Elon Musk’s unveiling of self-driving taxi prototypes disappointed some Tesla investors, as many expected more details on how the automaker might carry out its latest predictions about robot cars.
The lack of details caused Tesla shares to fall as much as 8 percent when markets opened this Friday.
Tesla’s CEO unveiled a two-seat sedan called Cybercab last night. He also said that production could begin in 2026 and that the vehicle could cost less than $30,000. Musk took a ride in one of the cars on the way to the stage at the automaker’s event in Burbank, California. It also showed off a futuristic-looking robovan concept that it said could carry up to 20 people, as well as updated versions of Tesla’s humanoid robot, called Optimus.
But the event did not address how Tesla will make the leap from selling advanced driver-assist features to fully autonomous vehicles. Musk’s presentation lacked technical details and ignored topics such as regulation or whether the company will own and operate its own fleet of Cybercabs.
The stock had soared nearly 70% since mid-April, largely in anticipation of the robotaxi. Tesla has a history of missing deadlines Musk has offered for all sorts of future products, and has struggled to meet its self-driving forecasts. The CEO told investors in 2019 that Tesla would have more than a million robotaxis on the road by the following year. The company has not deployed a single autonomous vehicle in the years since. “The only thing specific was the $30,000 for a Cybercab,” said Nancy Tengler, CEO of Laffer Tengler Investments and a Tesla investor who attended the event. “All the concepts were great. What if the idea is great? Absolutely.” Tesla has for years sold a set of features marketed as Full Self-Driving, or FSD, that require constant monitoring and do not make its vehicles autonomous. Musk said yesterday that the company hopes Model 3 and Model Y owners in Texas and California will no longer need to monitor those features sometime next year. While the CEO offered a rough idea of when the Cybercab might be ready, he did not say when Tesla will manufacture the robovan. Musk told the crowd gathered at the Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. movie studios that consumers will be able to buy the Cybercab, and then offered a cautious response when an attendee asked when it will be available. “Probably, well I tend to be a little optimistic about the timelines, but in 2026,” Musk said. “Before 2027, let me put it this way.” Analysts said before the event that they expected Tesla to share additional information about the more affordable models Musk has announced for the first half of next year. However, the CEO did not offer any such update, casting further doubt on the company’s vehicle sales prospects. The automaker needs to deliver a record number of cars and trucks in the coming months to avoid the first annual decline in its history.
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