Beyond 2 now offers a universal-fit Halo mount and cushion.
The Beyond 2 and Beyond 2e are available to order now with black, orange, and clear cover shells. Shipments are expected to arrive in June 2025.
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