TenSpoke

Archived board for Oct 25, 2026. See today's board.

TenSpoke · Today · Sunday, Oct 25, 2026

Musk says Ukraine broke Starlink's rules as full speeds return, and Starship's next booster is on the pad for a test fire.

Ukraine's Defense Ministry said on Oct 24 that Starlink and Starshield work at full speed again, and Musk said the limits came from Ukraine using Starlink for drone strikes. Starbase closed its beach today for a likely Booster 22 test, Texas now lists 970 Tesla robotaxis, and the FCC votes Oct 29 on more airwaves for satellite-to-phone service.

The daily context behind $TSLA and $SPCX, in plain English.

Today in 30 seconds

Words used on this page, explained
Starshield
The military version of Starlink, sold to governments.
static fire
A test where the rocket lights its engines while held down on the pad.
spectrum
The radio airwaves that phones and satellites use to talk.
FSD (Supervised)
Tesla's driver-assist software for customer cars; a driver must watch the road at all times.
agent
AI software that does multi-step tasks for you, like booking or buying, not just chatting.

01What's new today

The freshest updates first, each with what is still unknown and which bet it moves.

Neutral

Starlink speeds are back in Ukraine, and Musk says Ukraine's military broke the rules

On Oct 24, Ukraine's Defense Ministry said Starlink and Starshield stayed connected on equipment moving above 400 km/h, and Musk posted that "Ukraine military violated Starlink terms of service and used it for offensive drone strikes to kill people. That loophole was closed last week."

Read more

Musk added that Starshield, the government system, "is controlled by the US government." The same day, President Trump confirmed he had spoken to Musk, after a Wall Street Journal report that he asked Musk to ease the limits (CNBC). Ukrainian officials say the slowdown hurt drone work, and US lawmakers from both parties have asked for a probe. Still unknown: exactly who set and lifted each limit. What it means: service is back for a key customer, but the public dispute is the kind of thing other governments point to when they fund their own networks.

Affects: Bet 01 Starlink · Spoke: Starlink

Source: CNBC, Oct 24, 2026; Elon Musk on X, Oct 24, 2026

Helps

Starship's next booster is on the launch pad, with the beach closed today for testing

Booster 22, the Super Heavy first stage for Flight 15, reached Launch Pad 2 at Starbase on Oct 24, and the City of Starbase closed Boca Chica Beach and Highway 4 today, Oct 25, from 6 AM to 6 PM CT, with Monday as a backup.

Read more

Closures like this usually mean a static fire, where all 33 engines light while the booster is held down on the pad. SpaceX has not announced a test time, and a closure does not promise a test. Ship 42 also needs its own static fire before Flight 15, now planned no earlier than Nov 8, when SpaceX wants to catch both the booster and the ship with the tower. What it means: this is one of the last big ground checks before the flight that could show Starship can be fully reused.

Affects: Bet 04 Starship · Spoke: Starship

Source: NASASpaceflight on X, Oct 24, 2026; City of Starbase closure order 2026-24, checked Oct 25, 2026

Helps

Texas now lists 970 Tesla robotaxis, up 43 Cybercabs in two days

The Texas DMV's list of self-driving vehicles for Tesla Robotaxi LLC grew to 970 on Oct 25, with 463 Cybercabs and 507 Model Ys, according to the Robotaxi Pulse tracker, which reads the state's official vehicle lists.

Read more

That is up from 927 on Oct 23, and every new vehicle since then is a Cybercab. The list counts registered vehicles, not cars carrying riders, and Tesla still does not publish ride counts. The growth lands on US Grand Prix weekend, when Austin's service area reaches the track (reported).

Affects: Bet 08 Robotaxi · Spoke: FSD + Robotaxi

Source: Robotaxi Pulse (Texas DMV vehicle lists), Oct 25, 2026

Neutral

The FCC votes Oct 29 on more airwaves for satellite-to-phone service, and the big carriers want it cut back

At its Oct 29 meeting, the FCC will vote on a proposal to open another 482 MHz of spectrum for satellites that talk straight to phones, which could help Starlink Mobile.

Read more

The proposal would raise the number of bands where satellites can serve phones from five to 13. CTIA, the trade group for AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon, asked the FCC in a recent filing to drop the 2.5 GHz and 3.45 GHz bands, 290 MHz of the total, citing interference with 5G (PCMag). This vote is a proposal (a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the step that opens public comments), not final rules.

Affects: Bet 02 Starlink Mobile · Spoke: Starlink

Source: FCC Oct 29 meeting agenda, Oct 2026; PCMag, Oct 23, 2026

Hurts

Back in focus: a Tesla using FSD (Supervised) hit and killed a pedestrian on a California freeway

The California Highway Patrol said a Tesla its driver said was in FSD (Supervised) struck and killed a 71-year-old man crossing Interstate 80 in Vallejo at about 2:35 AM on Oct 22.

