Musk rolls out Cybercab after mixed Tesla results
Tesla boss Elon Musk has confirmed production of the firm’s long-awaited Cybercab robotaxi has begun, as the car giant doubles down on AI and autonomy following a mixed set of quarterly results.
Speaking on Tesla’s first quarter 2026 earnings call, Musk said: “We have just started production of Cybercab.”
He also shared a short promotional video on X showing the driverless car rolling off the line at Tesla’s Texas factory and onto public roads, as well as footage of multiple gold Cybercabs driving in formation.
Slow start expected
Despite the launch, Musk previously cautioned that production would ramp up incrementally.
“Whenever you have a new product with a completely new supply chain”, he said, “its always a stretched out S-curve”.
“You should expect that initial production of Cybercab and Semi will be very slow, but then ramping up towards the end of the year”.
The Cybercab – a two-seat robotaxi with no streeing wheel or pedals – is being built at Tesla’s Giga Texas site, with early units already rolling off the production line. Continuous production began this month after intitial builds earlier in the year.
Tesla’s VP of vehicle engineering, Lars Moravy, also confirmed the model will not be subject to US regulatory caps that have constrained rival autonomous vehicle programmes.
Unlike competitors like Waymo or Cruise, which require exemptions from US safety rules, Tesla has designed its Cybercab to comply with existing federal standards – allowing it to scale production without the typical annual limit.
The firm said it remains on track to reach “volume production” of both the Cybercab and its electric Semi truck later this year.
Tesla results underline shift from cars to AI
The rollout comes just days after Tesla reported a mix first-quarter update, reflecting the tension between its current performance and long-term ambitions.
The firm posted earnings of 41 cents per share, ahead of expectations, but revenue of $22.39bn (£16.6bn) came in slightly below forecasts.
Shares initially rose before falling back after Musk showed an increase in spending on AI and robotics, with capital expenditure expected to exceed $25bn this year.
Musk has increasingly positioned Tesla as an AI and robotics firm, with robotaxis central to that strategy.
“90 per cent of miles driven are with one or two people”, he said, “you’d want a vast majority of your production to be Cybercab.”
Autonomy still a key hurdle at Tesla
However, the Cybercab’s success will hinge on unsupervised autonomous driving, a challenge Tesla has yet to fully solve.
Musk said fully driverless full self-driving could reach customers “probably Q4” this year, though timelines for the technology have historically slipped.
Recent data shows Tesla’s supervised robotaxi systems still lag human drivers on safety metrics, with higher crash rates and occasional issues like vehicles either hesitating or getting stuck.
The Cybercab programme has also seen internal turnover, with several senior leaders departing in recent months.
Tesla’s push into robotaxis comes as competition intensifies in its core electric vehicle business, with rivals such as BYD gaining ground globally.
While vehicle deliveries rose modestly in the first quarter, they missed expectations, and the company produced more cars than it sold, adding to inventory pressures.