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In Europe First, Netherlands to Allow Teslas to Self-Drive

01 September 2025, Brandenburg, Gruenheide: The Tesla logo is seen on a vehicle at the Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg. (dpa)
01 September 2025, Brandenburg, Gruenheide: The Tesla logo is seen on a vehicle at the Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg. (dpa)
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In Europe First, Netherlands to Allow Teslas to Self-Drive

01 September 2025, Brandenburg, Gruenheide: The Tesla logo is seen on a vehicle at the Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg. (dpa)
01 September 2025, Brandenburg, Gruenheide: The Tesla logo is seen on a vehicle at the Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg. (dpa)

In a first for Europe, the Netherlands is poised to allow Tesla owners to use their car's self-driving feature -- as long as they are in the vehicle and keeping a watchful eye over it.

The country's RDW agency for roadworthiness certifications said in a statement late Friday: "Thanks to the type approval, the driver assistance system can now be used in the Netherlands, with possible future expansion to all member states of the European Union."

The move aligns the Netherlands with what is allowed in the United States, where Tesla owners can already use the Full Self-Driving (Supervised) (FSD Supervised) function in the cars.

That mode hands over driving to the Tesla's computer system, including steering, braking, route navigation and parking, all under the active supervision of the driver, who remains at the controls ready to take over if needed.

The European subsidiary of Tesla, the electric-vehicle company run by the world's richest person, Elon Musk, hailed the Netherlands' move.

"FSD Supervised has been approved in the Netherlands & will begin rolling out in the country shortly!" it said on X.

"No other vehicle can do this. We're excited to bring FSD Supervised to more European countries soon."

The Dutch RDW agency stressed the difference between FSD Supervised, with a human remaining at the controls, and full autonomous driving.

"A vehicle with FSD Supervised is not self-driving. It is a driver assistance system, and the driver remains responsible and must always maintain control," it said.

RDW's decision has to go to the European Commission for authorization, so that its national certification has EU weight.

Tesla sales have been facing headwinds in Europe -- including in the Netherlands -- in the last couple of years.

Potential clients have turned off by Musk's political activism supporting hard-right politics in the US and Germany, while the brand is also facing increased competition from Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers.

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US Border Wall Construction Threatens Endangered Wolves, Conservationists Say

Mexican gray wolf cubs, an endangered native species, are seen in their enclosure at the Museo del Desierto in Saltillo, Mexico July 2, 2020. (Reuters)
Mexican gray wolf cubs, an endangered native species, are seen in their enclosure at the Museo del Desierto in Saltillo, Mexico July 2, 2020. (Reuters)
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US Border Wall Construction Threatens Endangered Wolves, Conservationists Say

Mexican gray wolf cubs, an endangered native species, are seen in their enclosure at the Museo del Desierto in Saltillo, Mexico July 2, 2020. (Reuters)
Mexican gray wolf cubs, an endangered native species, are seen in their enclosure at the Museo del Desierto in Saltillo, Mexico July 2, 2020. (Reuters)

For the first time in decades, a radio-collared endangered Mexican wolf crossed from the US into Mexico last week in New Mexico, a federal official said on Friday, but environmental groups warn the animal may never return due to US border wall construction.

The male wolf crossed into Chihuahua, Mexico, from a remote area of the New Mexico Bootheel, according to Aislinn Maestas, a spokesperson for the US Fish and Wildlife Service, which tracks members of the smallest and rarest subspecies of North American gray wolf, also known by its Spanish name "lobo."

Once common in the Southwestern US and Mexico, the wolf came ‌close to extinction ‌in the 1970s, exterminated by government agencies and ranchers who claimed ‌targeting ⁠the species would protect ⁠livestock.

The wolves have for millennia roamed the Bootheel's grasslands, desert and wooded mountains, traversing the migration corridor in search of prey and mates in what is now Mexico and the US

The administrations of President Donald Trump and former President Joe Biden have built a steel border wall westward across New Mexico to stem the trafficking of migrants and drugs.

Current construction of the 18- to 30-foot-high barrier in the area means last week's wolf border-crossing may be the last ever by ⁠the species, conservationist Michael Robinson said on Friday.

That would exacerbate the ‌wolf's chronic inbreeding, which has led to lower survival ‌rates for pups, as well as cancers and birth defects.

“Sealing off the Bootheel would isolate wolves and ‌other rare mammals like jaguars and ultimately make them all less likely to survive,” Robinson, ‌a senior conservation advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in an interview.

The Department of Homeland Security and its US Customs and Border Protection agency, which are responsible for border wall construction, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

DIVERSITY PROBLEM

Conservation groups and some US wildlife officials have said expansion ‌of the border wall will fragment habitats and disrupt migration routes in regions such as the Big Bend area of Texas, the ⁠San Rafael Valley ⁠of Arizona and the Otay Wilderness in California.

The Department of Homeland Security has used legal authority to override environmental laws, leading to lawsuits against barriers.