Read more

CHP's early look at the dashcam video shows the car at about 70 mph braking and steering left before hitting the man; at least one more vehicle then hit him and did not stop. This was a customer car with a driver at the wheel, not a Robotaxi, and FSD (Supervised) needs the driver watching at all times. Still unknown: what CHP's investigation finds and whether federal safety regulators open a review.

Affects: Bet 08 Robotaxi · Spoke: FSD + Robotaxi

Source: CBS San Francisco (CHP), Oct 22, 2026; Los Angeles Times, Oct 22, 2026

Neutral

Grok's agent app can now save logins and cards to check out for you, and Musk says agent demand is surging

An Oct 23 update lets Grok's agent app save your logins, payment cards and contact details in a Vault and fill them in to sign in or check out.

Read more

On Oct 24, Musk wrote that "Agentic demand is growing faster than I've ever seen anything grow." No new user or revenue numbers came with either; the last figure was 800,000 paid weekly users in early October (Q3 call, Oct 20). Easier checkout matters because buying things for people is one way agents can turn into paid revenue.

Affects: Bet 06 Grok and X · Spoke: Super Intelligence

Source: SpaceXSI changelog (v0.75.5), Oct 23, 2026; Elon Musk on X, Oct 24, 2026

Helps

Bolivia plans Starlink in about 4,500 to 5,000 public schools, with two years of service paid

Bolivia's President Rodrigo Paz signed deals with 85 towns in La Paz department on Oct 20 to start "Aula Conectada" (Connected Classroom), which puts Starlink dishes in mostly rural public schools.

Read more

Officials have given numbers from more than 4,500 (the presidency) to 5,000 (the education minister) dishes nationwide. The national government covers the first 24 months of service, and after that each town pays the monthly bill (Visión 360). The first phase reaches more than 73,000 students in 307 schools in La Paz. Small next to 13.6M subscribers, but it is a steady government customer that keeps paying after the free period.

Affects: Bet 01 Starlink · Spoke: Starlink

Source: Bolivia Ministry of the Presidency, Oct 22, 2026; Bolivia Ministry of Education, Oct 22, 2026; Visión 360, Oct 21, 2026

See yesterday's board

02Coming up

03The bets

Ten spokes are the big things. The bets below are a living scorecard; they change as the picture changes. Updated Oct 25, 2026. See all bets.

On track Updated Oct 2501 · $SPCX · Starlink

Starlink: the profit engine

Q3: 13.6M subscribers and $2.37B operating income. Ukraine speeds are back; Musk says Ukraine broke the rules (Oct 24).

Watch Updated Oct 2502 · $SPCX · Starlink

Starlink Mobile: become a phone carrier

FCC votes Oct 29 on more satellite-to-phone airwaves; big carriers want 290 MHz cut. US service targeted for early 2028.

Scaling Updated Oct 2403 · $SPCX · Super Intelligence

AI data centers: renting compute

Test: SpaceX's company-wide goal of $100B ARR (annual run rate: one month's revenue times 12) by year-end (December revenue x12, reported with Q4) and profit after stock pay. Q3: $7.56B revenue, $431M operating profit. $40B chip loan being repriced (reported).

Watch Updated Oct 2504 · $SPCX · Starship

Starship: cheap and routine

Booster 22 is on the pad, with a test window today (Oct 25). Flight 15, no earlier than Nov 8, tries to catch both stages.

Behind Updated Oct 2105 · $SPCX · Starmind

Orbital compute: Starmind vs Google Suncatcher

SpaceX says Starmind satellites begin flying in 2027. Nothing in orbit yet.

Watch Updated Oct 2506 · $SPCX · Super Intelligence · X

Grok and X: subscriptions and ads

Grok's agent app adds a Vault for logins and cards (Oct 23); X ad revenue up 19% to $538M in Q3.

Watch Updated Oct 2407 · $TSLA + $SPCX · Terafab

Terafab

Test chip around mid-2027, volume around Q3 2028; first Texas phase put at $16B+ and about 3,000 jobs (Rep. McCaul).

Scaling Updated Oct 2508 · $TSLA · FSD + Robotaxi

Robotaxi: driverless rides at scale

970 vehicles on the Texas Robotaxi list (Oct 25); a fatal FSD (Supervised) crash in California is under CHP investigation.

Watch Updated Oct 2209 · $TSLA · Optimus

Optimus: robots doing real work

Production started on the Fremont line; 20,000 a week is at least a year out; outside customers around end of 2027.

Watch Updated Oct 2410 · $TSLA · Tesla Vehicles · Tesla Energy

Tesla core: vehicles, Semi, energy

Q3: $1.53B free cash flow; Giga Berlin hit 7,000 Model Ys in a week; Megapacks almost sold out for 2027.