Tesla Says Cybercab Sales Will Start by Year-End as Safety Review Looms

Tesla said it will start selling its Cybercab to customers by the end of the year. Lars Moravy, Tesla’s vice president of engineering, said Cybercabs being produced today are headed to the company’s own robotaxi fleet, with customer deliveries expected to start small. The company plans to scale as it learns more about delivery, ownership, and fleet management for autonomous vehicles.

The Cybercab is a gold-hued, autonomous two-seater that lacks a steering wheel and other traditional controls. Elon Musk described the vehicle as primarily intended for transport as a service, rather than as a car people would own like other Tesla models. If Tesla’s timelines hold, third-party fleet customers could potentially operate Cybercabs before Tesla owners receive unsupervised Full Self-Driving capability in their own cars.

Tesla currently offers Full Self-Driving (Supervised), which automates many driving tasks but still requires a human driver to stay engaged and ready to take control. Musk said an unsupervised version of FSD would roll out to customers sometime in the second quarter of next year. That timing marks another delay for Tesla owners who bought or subscribed to the software earlier.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened an investigation into the Cybercab after the vehicles began operating on public streets in Austin. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards require manual controls like brake pedals, along with features such as rearview and side mirrors, and current regulations do not accommodate vehicles without manual controls. The outcome of the investigation could affect whether Tesla, or anyone else, can legally operate the Cybercab.