US administrations from both parties have acknowledged environmental risks but argue the barrier is necessary for national security. Officials have incorporated mitigation features like ground-level wildlife openings for small animals such as reptiles and rodents.

In the case of the Mexican wolf, mating between animals from the US and Mexico could increase critically low genetic diversity, said Cyndi Tuell, Arizona and New Mexico director at Western Watersheds Project, a conservation group.

All modern Mexican wolves are descended from just seven wolves that were successfully bred after being captured as part of a binational breeding program started in the late 1970s.

As of this year there are at least 319 wild Mexican wolves in the US, around 36 in Mexico and about 380 in captive breeding programs, according to USFWS and conservation groups.

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‘Second Life’: Vintage Fiat 500s Get Electric Makeover

Owner of the Officine Gentile garage, Giovanni Gentile (L) and a worker inspect a finished model of the Fiat 500 Jolly Lido at the Officine Gentile garage in Turin on April 30, 2026. (AFP)
Owner of the Officine Gentile garage, Giovanni Gentile (L) and a worker inspect a finished model of the Fiat 500 Jolly Lido at the Officine Gentile garage in Turin on April 30, 2026. (AFP)
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‘Second Life’: Vintage Fiat 500s Get Electric Makeover

Owner of the Officine Gentile garage, Giovanni Gentile (L) and a worker inspect a finished model of the Fiat 500 Jolly Lido at the Officine Gentile garage in Turin on April 30, 2026. (AFP)
Owner of the Officine Gentile garage, Giovanni Gentile (L) and a worker inspect a finished model of the Fiat 500 Jolly Lido at the Officine Gentile garage in Turin on April 30, 2026. (AFP)

In a workshop in Turin -- the historic home of Italian carmaker Fiat -- vintage 500 models are getting a makeover with electric engines.

Classic Fiat 500s, made between 1957 and 1975, are being brought "into the 21st century", said Giovanni Gentile, owner of Officine Gentile.

Outside the workshop, rusty hulks of the tiny, curvy cars are lined up waiting their turn.

Inside, sparks fly as workers cut and weld the metal. The cars then get re-painted, re-wired and the electric engines are installed.

The charging socket is hidden behind the vintage Fiat symbol at the front of the car.

Many of the re-vamped cars are painted in pastel colors and some are convertibles.

The retrofitted cars sell for around 40-50,000 euros, with convertibles for up to 80,000 euros.

The original Fiat 500 became a design icon and some 4.2 million models were made.

They are still popular with vintage car enthusiasts the world over and regularly attract large rallies around Italy and beyond.

The model was relaunched in 2007 with some modern tweaks and is now also sold electric.

Giorgio Pagliero, sales director at Officine Gentile, said the workshop wanted to maintain "the legacy and historic nature" of the cars while giving them "a second life".

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‘Bookless Bookstore’: Audio-Only Book Shop Opens in New York

A customer shops at the Audible Story House in New York, on April 30, 2026. The pop-up store labeled as a "bookless bookstore" is dedicated to audiobooks. (AFP)
A customer shops at the Audible Story House in New York, on April 30, 2026. The pop-up store labeled as a "bookless bookstore" is dedicated to audiobooks. (AFP)
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‘Bookless Bookstore’: Audio-Only Book Shop Opens in New York

A customer shops at the Audible Story House in New York, on April 30, 2026. The pop-up store labeled as a "bookless bookstore" is dedicated to audiobooks. (AFP)
A customer shops at the Audible Story House in New York, on April 30, 2026. The pop-up store labeled as a "bookless bookstore" is dedicated to audiobooks. (AFP)

Audiobook giant Audible opened what it billed as the first "bookless bookstore" in New York on Friday as industry statistics show more American consumers embracing the format.

There is no rustle of pages or stacks of best-selling novels at the pop-up store opened by the Amazon subsidiary on the Lower East Side in Manhattan.

"This is a physical place entirely dedicated to bringing audio storytelling to life," Audible CEO Bob Carrigan said during a press tour of the "Audible Story House" on Thursday.

It was a slightly "wild idea" which "took quite a bit of imagination," Carrigan said, adding that the month-long pop-up aims to "bring audiobooks to life in this environment where you can browse, you can connect with people."

According to the Audio Publishers Association (APA), audiobook sales reached $2.22 billion in the United States in 2024, nearly doubling over the past five years.

In the store, audiobook tablets called "story tiles" line the shelves, ready to be inserted into a player for listening through headphones.

Each tile plays a short excerpt, and the full title can be accessed on the Audible app.

The platform, which dominates the audiobook market, offers paid subscriptions, individual purchases and free access to some titles for Amazon account holders.

The venue also has a room lined with speakers for headphone-free listening, as well as a "Listening Bar" where "Story Tenders" will "guide attendees in finding the perfect audiobook for their tastes and interest," according to the press release.

The space aims to reflect the fast-growing popularity of the format as well as the "shift toward offline experiences and real-world connection."

"Audible Story House taps into the nostalgia and community feel of book culture while bringing it fully into the present," the company said.