DOMINANT ANGLE
Islamabad first notes the engineering feat: a SpaceX thruster-powered Roadster spinning in the air, presented with its three versions and quantified performance.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
Tesla unveiled the Roadster on Thursday, October 15, 2026, near Waco (Texas); it drove upside down on an incline by suction, rotated in mid-air, and jumped over a truck thanks to SpaceX's thrusters.
- 02
Production is announced for 2028, price unknown; deposits of $50,000 (Performance) and $250,000 (Thrust), with the Rocket version by invitation only.
- 03
Gene Munster (Deepwater) sees it as "an engineering flex with no commercial value" and an argument to bring Tesla and SpaceX closer, just a few days before the third-quarter results.
ANALYSIS
Islamabad, October 16, 2026. The two Pakistani media outlets, Geo News and ARY News, treat the Roadster as a technical spectacle before making it a stock market subject. Geo describes, in a text dated October 16, a white two-seater vehicle, "developed in collaboration" with SpaceX, which drove upside down on a ramp thanks to a suction system, turned in the air, then jumped over a truck and other vehicles while twisting in mid-air. Tesla presented the vehicle on Thursday, October 15, 2026, and announces production in 2028, more than ten years after the first new-generation version.
ARY News, under the pen of Kumail Shah, locates the event near Waco, Texas, and reports Elon Musk's formula: "the best of the last of the human-driven cars". The channel lists the three versions: Performance, approved for the road, Thrust, designed for the track with rear propellers that give a 0 to 60 mph in less than a second, and Rocket, a single-seater with ten cold gas propellers, reserved by invitation. The three announce 300 miles of autonomy and more than 230 miles per hour. Reservations are open, with a $50,000 deposit for the Performance and $250,000 for the Thrust; the final price remains unknown. Vice President Lars Moravy explains that the system uses 600 liters of compressed air stored in the carbon fiber structure.
Geo News adds the financial aspect. Gene Munster, from Deepwater Asset Management, judges on X that it was "an engineering flex with no commercial value", and sees it as another argument for merging Tesla and SpaceX, a fusion that some observers imagine is wanted by Musk. The media recalls that he qualified the car in 2023 as a "small potato situation" for the group's finances, while analyst Seth Goldstein, from Morningstar, sees it as Tesla's future "halo car". This comes just a few days before the third-quarter results, which analysts consider more decisive for investors, as the manufacturer turns to autonomous driving and robotics.
ARY concludes on a note of caution: many tech and automotive players are questioning the safety of these devices and the realism of the schedule. Neither of the two texts deals with a Pakistani market or a local issue: the story remains that of an American showcase, read for its figures and mechanics.
