Tesla vehicles will soon be able to speak to pedestrians – here’s a preview from Elon Musk

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What a time to be alive, we’ve got pocket computers, flying vehicles, and soon – cars that can talk. Yes, actually talk, not just read out your text messages and emails. See, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is a bit of a maverick and went onto Twitter over the weekend to show off the latest upcoming software update for Tesla vehicles.

That update? You’ll be able to let your car do the talking, with anything from gentle reminders that your oh-so-silent EV is behind someone in the carpark, to letting riders know their Uber is here. Nifty.

You’ll soon be able to let your Tesla holla at passers-by

Teslas will soon talk to people if you want. This is real. pic.twitter.com/8AJdERX5qa

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 12, 2020

In the clip Musk posted to Twitter, you can clearly hear the Tesla Model 3 tell the cameraperson, “Well, don’t just stand there staring. Hop in.” Truly, what a time to be alive. All of us who grew up in the ’80s watching Knight Rider have been eagerly awaiting this day.

• This is likely the speaker system used for new regulations for electric cars that start later this year, which need to play an alert noise under 18.5 mph so pedestrians can hear them coming
• Tesla will likely use the same system when its autonomous taxi service comes into play, whenever that is

While this message was clearly a PR stunt, it does raise questions about when the feature rolls out. Will there be pre-set messages? Will drivers get to compose their own missives? The Monty Python loving CEO also dropped this bomb, that the car will be able to “fart in [pedestrians’] general direction.” Beats being “coal rolled,” I guess.

What do you think? Is this a feature you think should be made available on Tesla vehicles? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• I don’t get it either, but soon you’ll be able to play Stardew Valley in your Tesla
• Elon Musk wants you to rent his solar roof panels for only $50 a month
• Tesla’s Cybertruck is some sort of absurd, money-collecting geometrical fallacy
• Ford’s first all-electric vehicle is seriously going to give Tesla a run for its money

Joe Rice-Jones

Maker, meme-r, and unabashed geek with nearly half a decade of blogging experience at KnowTechie, SlashGear and XDA Developers. If it runs on electricity (or even if it doesn't), Joe probably has one around his office somewhere, with particular focus in gadgetry and handheld gaming. Shoot him an email at joe@knowtechie.com.